“I do not agree with a big way of doing things. To us, what matters is an individual.” – Mother Teresa
“We fear the future because we are wasting the today.” – Mother Teresa in Where There Is Love, There Is God
Have you ever thought about the one lost sheep? The one Jesus says He will go in search of, leaving the 99. I’ve been thinking about that sheep a lot lately. As a writer, I naturally want my words read by many. I want those words to impact more than one person. But what if it’s just one person? What if what I’m writing is put on my heart for one person? Do I still obey? Does it matter less if the impact is for one versus many?
Of course, I landed on that writing for one person is certainly worth it–Jesus says so. There’s no doubt he could be asking us to do something to serve one person in particular.
In this vein, I began to think of the dozens of saints’ letters I’ve read through the years. Letters meant for only one person, but that have since been impacting thousands, perhaps millions of lives, after being printed as collections in books from St. Francis de Sales to St. Padre Pio to St. Gianna Molla to St. Jane de Chantel. Or even the letters of the Bible, meant for individuals or small groups of people, that are now read around the world, in many languages, for generations. Imagine the world with no letters to Timothy:
“Love from a pure heart.” 1 Timothy 1:5
“For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather of power and love and self-control.” 2 Timothy 1:7
Or Titus:
“Avoid foolish arguments, genealogies, rivalries, and quarrels about the law, for they are useless and futile.” Titus 3:9
But perhaps what is most telling about the letters comes from the very short letter to Philemon:
“With trust in your compliance I write to you, knowing that you will do even more than I say.” Philemon 1:21
Because there is so much more contained in a letter than the words, a certain understanding of who is speaking and how they mean to convey something to you. We read between the lines of the advice knowing circumstances not written out, understanding they know our behavior and emotions well enough to know how we might respond to what is written.
The composer of a letter expects you will do more than read the letter. You will take the information and ponder it. You might even think of your reply and revise your reply before ever putting pen to paper: what you agree with, what you differ on. You might try to ignore it, but words read are hard to ignore.
Mother Teresa, too, is known for her letters, often penned to her sisters, but also to friends, spiritual directors and such. But her focus on the individual, on the lost sheep, was never limited to letters. At the heart of her ministry, she was focused on the solitary lost sheep, the lonely and abandoned. She saw each person as an individual, not as a small piece of a massive group, but a massive piece in her small mission, and she provided the personal attention and care to honor their dignity in the present.
She viewed each person as important, important to her and important to Jesus.
Funny that Mother Teresa’s feast day should pop up during the week this “reaching the lost sheep” has been on my mind. It can be easy to forget that she started with one person. One person who needed help in the street. One person who needed Jesus. One person who needed love. She wanted that person to feel their dignity, to feel loved, and to know they were cared for.
She wasn’t thinking of the many people she needed to serve. She wasn’t thinking as she helped that first person: Is this enough? Is helping one person even worth it? Maybe I should just stop if I can’t help hundreds of people.
She understood Jesus needed to reach that person, and if she didn’t do it, no one else would. She knows better than anyone that in seeking the lost one, you end up with Jesus because He was seeking them too. If you are called to serve a person or a tiny group of people, this work is the special work of Jesus.
St. Teresa of Calcutta understood what was near and dear to Jesus’ heart. She was simply thinking of answering the call. She realized that reaching one person for Jesus was worth it. She wasn’t plotting out a grand plan to make her mark on the world with many convents and sisters. She was thinking how can I help this person know their dignity and worth in the eyes of the Lord.
She was working one person at a time. She was sharing and receiving Jesus with each person she engaged with. She responded to His call, and her service was multiplied in ways she could not have planned.
She continued to respond despite resistance and backlash. Her prayers for resources were always met with what she or her sisters needed. She knew and understood her mission was always about a person, making that person feel loved, seeing Jesus in that person and helping that person in return see Jesus.
Sometimes He needs us to help that one who has wandered off or who is lost and alone. Sometimes that feels small, but Jesus has made it clear that He wants no one lost.
“And, upon his arrival home, he calls together his friends and neighbors and says to them, ‘Rejoice with me because I have found my lost sheep.’ I tell you, in just the same way there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.” Luke 15:6-7 (NABRE)
And who knows…Maybe you need that lost sheep as much as they need you in order to remember that you are worthy, you are loved and you are needed in this world.
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