Reflection - "Help Me Get One More" - November 8, 2026

Sermon: “Help Me Get One More” Traci Hubbard

Remembrance Sunday, November 8th, 2026

There is something powerful about the words, “Help me get one more.” Those words remind us that one life matters. One more person rescued, or encouraged, or given hope, or brought out of darkness. One more person who discovers that Infinite LOVE has not forgotten them.

Today, I am sharing a story that illustrates what it means to live for something bigger than ourselves. The movie Hacksaw Ridge tells the true story of Desmond Doss, a young soldier during World War II. Desmond was different from the other soldiers. He had a deep personal faith and because of his convictions, he refused to carry a weapon or take another person's life. He wanted to serve his country, but he also wanted to remain faithful to his belief that human life was sacred. His fellow soldiers mocked him. Some called him weak. Others questioned whether he belonged on the battlefield. But Desmond wasn't weak. He simply understood that his purpose was different.

During the Battle of Okinawa in 1945, at the Maeda Escarpment, known as Hacksaw Ridge, American soldiers came under devastating attack. Many were wounded and left behind on the battlefield. As the other soldiers retreated, Desmond stayed. He repeatedly entered the battlefield that was under fire, found wounded men, dragged them to the edge of the ridge, and lowered them to safety using a rope. One man. Then another. Then another. He was exhausted, scared, and surrounded by danger. But Desmond kept praying, asking God to help him save one more. Historical accounts credit Desmond Doss with rescuing approximately 75 wounded soldiers during that battle. He didn't carry a gun, he carried a burden. He didn't take lives, he saved lives. He didn't run from the danger, he ran toward the wounded.

Our question today is, “What if the church had the same heart for helping people that Desmond Doss had for rescuing soldiers? What if we stopped being satisfied with who we are as a community of faith and began reaching outside our circle - you know, drawing the circle wider? My life mantra is, "Who can I help? Help me help one more!"

In Paul’s letter to the church in Galatia, we read, "There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus." One of the most powerful truths of the Gospel is that every human life has value in the eyes of God. The world divides people. Red and Blue as we just witnessed the BLUE WAVE take over in America. Much of humanity divides people by race, by income, by education, by background, by political opinions, by who they love, and by their past mistakes. This is why I mentioned these areas of being loving in affirming during our welcoming. Infinite LOVE calls us to see people differently. The Spirit will never see someone too broken, too far gone, made too many bd choices, or someone society says doesn’t belong. Infinite LOVE sees a soul worth helping.

Desmond Doss saw people differently. On that battlefield, Desmond didn't ask the wounded soldiers what religion they practiced, if their politics were red or blue. He didn’t ask, “Do you like me?” Desmond didn’t stop to consider if someone deserved to be rescued. He saw a wounded human being who needed help and ran into their situation to help.

We need to recover this kind of vision! We must stop looking at people through the lens of judgment and start looking at them through the eyes of Jesus. People may look fine on the outside, but they're fighting inward battles nobody knows about. The church must become a place where wounded people find healing, not another place where they get wounded.

We also we in Galatians, "You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love." Infinite LOVE did not help us free ourselves from our shadows (the ones we could see – everyone of us still has shadows to confront), so we could spend the rest of our lives serving ourselves. As we deepen our relationship with the Spirit and evolve into LOVE, the clearer our vision becomes to opportunities to serve others.

Desmond understood the cost of serving others. He could have stayed in a safe place or said. “I’ve done enough,” or “Someone else can take care of this.” Or here’s a big one, "I'm not wasting my time and energy for people who don't appreciate me." But he didn't. He understood that his life had a purpose. Folks, serving is not always convenient, but it is always meaningful when it is done in love.

In Acts 20 we hear Paul saying, "In everything I did, I showed you that by this kind of hard work we must help the weak, remembering the words the Jesus said: 'It is more blessed to give than to receive."

Kin-dom values go beyond the status quo: It is more blessed to give than to receive. This goes far beyond money, it speaks to giving hope, encouragement, time, a second chance, our presence, and a reason to believe tomorrow can be better. The most precious gifts we give will never come wrapped in a box. Our question is not, "What have I received?" Our question is question is, "What am I giving?" Who have I encouraged lately? Who have I prayed with lately? Invited to church? Helped? We should not underestimate what the Spirit can do through one act of love.

In Paul’s letter to the church in Philippi, we read, "Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind. Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others."

Friends, this text is our BE – ATTITUDE” of the Kin-dom. This attitude requires that we do not make our community of faith about us. Everything we do needs to reverberate our vision and mission.

It is obvious that Desmond was not focused on himself. The gaze of his heart was on the wounded men who needed help. What would happen if every person here this morning asked, “Who can I help today? Who can I include, encourage, forgive, serve?” Imagine what would happen if everyone of us begins looking for one more person to love. Imagine Lake Country United Church being a place where nobody slips through the cracks.

In our video clip, we watch Desmond returning over and over again to the battlefield. The heart of his mission was not simply to survive the battle. It was to save lives. Sometimes I sense that ministers and church councils are more focused on keeping the church from closing than on helping people inside AND outside our circle of faith. What we cannot afford is to become comfortable while people are hurting.

Remember the words of Jesus in Luke 15:4, "What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it?" That's the heart of Infinite LOVE. One more matters. What if we stopped making excuses? I’m not qualified, I’m not a minister. What if we simply said, "Here I am. Use me."

My prayer is that we become people who looks for and loves one more. Folks, I know you are tired. When I feel discouraged, and like I’ve done all I can do, I pray, Oh You know I need strength, courage, and more compassion. Help me help one more, lest I forget you never give up on me."

Today, we sit here in this room together, in this hour of human time, free to become LOVE, because Canadian men and women laid down, and continue to lay down their lives for people whom they do not stop and ask, “Do these people…will future generations, deserve our sacrifice.” Lest we forget, they served to help one more. May we rise, for those who are buried, those who are alive, and those who have yet to be born. Amen.