Hudson Taylor, founder of the China Inland Mission, prepared for missionary service by working among the poor in London. One night, a man asked him to come and pray for his sick wife. The man had already asked a priest but had been told he would have to pay him eighteen pence, which he didn’t have. He didn’t even have money to buy a loaf of bread. Taylor went with him but was conscience stricken. He was living on a starvation diet himself, but he did have one coin in his pocket – a half-crown. He thought, ‘If only I had two shillings and sixpence instead of this half crown, I would give these poor people a shilling.’ Upon arriving at the man’s house, he was overcome at seeing the sunken cheeks of hungry children and the exhausted mother who lay with a tiny infant by her side. Taylor spoke to them, trying to bring comfort and encouragement, but inside he cried, ‘You hypocrite! Telling these people about a kind and loving father in heaven, yet not prepared to trust Him without a half-crown.’ So he gave his half-crown to the man. Taylor recalled at that moment how the joy of the Lord came back into his heart. The Bible says, ‘Do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.’ What pleases the Lord? Your willingness to share with those in need what God has graciously given you. The saying is true: ‘You can give without loving, but you cannot love without giving.’

© 2024. Written by Bob and Debby Gass. Used by permission under licence from UCB International.