Not long ago, I decided to stop at a local restaurant.
As I pulled my car into its parking space, I noticed two young individuals seated against the side of the building.
It was a sunny and hot summer afternoon and the temperature was near 100 degrees F (38 degrees C).
From the state of their clothing, it was obvious that the owners of this establishment would not permit them to wait inside where it was cooler.
The other thing that was painfully obvious was the crude sign that one had created that had but one word on it.
"HUNGRY"
My heart immediately went out to these individuals and scripture immediately materialized in my mind.
In Matthew 25 Jesus talks about the separation of the sheep and the goats.
Two verses in particular occupied my thoughts
Matthew 25:37 (NIV) - "Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?
The other should come as no surprise.
Matthew 25:40 (NIV) - "The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I knew what I needed to do.
I knew what He wanted me to do.
I pulled enough money out of my wallet to pay for two meals for two people.
This way their immediate needs could be met and they would also be able to take along some food for their journey.
I walked up to the man with the sign and held out the money and said, "I hope this helps you."
He told me, "Thank you, sir."
What happened next took me completely by shock.
He turned to the individual next to him and said, "Honey, look what the nice man gave us."
I could not believe my eyes.
The individual next to him was a woman.
In her current state, I had not even realized this.
She looked at the money as he asked her, "What would you like to eat, Dear?"
I wish my written word could convey the emotion in her voice.
"Oh, I would just love a chicken sandwich!"
I reminded myself just how good my situation is.
I asked myself if I had ever felt that way about a chicken sandwich before.
She thanked me.
I found myself unable to speak, but tried my best to offer a friendly smile.
In my heart, I prayed for God to bless them both.
As I walked inside, I was reminded of something else that happened not long ago.
I have a Christian friend and author who was asked a series of difficult questions by an admitted atheist.
He shared these questions with several of his friends and asked for our input in order to prepare a good response.
One of the questions will stay with me always.
"If God exists, how do you account for the fact that he has never appeared before you?"
For me, the answer to this question is another question that causes me far more distress.
What if he had and I chose to do nothing?
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com
As I pulled my car into its parking space, I noticed two young individuals seated against the side of the building.
It was a sunny and hot summer afternoon and the temperature was near 100 degrees F (38 degrees C).
From the state of their clothing, it was obvious that the owners of this establishment would not permit them to wait inside where it was cooler.
The other thing that was painfully obvious was the crude sign that one had created that had but one word on it.
"HUNGRY"
My heart immediately went out to these individuals and scripture immediately materialized in my mind.
In Matthew 25 Jesus talks about the separation of the sheep and the goats.
Two verses in particular occupied my thoughts
Matthew 25:37 (NIV) - "Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink?
The other should come as no surprise.
Matthew 25:40 (NIV) - "The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
I knew what I needed to do.
I knew what He wanted me to do.
I pulled enough money out of my wallet to pay for two meals for two people.
This way their immediate needs could be met and they would also be able to take along some food for their journey.
I walked up to the man with the sign and held out the money and said, "I hope this helps you."
He told me, "Thank you, sir."
What happened next took me completely by shock.
He turned to the individual next to him and said, "Honey, look what the nice man gave us."
I could not believe my eyes.
The individual next to him was a woman.
In her current state, I had not even realized this.
She looked at the money as he asked her, "What would you like to eat, Dear?"
I wish my written word could convey the emotion in her voice.
"Oh, I would just love a chicken sandwich!"
I reminded myself just how good my situation is.
I asked myself if I had ever felt that way about a chicken sandwich before.
She thanked me.
I found myself unable to speak, but tried my best to offer a friendly smile.
In my heart, I prayed for God to bless them both.
As I walked inside, I was reminded of something else that happened not long ago.
I have a Christian friend and author who was asked a series of difficult questions by an admitted atheist.
He shared these questions with several of his friends and asked for our input in order to prepare a good response.
One of the questions will stay with me always.
"If God exists, how do you account for the fact that he has never appeared before you?"
For me, the answer to this question is another question that causes me far more distress.
What if he had and I chose to do nothing?
Blessings,
Jim Pokorny
The Other Brother Jim
http://otherbrotherjim.blogspot.com
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