Choruses like this bring our memories to pleasant times singing with church friends. Lovely tunes with a bit of nostalgia. Yet, that's not all they should be. Although this is a popular song for children to sing it carries an important message for all Christians, especially as adults.God has granted us love and grace that should be bursting out from us. It was not given to us to keep for ourselves, but to let it shine for others.Easier said (and sung) then done.
Recently, I forgot my lunch for work, so I headed down the road to the local McDonald's. As I sat down, I noticed a young woman, about my age, sitting in a booth alone. Her face was blotched with red and white patches as tears streamed from her red eyes.
I sat down at a booth, bowed my head, and said a silent prayer for her. I hoped that if I sat there long enough, I might build up the courage to go and offer her a kind word. Yet I kept thinking, what if she doesn't want anyone to acknowledge that she's crying? What if she thinks I am too 'preachy?' I don't know her.
I got up to get some napkins and ketchup and when I turned around, she was gone. I missed the chance. I felt guilty knowing that perhaps the reason that I forgot my lunch that day, was so that I could go to McDonald's and share Jesus' love with this young woman. Yet, I didn't act on it when I first felt the nudge. Instead I waited for some physical holy kick in the tush to prompt me to speak to her. Yet, sometimes just like in hunting, there is only a short window in which to act. You may only get one opportunity.
The incident kept rolling around in my head. I wondered why I was so afraid just to pass by and at least say, "Hi, I just wanted to let you know that I'm praying for you." or "Are you okay? May I help you?" If she didn't respond, I could have just left it at that, and then returned to my table to pray. By doing that she at least would have known that someone in that room and in the world cared about her.
Instead, after she left I kept looking at all of the people who had been sitting around her, just like me. We all had given her a quick glance, and then pretended that we didn't notice that she was crying because we didn't know how to make it better. I'm sure some of them were Christians. Yet, how would she know? We all sat there camouflaged among the rest of the lunch-goers.
Although we may have sent God earnest prayers, we did not let our light SHINE. She could not feel the warmth of God's love through us, she could not feel the happiness of the rays of SUN and joy we get from having God in our lives.
I pray that someone later that day did have the courage to share God's love with her. I also pray that God grant me urgency and strength to reach out, despite my earthly excuses.
My pastors offered guidance on how to prepare for this situation. One suggestion was to start each day with a prayer, committing yourself to God's work. In that way, we mentally prepare ourselves for being used by God each day. We can simply say, "Here I am God, What do you have for me today?"
You can also reference John's Wesley's Covenant Prayer
I am no longer my own, but thine.
Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt;
Put me to doing, put me to suffering.
Let me be employed by thee or laid aside for thee,
exalted for thee or brought low by thee.
Let me be full, let me be empty.
Let me have all things, let me have nothing.
I freely and heartily yield all things
to thy pleasure and disposal.
And now, O glorious and blessed God,
Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it.
And the covenant which I have made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven. Amen.
Douglas Adams in the third book of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Series talked about a concept called SEP, or "Somebody Else's Problem." Though he talked about it in the form of alien technology, it goes off the idea that people don't notice things they deem to be "somebody else's problem." Now, in your case, you noticed the girl, but you kinda psyched yourself out of doing it (something we all do all the time), but I bet there were Christians there who paid her no mind at all. It's sad that people claiming to have the love of Christ would not spread it around.
ReplyDeleteBecause there's a lot of people, groups, things, animals, that are all "somebody else's problem."
I'm sorry I didn't see your comment before. Thank you for sharing. I still think about this moment a lot. Sometimes it gives me motivation to actually act, and other times I still sit camouflaged. That book sounds interesting.
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