Am I My Brother’s Keeper?

Am I My Brother’s Keeper?

  "Then the LORD said to Cain, "Where is Abel your brother? "  

He said, "I do not know. Am I my brother's keeper?" Genesis 4:9

            You might ask yourself this question if anyone in your family is ill and needs help.  It may be inconvenient, you may feel you are too busy, or you just don’t want to take care of someone else.  Let me share this scripture with you:   “But those who won’t care for their relatives, especially those in their own household, have denied the true faith. Such people are worse than unbelievers.” 1 Timothy 5:8 (NLT)  ‘Relatives’ cover quite a wide group of people; not just parents, but grandparents, aunts & uncles, in-laws, and sisters and brothers.

           You may think you can’t do this, but you are missing the biggest blessing of your life to not try it.  There are some people I know who will immediately answer ‘Yes’ if you were to ask them if they felt they were there ‘brothers keeper’.  I admire them so much and I am going to tell a little of their response to this (no names).

            The first one is a woman who has worked hard her entire life, but has always had room to help those who couldn’t help themselves.  She has a sister who has been battling cancer for a long time.  She had retired from her last job and enjoyed visiting friends when her sister was diagnosed with cancer.  She dropped everything to be by her sister’s side.  For months, she has spent most days of the week taking care of her sister; taking her back and forth for treatments, boosting her spirits and encouraging her not to give up.  Giving up is not in this woman’s vocabulary. I’ve watched this woman unselfishly give her all to be there and nothing has moved her to do anything else.  What a woman; bless her greatly Lord.

            The second one still had a family at home, gave up her time for her mother-in-law.  She moved her into her home; made her bedroom a place of beauty and comfort.  She put all her mother-in-laws favorite things around her so she would feel at home.  She bathed her, brushed her teeth, took her for perms of her hair, dressed her nicely and made sure she had proper, delicious meals.  As her elderly in-law became weaker and needed more care, this woman did it all; doing things for her that not everyone would do.  She cared for her until her death.  Bless this woman of God the rest of her life.

            This man took care of his dying wife in ways I can’ imagine and never even complained about it.  He gave her his all; dressing her, combing her hair and even applying her make-up.  He took care of all her bathing, her bathroom needs and making her comfortable even when she called to him in the middle of the night.  Countless times he got her ready and hauled her wheelchair out to the car and lifting her in when she could no longer stand on her own.  He cooked all her food, did the washing, shopping and cleaning.  Yet – I never heard a word of complaint from him.  I’m sure there were times he struggled with so much care and I know she would become so frustrated it made her irritable, but he still didn’t complain.  I can only say, “You are one of the most caring men I ever met.  Thank you for your faithfulness and may God be with you and bring peace to your life.

            We may not have to give all this care to anyone like the women above, but perhaps we can share the burden of those amazing caregivers.  As we grow older, and we all do, we see so many of our family become ill or disabled and you may find yourself asking God, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  Is it just families we are to care for?  The Bible gives us the answer to that question.  “Take care of any widow who has no one else to care for her, but if she has children or grandchildren, their first responsibility is to show godliness at home and repay their parents by taking care of them. This is something that pleases God.” 1 Timothy 5:3-4 (NLT)

            This is not just a woman-thing, but is for men as well.  Not everything is ‘woman’s work’.  Men, you can do so many things to help others that a woman can’t do, such as lifting and transporting, reading and just sitting with them. Don’t lay it all on the wife’s lap.

            There is another verse that answers the question, “Am I my brother’s keeper?”  “Share each other’s troubles and problems, and so obey our Lord’s command.”  Galatians 6:2 (TLB)

            As this holiday season approaches, let’s really look around us and see those who have need; old and young as well.  Helping someone else is the greatest gift you can give yourself.  We can’t always give of our self physically, but there are so many ways; a plate of cookies, a Christmas card that speaks of God’s love.  After all, we are God’s messenger to a restless, unhappy world, so let’s bring some “Joy to the World”.