In the
courtroom while waiting for his case to come before the judge, Gary heard story
after sad story of people who were losing their homes. Many went through the
procedure as if it were familiar to them. But one woman named Leslie seemed
bewildered. Gary sensed that she didn’t know what to do or where to turn.
He tried
to silence the quiet voice inside him that was urging him to help, but he
couldn’t. He thought of many reasons not to get involved. First, engaging
strangers in conversation is not one of his strengths; second, he was afraid of
being misunderstood. But he thought that the prompting was from God, and he
didn’t want to risk being disobedient.
When Gary
saw Leslie leaving the courthouse, he spoke to her. “Ma’am,” he said, “I heard
your testimony inside the courtroom, and I believe God wants me to help you.”
At first
Leslie was suspicious, but Gary assured her of his sincerity. He made some
phone calls and got her connected with people in a local church who provided
the help she needed to keep her house.
God has
called us to active duty (1 John 3:18). When we sense His prompting to help
someone, we should be willing to say, “I believe God wants me to help you.”
We are at
our best when we are serving others. (RBC)
