April is beautiful. Flowers on fruit trees herald the dormant green leaves from their sleepy winter buds. Jonquils and daffodils begin to poke out their leaves and flowers in yards and along highways, telling everyone that the deepest part of winter is over. Many states and municipalities plant flowers along the roadways to beautify our drive time. Why? Aren’t we in such a hurry, that we only notice when we are all jammed up in traffic and only going 5 miles per hour?
Come to think of it, aren’t we in such a hurry that we sometimes either don’t notice or don’t care to pay attention to PEOPLE who are by the side of the road? Is their car broken down? Have they been in an accident?
On our physical road
We know that jonquils by the side of the road are planted by people or birds. But drivers on the road side are planted there by God. Why did they stop where they did? Chance? How did they know a vehicle would stop then and there? Why not somewhere else? On a high speed expressway, it could be pretty dangerous to help. Calling the proper authorities might be the best thing. But praying for them should be the first thing we do. We always need to do SOMETHING.
On our virtual road
We see people all the time in situations where they need assistance of some kind. What will we do? What SHOULD we do? They might be on the side of the unemployment road, with no job and filled with despair. They might be on the side of the poor health road, watching the world pass by while they are bed-ridden with heart disease or crippling arthritis. They might even be on the side of the struggling business road, as the owner of a small but once-profitable company is crushed as bankruptcy is inevitable.
What do we do? As we all know, in Matthew 25 Jesus spoke regarding helping those in need, “Truly, I say unto you, as you did it not unto the least of these, you did it not unto Me.” Jesus said if you are asked to go a mile, go further! (Matthew 5:41.) But I noticed in my “travels”, I don’t see many traffic jams on the second mile.
The Good Samaritan risked weeks’ worth of wages helping a man he didn’t know (Luke 10). Transporting him to safety and providing for his welfare was God’s extension of love and compassion THROUGH him. Then the Good Samaritan promised MORE if the caretakers needed it. Was he wealthy? We don’t know. But whatever he did was recorded in the Scriptures. THAT makes it worthwhile to tell.
How will ourstory be told in heaven?
“Lord, make me aware of the needs of people around me, and reveal what resources I need to render to them. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.”
– Lee Kresser