399: Dorcas

I can't believe it.  I have written 398 Memos and I have never, ever written about one of my favorite stories?  I checked and rechecked and it's true. There's no way that can be true, but it is.  What an oversight.  Here is the story:

In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (which, when translated, is Dorcas), who was always doing good and helping the poor. About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, "Please come at once!"Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, "Tabitha, get up." She opened her eyes, and seeing Peter she sat up. He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called the believers and the widows and presented her to them alive. This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord (Acts 9:36-42).

ANALYSIS

If you are like me, for many years, I made Peter the focus when I read that passage.  For this Memo, let's make Dorcas the focus.  If Dorcas was alive today, she would have a sewing machine, a source for material and a heart to sew for the poor. She was a "nothing" woman - she had no prestige or position - in a "nowhere" village who was helping 'nobody' people.  Dorcas had nothing going for her except that she was a woman of purpose, always doing good and helping the poor.  Therefore in reality, she had everything going for her.

In her day of trouble, when she could not cry out on her own behalf, the evidence of a life yielded to God's purpose cried out for her.  Peter, the most significant spiritual leader at the time, broke off what he was doing to come down and view her dead body. He was so moved both by how much everyone missed Dorcas and by the impact she had made while she was alive that he brought her back from the dead to continue her work.

Once that happened, a revival broke out in Dorcas' village and she never even preached a message.  She just did good deeds for poor people.  What an amazing story.

APPLICATION

Do you see any needs around you that you can meet like Dorcas did? If you do, what are you waiting for?  Go meet them!  Are you hung up on what you don't have and what you can't do?  Then start focusing on what you do have and can do. Have you convinced yourself that you can't make a difference in the world around you, or have you chosen not to make that difference?  Either way, your thinking is wrong! The only reason you can't is that you have told yourself you can't and it has become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Please take the lessons from Dorcas' life to heart this week and follow her example. When you do, you have all of heaven's attention, no matter how trivial or insignificant what you are doing seems to be.  It's time to stop examining what you don't have and consider what you do have, and that is a purpose that no one else can perform like you.  It's time that you answer a difficult and challenging question: When you leave, will people miss you like they missed Dorcas?  The only way you will be able to answer "yes" is to start fulfilling your purpose today, right now.  As you do, you will not only have a great week, but also a great life.

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REVELATION: I need your help. I urgently want to publish my next book, this time a devotional from the book of Revelation. I wrote about this project in my blog last week and encourage you to read what I wrote there. In that post, I explain my urgency in wanting to get it out for people to read. Then please consider if the Lord wants you to help me to restore an important book of the Bible that has been obscured by so many weird interpretations.  If you have any questions about the project, please don't hesitate to contact me.

THE SOPHIA FUND UPDATE:  Last week, $110 came in for The Fund and I placed a container in a major restaurant to collect money for The Fund. As I promised, every penny you send is going to feed the poor in Zimbabwe and Kenya (We wired $1000 to Kenya two weeks ago, with another $500 slated to go to Zimbabwe as soon as someone can carry it over for me). Nothing goes to overhead or administration.  Won't you consider helping orphans and widows today?  You can read about my rationale for The Fund here (named after my late mother) that will help feed widows and orphans in Kenya and Zimbabwe. 

Please consider a contribution of at least $5 toward the fund and hopefully more.  You can use the "Chipin" widget on the Monday Memo site to contribute, or go directly to my website to contribute there through PayPal, or send a tax-deductible check to PurposeQuest, PO Box 91099, Pittsburgh, PA  15221.  Make sure you let me know it is for The Sophia Fund. Don't delay; give today and make a difference in the world.

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FREE PURPOSEQUEST ASSESSMENT:  Don't forget about the free PurposeQuest assessment available on my website.  This is not a scientific survey, but something that is meant to stimulate your thought and direct your study on my site concerning where you stand in your PurposeQuest.  About 800 people have taken the survey so far.  I hope that every Monday Memo reader will eventually take the assessment and heed the follow up email from me on how you can be even more purposeful than you already are.