Our church has a ministry where we collect prom dresses to give to girls who can’t afford a new one.

My wife started the ministry a few years ago. It went from a few dresses and a girl or two, to hundreds of dresses and multiple girls stopping by almost weekly to select a dress for a school dance or event. We now have jewelry, shoes, and make up for them also.

Many of the ladies in the church eagerly wait to help the girls who come in when we have a publicized give away event. And some ladies agree to meet girls mid-week so they can try to find the right dress.

A few weeks back, I was in the church library working on my sermon. I could hear my wife and another lady helping a couple girls and their families. These particular girls were going to a special needs prom and accommodations had to be made to assist the girls in trying on the dresses. I was on the second floor and they were on the third.

I’m telling you, I could hear the joy and excitement in each voice. Not just from the girls getting dresses but from the two that volunteered to help the girls. The servants were enjoying it as much as those receiving the service.

It is said, “Love what you do and you will never work a day in your life.” There is a lot of truth to that. But in a deeper way, we can lose ourselves in serving others and find blessings we never knew were possible. Each of us should find a way to serve others, it gives perspective, it energizes our soul, and most of all, it makes an impact in the lives we serve.

The dress ministry has opened the door for us to help the girls in other ways. It’s amazing the difference our ladies have made in young lives by simply meeting a need. Many of the families couldn’t afford the dresses any other way, a few of the families need way more than just a dress.

Mother Theresa spent most of her life serving the poor in Calcutta, India. She ministered to those who were terminally ill with HIV/AIDS, Leprosy, and Tuberculosis. Her ministry included soup kitchens, dispensaries, family counseling programs, and orphanages.

When Mother Theresa was asked if more people should abandon their lives and move to Calcutta to help, she famously replied something like this. “Your Calcutta is every heart you touch, find your Calcutta.”

God may ask you to do big things in life, be willing if He leads. But more than likely, He will ask you to do smaller things motivated by love. Most of those acts will go under the radar. No fan-fair, no applause, no reward here on earth.

You may cross the world to help the poor, you may only have to cross the street. You may encourage crowds of people, you may encourage one at a time. You may serve in a bright spotlight, or in the shadows.

The most important thing is this, find your unique way of serving others. Your talents, your experiences, your passions, are yours for a reason. And that reason goes way beyond your own benefit.

We were designed to receive God’s love and share God’s love.
We were made to find joy in lifting others up.
We were created to reach the least, the last, and the lost.

Find a way to impact those in need, one person at a time.

Find your Calcutta.

-Tom Wise