A Gift of Shoes Shocks Us All
“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’”
-- Mathew 25:34-36
The story was remarkable and that, in itself, was amazing. We don’t see sacrificial kindness to strangers and it stood out before us all.
A city bus driver said he’d asked God that morning to show him who he should help or show a kindness to. It wasn’t an unusual request for him, though I do wonder how many Christians would ever think of making a similar request of God.
As the bus driver drove his regular route he noticed a homeless man who was barefoot. He’d seen the man a day or so before and had noticed the man’s lack of shoes. It just so happened that the light was red and the bus driver was able to stop the bus safely, put on its flashers and exit the bus. He told a reporter that he asked the homeless man that if he had a pair of shoes, would he wear them. The man said yes. So the bus driver took off the shoes on his own feet and game them to the homeless man. And then he got back on the bus and continued his route.
Some might have criticized him for leaving his bus unattended. Others would chastise him for giving to a homeless person without checking the man out first. But the bus driver followed God’s call and did what he could, where he could.
We are a people who have a lot of stuff. We put stuff in storage so we can fill our homes with more stuff. We hold on to our stuff. Do you want to see a big fight? Mess with our stuff. We’re obsessed with it.
The only time we’re willing to give it away is when we’re done, it’s worn out, or we’re looking for a tax write-off. We don’t tend to follow that Biblical instruction to, if we have two coats, give one away to someone who doesn’t have one. After all, we might need it tomorrow.
How much nicer our world would be, how much kinder, if we’d all just do good things where we are rather than waiting for someone else -- the government, the church (that’s us, by the way!), or local charities -- to step up and do it. We don’t want to get involved. We don’t want to see the less fortunate. We don’t want to get dirty.
Please understand I’m not advocating giving money to every person standing at the end of a freeway ramp with a sign. Nor am I am suggesting that you ever put yourself in danger. But I do believe that we should all be aware of the people around us, those who are hurting, those who are in need, and follow God’s call even if it makes us squirm. Life isn’t always pretty but we are always Jesus’ representatives here on earth. It’s way past time we started acting like it.
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