Pure and undefiled religion before God and the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their trouble, and to keep oneself unspotted from the world (James 1:27).
What does Jesus want you to focus on in your service to Him?
We have enormous Christian liberty to serve God. But Jesus has also given us areas upon which to focus. So what kinds of activities does Jesus emphasize?
The big one is love.
Love your neighbors.
And in many parts of the world, people are surrounded by orphans.
That is true of Kenya, where there may be as many as 3.6 million orphans in the country.
If you admire the ministry of George Muller, the Plymouth Brethren man who started a series of orphanages in 19th century England, you might be interested in a documentary called Mully (watch here or here) which tells the story of a Kenyan man named Charles Mully.
I won’t spoil the story, but here’s the setup. Mully’s family abandoned him at six years old, and he spent the next decade as an orphan begging in the streets. Then, at seventeen, he had a religious experience in a church (it’s not clear what he believed) and soon found a job washing dishes for an Indian family. From there, he progressed from job to job until he saved enough to buy a taxi. He soon turned it into a fleet of taxis. After that, Mully expanded into tire shops, real estate, and oil and gas, making him a multi-millionaire.
Life was good.
His growing family was happy.
Then everything changed.
After a crisis experience, Mully announced to his family that God convicted him to do something about orphans in Kenya. And that’s when the story really takes off.
Although the movie focuses on Charles Mully’s personal journey, I think his wife, Esther, is the underrated hero of the story.
As I watched, it struck me as unfair that the burden of her husband’s choices seemed to fall squarely on Esther’s lap. But my opinion changed as I watched her initial skepticism about Mully’s plans give way to her choice to see them through. Esther goes from having servants to being a servant to the orphaned children her husband brings to their home day after day. Why did she put up with it? “I love my husband,” is her simple answer.
If Charles Mully is an example of a “visionary” who puts everything on the line to serve God, then his wife, Esther, is an example of the sacrificial servant who gets the ministry done.
Few of us are like Charles Mully. But all Christians should be like his wife, Esther, i.e., faithful and focused on the ministry before us.
