February 15th, 2026: Do You Actually See Christ in People?

When Christ Stands in Front of You

This Sunday we heard one of the most direct Gospel readings in all of Scripture. Christ tells us that whatever we do for the least of His brethren, we do for Him. He does not speak in riddles. He does not soften the message. He makes it plain. When someone is hungry and you feed them, you feed Him. When someone is sick and you visit them, you visit Him. When someone is in need and you respond, you respond to Christ Himself.

That truth is both beautiful and uncomfortable. It means that our faith is not measured only by what we believe or say. It is measured by what we do when a person in need is placed right in front of us.

This week, I was reminded of that in a very real way. I had to go to the hospital late at night to baptize a baby. Thanks be to God, the child is doing much better now. But that moment brought back a memory from years ago when I was newly ordained. There was a sick child. A call came in late at night. I did not answer. I was tired. I was busy. I assumed someone else would take care of it. I did not go.

I was corrected, and I deserved it. I did not just miss a task. I missed a person. I missed Christ in that moment.

This week, God gave me another chance. I finally understood what I had failed to grasp years ago. When something is placed in front of you, you do not delay. You do not weigh convenience. You do not ask whether you feel like it. You go. Love moves.

Most of us have been on both sides of this. We have been the one who needed help. And we have been the one who ignored the need. We tell ourselves we are too busy. We say we will call later. We assume someone else will step in. We do not always mean to be cold. But the Gospel does not excuse us because we were busy.

Christ does not say, “When it was easy, you helped me.” He says, “I was hungry. I was sick. I was in prison.” The standard is not convenience. The standard is love.

When we serve someone in need, we are not just helping that person. We are helping Christ. Every human being is made in the image and likeness of God. That means the stranger. The neighbor. The coworker. The family member. The person on the side of the road. All of them bear His image.

God does not see us first by our titles or our success. He sees His image in us. He sees what we are meant to become. When we begin to see others that way, something changes in us. We stop asking whether they deserve help. We stop asking whether it fits our schedule. We begin to respond because they belong to God.

Lent Is Not a Diet

Great Lent is almost here. It is not just about changing what we eat. It is not just about giving something up. Lent is training. It trains the heart.

We fast so that we can learn self control. We pray more so that we can learn attention. But all of that is meant to lead somewhere. It is meant to lead us into love. Real love. Love that acts.

The early Christians changed the world not by argument, but by service. They cared for the sick when others fled. They fed the hungry. They visited the imprisoned. They did not wait until it was convenient. They saw Christ in every person.

This is what we are called to do.

When we stand before Christ, He will not ask if we were comfortable. He will not ask if we were busy. He will ask what we did when He was present before us in someone who needed help.

Did we see Him. Did we respond. Or did we turn away.

The good news is that we are given chances every day. Every person we meet is an opportunity. Every interruption is a test of love. Every need is a moment to serve Christ.

As we enter Lent, let us not treat it as a burden. Let us treat it as a chance to begin again. Let us train ourselves to respond quickly. Let us train our eyes to see Christ everywhere.

If we can say, “Lord, when You were there, I served You,” then we have nothing to fear.

The Gospel is simple. Christ stands in front of us every day. The question is whether we recognize Him.