Tabitha, also known as Dorcas, is one of the first women mentioned by name in the book of Acts. Certainly, the miracle performed by Peter in raising her from the dead is a main reason why Luke, the physician, shares this story. And the subsequent “many believed in the Lord” is the eternal purpose God had in mind. But let’s not miss the intimacy revealed here. This woman made a huge impact, not with the masses, but with a few widows in her home town of Joppa. I’m sure several people died that day, but Peter was sought for Tabitha.

I don’t know about you, but I often find myself floundering in my walk and service to the Lord because it all just seems so overwhelming. Billions are still considered unreached with the Gospel of Jesus. Millions are starving and dying of preventable diseases. Hundreds of thousands have no clean drinking water. Tens of thousands of believers have no written Word of God. Thousands of children are sold into prostitution every year. I don’t even know where to begin.

Tabitha sets the example for me…for us. Begin with one!

She was one woman using her talent to make one garment at a time for one widow at a time. I’m sure her work was flawless and quite beautiful, but it wasn’t the end product that brought these women together weeping in mourning. It was the woman who died that brought them to that upper room. Tabitha filled a hole in the lives of these dear ladies and now they were empty again. In short, they missed her. What a woman she must have been! Even Peter, the preacher to the masses, was impressed.

Now, you know as well as I do that we women are a fickle, gossiping bunch of hens most of the time. We stab each other in the back while planting kisses on each other’s cheeks. Then we share, in the form of prayer requests of course, all the secrets we secured while doing lunch. 

I don’t know that these women were any different. I am sure at times they were at odds with one another, but Tabitha brought out the best in them. Because of her influence, they put their sharpened knives away, stowed away all known secrets, and wept openly for their friend.       

I wonder, will I be missed? I’m not looking for compliments here nor am I cradling a morbid obsession about my impending death. (All death is impending by the way. See Hebrews 9:27.) It is an honest question I have to ask myself. When God takes me home, will I be missed? Will anyone feel empty? Will they care? Will there be a hole in the life of any one another that I once filled?

If an honest answer to these questions is no, then I must face the fact that the blame falls squarely with me. I can’t blame the absence of impact on anyone else but myself. Neither can you. We should be able to name women we have influenced and made a difference in their lives. We should be able to make a list of women who have touched us so deeply that when God takes them home, the hole they filled will be empty again and we will mourn. We will miss them. 

Please don’t brush this off. Our modern western society is “masses” oriented and it has taken a toll on individuals. I heard one preacher say that 70% of all Americans have felt acute loneliness at some time in their life. 70%! 

There are 2,167 books dealing with loneliness on Amazon.com. They are not all Christian, but some are. The majority of them do attempt to shed some light on this growing problem and provide solutions for the devastating results of isolation (depression, drug and alcohol addiction, and suicide, to name a few).

All of us are lonely once in a while, and God tells to be alone with Him, but for many of us, isolation from meaningful human interaction is the norm of daily living. We may work for large corporations and attend church. We may even have big families and the appearance of many friends. But for whatever reasons, real or imagined, we have continual and overwhelming feelings of loneliness and isolation. Within the body of Christ, this extreme is unacceptable.

As one anothers, we do not have to, nor should we, live isolated and lonely lives. There is much work to be done and since God has not removed us from this earth, He must have some meaningful work and purpose for us to complete. There are valuable one anothers within our reach that need us and we need them. We should not ignore the pleas of the masses, but we should meet the needs one priceless individual at a time. When we do, Christ is glorified, we all are valued, and no one is isolated and weighed down with loneliness. 

But, let’s be honest. We all put up walls in various shapes and sizes. Relationships are time consuming and scary. You know it’s true. We will have less time for ourselves and we may get hurt, deeply, but we must begin extending invitations to other women within our reach. However, we must not limit God in thinking they all have to look like us, talk like us, and act like us. The very one who is most not like us may be the one who will miss us the most. And we may surprise ourselves that we will miss her too.

If you are a one another who is able to answer yes to the question if you will be missed, I challenge you to broaden your circle as God enables. Seek our Father’s face and see the one anothers within your reach who need a helping hand and willing heart to fill a hole. Don’t try to be all to all. You aren’t the Holy Spirit. You can’t force someone to feel loved and valued. What you can do is include her in your circle and love her as Jesus loves her. Then, simply, let God

Discussion

Read Acts 9:36-43. List the traits that characterized the believers described in these verses.

