When he (Peter) arrived, they brought
him into the upper room, and all the widows stood beside him, weeping
and showing all the tunics and garments that Dorcas used to make
while she was with them. Acts 9:39
There are some people who touch the
world, and Dorcas was one of them. She was a seamstress. She loved
cloth and she saw needs. And that combination, along with the fact
that she was a disciple of Christ, made her a loved woman.
For those who don't know the story,
this passage is written concerning Tabitha, Dorcas, whichever name
you want to use...one is the Greek and the other the translation,
both meaning gazelle. She sewed clothing for the widows and their
families in the area. She spent her life comforting and possibly
keeping people alive with her gifts of coats and other garments. If
you saw someone in need, just tell Dorcas and she will get at it,
meeting the need of school clothes, winter wraps, whatever someone in
the community lacked. And she was so well known for such gifts of
love and mercy that here at her funeral all the people gathered
around with those gifts in hand! Look at the one she made for my
Joey, my Mariam, my Peter...! Isn't it lovely? Wasn't she the best
friend a widow could have. I couldn't afford school clothes, so she
made them for us! My coat was falling apart and I couldn't afford to
replace it, but look at this! It is better than anything I could have
purchased! How will we ever get along without such a kind soul in our
community???
This is the story of a life well lived.
And because of her love for the Lord, He chose to use her for more
than making a few clothes (ok, more than a few!). He chose her to
come alive again to show His power and glory! He saved her from death
once not only so she could get back to work, but to make her life a
work of His power and glory. Like Lazarus, she could be pointed to as
one Jesus loved. And like him, she could recount the Lord's goodness,
power over death and the grave, and be a symbol of the new life that
could come to any who would walk with Him. I can guarantee you that
she did go back to work after she was raised from the dead, but those
gifts would be a daily reminder of the power of God in her life to
those who would continue to receive from her handiwork.
But like Lazarus, someday she would die
again, and be mourned again, because when people die, there are
people who will miss them. These widows were not mourning the fact
that they would no longer receive clothing...they mourned the LOVE
that they would miss, the heart that was no longer there to reach out
to them. Even if she hadn't sewn a stitch, these people knew that
Dorcas loved them and wanted to help, to make their lives better in
the best way she knew how. Some people give in cloth, some in cash,
some in helps like house repairs or paying bills. She knew how to
sew, and sew she did. She was burdened in her heart for the widows of
the day. There was no social security benefit, no life insurance
policy. Only their savings and the charity of the church and friends
and family. These women and their children faced hard times, and the
second-hand clothing store probably did not exist. These coats acted
as blankets, sunscreen, and modest public covering. It was fairly
obvious who was wealthy and who was poor. And she wished that stigma
on no family. As a member of the church of Christ, she took the
command to meet one-another's needs to heart. It was her act of love,
her tender mercy given from a heart of compassion, and all were
grateful. I can see them crying and doing show-and-tell with the
gifts she gave them, and marveling over how much she did. It is one
thing to receive and know what someone has done for us, and then
multiply that over and over, seeing through physical gifts just how
much love one woman had for Christ, His church, and the least among
them. And they praised God for her life and grieved her passing from
them.
It was another gift to them to have her
back, telling of God's favor and mercy and kindness to all of them
and to her. Wanting someone back is normal for us on this side,
though selfish, really. They are with the Lord, and then get called
back here to do it over again? If we were in the Lord's presence,
would we want to come back? Life is a good thing in so many ways, but
eternal life with God is so much better. Dying is hard enough once,
but twice? And yet she must have agreed with God that this plan to
send her back was good, and she cooperated. She was willing to do it
all again for His sake and the sake of all of those who read her
story, as well as all of those who had gathered to pay tribute to
such a beautiful soul.
When we die, will people mourn our
passing, bringing before the people of God our gifts? Not for our
glory, but as a reflection of the love that God gave us for those
hurting around us? Will they wonder at the God who could create such
love and comfort through pieces of cloth, inanimate objects that
reflect His goodness, provision at the time of need, and beauty and
comfort? I still marvel that a piece of cloth can do much for the
soul...the color, the texture, the weave, the cut...and all of that
reflects on a God who is the creator of a soul that can appreciate
such things. Our humanness is a miracle in and of itself, and shows
that we are created in His image for the good works that He created
in advance for us to do. And Dorcas is one of the greatest models of
that to us. You go, girl!
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