The Hands and Feet of Jesus

Written by Hannah Arnette with Chelsea Charping

From the Archives: The Journey Summer 2016

Being called to live as Jesus lived

I grew up in Linville Falls, North Carolina, where I was blessed to be around two people that set a good example for what it means to be the hands and feet of Jesus. From them, I learned that we must serve others before we serve ourselves.

The first person who influenced me was my grandma. Grandma Jean has the heart of a servant and continues to faithfully serve the Lord at the age of 86. She has been a house parent at Crossnore School, a Sunday school teacher, a choir member, an organizer of the Crop Walk to raise hunger awareness, and many other things.

Currently, she serves the Lord by volunteering at RAM’s Rack Thrift Shop, where she hangs and tags clothes to sell to raise money to help people in Avery County. The store uses its profits to meet the needs of low income families through running a food bank and paying heat and power bills.

The other person who was a huge influence on me is my mom. Throughout my life, she has always gone out of her way to help others. When I was growing up, we had elderly neighbors who had a disabled son. They had a wood stove and little money. Every fall, my mom would load up the farm truck with wood and take it to that family. They used the wood all winter.

When I was in elementary school, I had a friend who lived in a poor home. One year at the beginning of the school year, my mom invited her to go school shopping with us. My mom bought her several outfits so she could feel good about starting the new school year.

While I was in high school, a dear friend with a hard home life moved into our home. My mom welcomed him into our home and treated him as if he were one of her own. He lived with my family for more than a year. I think John 13:35 describes my mom well: “By this people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” (ESV)

My Journey to Serving Through Christ

Although I grew up in a family that loved God, I was never truly sure what being saved meant. A friend prayed with me in sixth grade and told me that if I meant the prayer, I was saved, but between middle school and high school, I had many moments of questioning God about whether I actually belonged to Him. I never had peace about it.

When I was 16 and dating my husband, Joey, I started going to church with him. One morning, the pastor came into the Sunday school classroom and said he felt the Lord leading him there. He began talking about our relationships with Jesus, and I remember my heart breaking when he asked where we would be if we died that night. I honestly didn’t know.

Others in the class opened up, and walls were falling down. My heart felt like it was going to beat out of my chest. With many tears, I admitted that I didn’t know Him, but I wanted to. The preacher took us all to the altar and lifted us up in prayer.

At that moment, I gave my heart to the Lord and became a daughter of the King. I felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my shoulders, and I had peace in my soul.

Shortly after this choice, I decided, like my mom and grandma, I wanted to serve Him with all that I had. I knew He had something big for me to do. I thought He might call me to work in a developing country, but I waited and waited and no opportunities arose.

I remember thinking, “God, am I missing something?” For years I prayed, “God, what is this you have for me to do?”

After a job-related conference I attended in downtown Atlanta in 2008, a homeless man greeted me and asked me about my morning. I gave a smile to him and a reply. He asked for some money for breakfast. That morning, I had bought a snack and a drink in the hotel for the long ride home. I reached into my bag, and I pulled out the food. It wasn’t much, but it was all I had to give. He graciously accepted the breakfast and told me He knew God was going to provide. God had to feed this man, and I was a part of that plan. God had used me to take care of one of His sheep.

Then it dawned on me. He wants me to serve people that I encounter daily. I didn’t need to go far away to do His work as a servant. I could do it right where He had me.

I remembered what Jesus said to Simon Peter. “‘Simon, son of John, do you love me more than these?’ He said to him, ‘Yes, Lord; you know that I love you.’ He said to him, ‘Feed my lambs’” (John 21:15c, ESV).

Amazing Experiences

I learned that serving can be as small as sending a card to tell someone you’re praying for them, inviting someone over for supper, or packing a shoebox for a child in a faraway country. I started looking at the different opportunities that God was putting before me and asking how I could use them for His glory.

In 2011, my husband, Joey, went on a mission trip with friends who run a ministry in Laredo, Texas. They cross the border daily into Mexico to build churches. When the churches are built, they turn them over to a local pastor but continue to support them with supplies such as Bibles. The ministry also runs a Christian school in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico.

After Joey saw the ministry firsthand, we wanted to help it in some way. I prayed and talked with my friend who runs this ministry. I realized there were great needs for basic hygiene supplies for women, so I came up with the idea of creating women’s care baskets filled with shampoo, soap, feminine care products, and other necessities.

Every November, through the kindness of my husband’s boss, a tractor trailer takes a pallet of these care kits and school supplies to this ministry. It’s neat how God takes care of all the fine details. In these care kits, I always include a note to these women reminding them how much God loves them.

Joey has been working for a trucking company since 2005, but when he got a license to drive a tractor trailer in 2013, our ministry expanded again. Sometimes on the weekends when there aren’t enough truck drivers, we take loads to different locations across the U.S.

I noticed that at a lot of the truck stops, there were people that had many needs. My husband and I put together large ziplock bags with snacks, hygiene supplies, and New Testament Bibles with special letters in them. The letters included in the Bibles are purposely written to remind them just how precious they are to Lord. We gave out many of our bags on our trucking trips.

We can serve using the talents He has given us. Joey has always been the cook in our home. On the other hand, I have a talent for burning food. When a cooking opportunity came up in our church family for the local homeless shelter, Joey was able to start using his gift of cooking for the Lord. We lead a group once a month to prepare this meal. We love being a part of the Lord’s work.

In the future, we hope to shift our ministry focus. God has called us to be parents—but not in the traditional way. We’re going to start a family through adoption. In Ephesians 1:5, God said He adopted us into His family through the blood of Jesus. We want to follow that example. We’re praying for these children now, and we hope that next spring, we’ll be able to start the process.

Even at the end of Christ’s life, He was serving those around Him. On the cross, He told the man next to Him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” (Luke 23:43b, ESV). Jesus had compassion on this criminal. As those below Him mocked and cursed Him, He said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34b, ESV). Even as He hung dying, His concern was for the people. He loved you and me.

When I wake up in the morning, I think to myself, “Who can I serve for you today, Lord? Who are you going to put in my path that needs to feel your love? Use me Lord, and let me be your hands and feet today.”

I think Mark 10:45 describes our purpose on Earth: “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” We are called to love God, love others, and serve. Serving God is an amazing experience.