Are You Available?

I sat in my car at the intersection waiting for the light to change. I looked to my left and saw an elderly woman standing on the corner. A few seconds later, I looked over and saw a teen-ager, iPod or MP3 player in ear, standing beside the lady. They talked for a moment and then the light changed. The lady and the girl walked side by side slowly....the elderly lady held onto the girl's arm as they made their way across the street. "Funny," I thought. "I didn't think they were together." At least they hadn't arrived at the corner at the same time. I was curious to know if they knew each other or if walking across the street together was something that occurred because they happened to be there at the same time. So I watched to see if they continued to walk together after reaching the other side of the street. When they stepped up on the curb, they said a few words and then they parted company. It appeared that they hadn't known each other at all.

That kind of thing makes me smile. Someone who was available to help another. The teen-ager didn't know she would be asked to help the lady across the street. She was just minding her own business and listening to her music....but she was available when asked to help...available to be a blessing to someone else when called upon.

It's so easy to get caught up in our own world. Life seems to go by entirely too fast sometimes. We have meetings and practices, Bible studies and dinners with friends, theatre and family time....so little time to add something else to our schedules.

But....

when someone needs an arm to steady them....when someone needs help or just needs someone to listen to them....are we available?...or do we try to tiptoe away so we can get on with whatever we're busy doing?

I admit there are times that I've tiptoed quietly (as well as quickly!) away from certain situations because I was eager to get on with my day...but I'm trying to do better.

When you see someone who needs a door held for them at the mall....maybe walk by a person who requires assistance reaching an item on the top shelf.... know that someone could use a listening ear for a few minutes....

....when you see that somebody needs the help and assistance you can provide, do you take the time to stop and help them?

There are people we come into contact with each day that could benefit from a few minutes or even just a few seconds of our time.

....Are you available?

Thank You

I saw it in her eyes...the look that said, "Here we go again." The look that seemed to be waiting for the condemnation that she must have heard before from others. She had done something years before....something that wasn't the best choice....something that many hadn't let her forget. Sadly, some people in her life had chosen judgment and condemnation over support, love, and restoration. So many times it's easy to point out another's shortcomings and not see our own....or to see our own shortcomings and dismiss them while holding others accountable for what they have done wrong. I had a chance to talk to her....I told her that something she had done had been a blessing to me. I didn't wait for a response. I didn't need one. I only wanted her to know that she had been, and was continuing to be, a blessing in the lives of others. But as I walked away, she stepped over to me, touched my arm, looked me in the eyes and sincerely said, "Thank you for that."

One thing I know for sure is that God is all about forgiveness and restoration....He will forgive anything. All we have to do is ask Him. And there are second, third, fourth....as-many-as-you-need chances with Him if you're really seeking to live your life for Him and are sincerely asking for His forgiveness. We all mess up. We all blow it. We all wish, at times, that we had done things differently. But God picks us up, brushes us off, and sends us on our way again. He knew we could never be perfect.

We never know how a word of appreciation or encouragement will touch another. I know that the right words at the right time have been of great encouragement to me at various moments throughout my life. You, too?

If you have the opportunity this week, encourage someone whose path crosses yours.

Your words may be just what their heart is longing to hear at that very moment.

"So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing." 1 Th. 5:11

Show and Tell

We had Show and Tell in my classroom. Most students brought toys...a couple of students brought books. I smiled inside when I saw the books....I love books. One book was just a nice story that made the student happy. The other was a book of questions and answers....it had answers in it to LOTS of questions....all kinds of 'em! One student raised a hand to ask the little girl something....and though I can't recall the exact words to the question, I do remember, clearly, the answer. "Is it special to you?" The little girl replied, "Yes, because it has all the answers." Her words made me smile and I thought, "Wouldn't we all like to get our hands on a book that has ALL the answers?!" I even got up to write down the girl's reply because it made me laugh inside. It was only a little while later that I realized I already have that book.....the one with all the answers. In fact, I actually have quite a few copies of that book. It's called the Bible....and I have some in my car and in my house...one or two go with me when I go on vacation. The Bible is, indeed, filled with answers. I have only to look for them. "What do I do when someone hurts me?" "How will I have the strength to get through this trial?" "What will happen to me when I die?" "Does anybody care?" The list could go on and on. The answers are all there...right in that book that's so special....the Bible.



And as I think of my own Bible, in my mind I hear the question......

"Is it special to you?"

.........And my heart replies, "Yes, because it has all the answers."

A Bad Day....Not.

I was bummed. Walking out early of a place I had intended to be for a while longer wasn't easy....but it was the right thing to do. I had hoped for a delay....prayed for a thunderstorm to keep my plane from flying so I could stay. There were people I wanted to spend time with....an event I wanted to attend. But it was not meant to be. The sun was shining as I stepped into the terminal...and my flight was on time. Funny it should be on time when so many times before it was running late. I boarded my plane with heavy heart...still praying for something that would cause the plane to pull back into the gate. We sat on the runway for an hour and 15 minutes. Sigh. Then we flew away. I stared out the window thinking of all I would miss. Then I saw it...off in the distance...the thunderstorm that a few of us had been praying for. Tears stung my eyes and fell down my cheeks...but I smiled at the same time.....the lightning looked so awesome and stars were shining brightly in other parts of the sky. It was beautiful to see. But I couldn't help wondering why the storm didn't appear when and where we had prayed it would....at the place that would have delayed my trip and changed my plans back to what they originally had been.

Hours later, as I was driving home from the airport, a song started to play on my CD player. It was a song about a bad day. I thought back over my day...yeah, I had cried....I had been bummed....I had been sad to leave my friends two days earlier than I had planned....had been unhappy about not being able to attend the event I had planned to go to.....but I had also spent time with some wonderful friends....had seen an awesome musical....had laughed much and had shared life with others....I had been immensely blessed that day. And so when the song about the bad day started to play, I smiled to myself and told God that I couldn't call it a bad day because there were too many wonderful things that had happened to call it that.

I don't always understand why things work out the way they do. I would have rather had that particular weekend work out a whole lot differently than it did....but I know the way it worked out was for the best. I knew it on Friday before I left and I felt it again on Monday when I returned early from my weekend.

I guess the thing I'm reminded of is...I don't have to have all the answers. In this life, I won't always know why things work out the way they do. But I trust God. I know He loves me. I know He's watching out for me. And I know that He will direct the path I'm to walk when I acknowledge Him in my life and listen to what He would have me do.

He didn't say it would be easy....but He did say He would be with me through it all.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding, In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths." Prov. 3:5,6

"...For He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Heb. 13:5