What are some possible impacts we as sisters in Christ can have in today’s culture if we emulated these traits in our daily living?

The Book of Acts provides us with multiple lessons in one another living. The church was young and growing miraculously since the historical day at Pentecost. Thousands believed. Many were healed. Some died for His name’s sake and some died for forsaking His name. 

As the fledgling church expanded throughout Judea, growing pains challenged from within and persecution threatened from without. During this time, the newborn church did not have any new inspired writings being shared between churches. The letters we have today written by Peter, Paul, and others had yet to be penned and delivered throughout the region. These newest of new believers had only just begun to be organized and most of that was in Jerusalem. The surrounding towns and villages depended on word of mouth testimony about this new Way. 

There was no precedent to follow, no written instructions or answers to the myriad of questions that swirled throughout this new family of God. These new believers desperately needed each other. Often it really was a matter of life or death.

The ever expanding body of Christ took the world by storm because of their unyielding faith in their Savior, the power given by the Holy Spirit, and by their love for one another. Their acts of service to one another demonstrated radical living. Their sacrifices of resources for those in need toppled cultural barriers, and the persecution they endured together, even to death, declared the gospel in living color. 

There weren’t any weekend Bible conferences or tract distribution programs. There were no five-piece bands, smoke machines, or giant inflatables. All they had were love distribution lifestyles, selfless standards of living, and love-filled one another relationships. One has to ask the question: do our modern programs and devices really work better than the love displayed by the early church?

It is true Peter did many miracles and Paul was turning out to be one amazing preacher, but without the love shared between these early disciples, all that would have been like noisy gongs and clanging cymbals. Between the hypocrisy of their religious leaders and the tyranny of their Roman oppressors, these early disciples didn’t need any more pious noise or tyrannical clanging. What they did need was profoundly changed lives demonstrating a radical new life of loving in Christ. And that is what they got. 

Today, we are amazed when we read about the 3000 converted at Pentecost. And we sit in awe as our pastor tells the story of Peter’s second sermon when 5000 men plus women and children were saved. But let’s not forget: things weren’t perfect even from the start. A complaint arose from the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews. Their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food (Acts 6:1b). This was not an intentional neglect; it was simply an oversight on the part of the Apostles as they tried to keep up with the Holy Spirit and the daily growth spurts in the body of Christ. So, Stephen and six others were chosen to lead in the practical administration of physical needs while the Apostles kept focused on prayer and studying the Word (Old Testament).

Praise God this type of multiplication, man trying to keep up with the Holy Spirit, is still happening all around the world in our generation. Underground churches in Asia and the Middle East continue to expand and they plead for us to send Bibles so they may learn together in their huddled corners. This is hardly the norm in western churches where the emphasis is sometimes misplaced on hot coffee, fresh donuts, and comfortable seats. In general, western churches relegate meeting the bulk of human needs within their local body to government agencies and private non-profit organizations.

 As a whole, we have willingly, over many decades, relinquished taking care of one another to our local, state, and federal governments. After all, isn’t that what we pay taxes for? I believe part of this shift is due to the massive government intrusion on private citizens just trying to help each other out. Local churches fear lawsuits and even prosecution. Add on the cost of meeting the volumes of government regulations, and the idea of feeding the poor goes out the proverbial red tape window. 

Unfortunately, these agencies are not allowed to do anything in Jesus’ name, let alone share His gospel message (if they even had an inclination to do so). Religious service groups cannot speak of Jesus if they take any government funding. They can mention God as long as they don’t try to proselytize anyone. And to make matters worse, our taxes also pay for many services that are in direct opposition to God. How far we have come from the days of the newborn Church!

But praise God! There are faint stirrings throughout our country to take back our early church roots. Congregations large and small are simplifying their lives. They are downsizing their homes and moving from isolated suburbia to neighborhoods that need them. They are selling or giving away their excess and using these resources to meet each other’s needs. They are taking care of the widows and adopting the orphans. They are meeting needs among their own and reaching out to those around them. As pilgrims in a foreign land, we are slowly remembering the value of one.

Discussion

What can you do today in your local church or community to walk alongside another person in a tangible and meaningful way?