At a traffic light this morning, I watched a man holding a “need money for ticket to Arizona” sign walk up and down the row of cars hoping for someone’s generosity.
Not one person offered to help.
But at the last minute, a window rolled down and a young man handed this beggar some money. What warmed my heart was that in the line of nice, clean, expensive cars… it was the driver in the dirty, beat-up, old, ugly car that stepped up.
He was the one being generous – not the rest of us.
And from the looks of things, he was the one with the least to give. This young man had second-hand clothes, a missing hubcap, a cracked windshield, and countless dents in his green car.
But you know what? He was a light for the man in need. He demonstrated God’s love.
I can’t say the same of me and the other cars sitting in line.
- As I looked at this man asking for money, my thought was “He’d just going to go buy drugs or alcohol with what I’d give him.”
- I bet others were looking at him thinking he should go get a job and be a productive citizen.
- Others might have thought him below their level of interaction.
But the man with the least stepped up. Oh how I love this!
Maybe his heart was tendered because he could relate to this man’s situation. I wonder if this young man was just one missed paycheck away from being in the beggar’s shoes.
I chose to judge. Bleh…
Most of the time when we judge others, we place ourselves in a position above them. We sit in that judgment seat, acting like we have it all figured out. Matthew 7:1a warns us of this. “Do not judge others…”
Not a lot of wiggle room in that verse.
So, what if instead of being judge and jury…
- we served in love rather than out of pity?
- we thought the best of others?
- we looked for chances to help our brothers and sisters in Christ?
That young man made my day. He reminded me the importance of loving others. He listened to that prompting from the Holy Spirit to help… not judge.
While the rest of us sat there avoiding eye contact… he stepped up without judgment.
Lesson learned.
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I love this! This is so true. And it seems like the amount of people begging and in need has just increased recently. Are we messengers of God’s love to them? Amen Carey!
Thanks Colette! We are messengers to God… great thing to remember in ALL situations. 🙂
Simple answer NO, WE ARE NOT BETTER. In fact, most times, WE ARE WORSE!!! We judge every day-at least I probably do. And nothing pisses me off more than people judging people! Nothing! My mom used to say – If you point one finger at someone else, guess what? There are 4 other fingers pointing back at YOU! We may not see a homeless man needing money to get to AZ, but we certainly could all be helping someone else everyday if we would just OPEN OUR EYES to the less obvious and make it our business to make a better difference! And I nominate ME first. Tomorrow I vow to see what God would have me see. Help someone else! Thanks Carey! I appreciate the gentle kick in my behind! :-). You got me going, girlfriend!
I love your mom’s saying… so true, so true! Thanks for your passion!