The idea of serving in Draw Near has always been one that has excited me. I already serve in the community routinely through service projects, but serving in Draw Near has stirred up new perspectives on what this means to me. Chip Jackson has often mentioned seeing the eyes of Jesus in those we serve. He referenced this to his work in serving the poverty-stricken in Guatemala and also how Mother Teresa saw the look of Jesus in the eyes of the children she served throughout her lifetime.
I had many mixed emotions on how God was going to make it clear to me how to serve Him through Draw Near. I want this to be intentional, I want this to be solely focused on how God is meeting the needs of others in the community, not what I may do but a vertical focus on what He will do. Recently, I felt my prayers had been answered by God providing a window of opportunity for me to serve (and not in the way I thought that serving was).
I had to leave work in the middle of the day to run many office errands, and I was on a tight time table. Several of the stops I had made had something go wrong. I was frustrated, I was burning up, my feet hurt from my heels and I was in a bad mood. I stopped at a gas station to get a drink. When I walked in, I noticed an older man in a wheelchair, clearly disabled both physically and with a mental impairment. He was by himself checking out a candy bar and a drink at the counter, paying with all pennies. The people behind him in the line were clearly frustrated as he counted each penny out of his pocket. I walked back to the cooler, got my drink and stood in line behind 3 others who were still behind this gentleman. The cashier looked sympathetic to the people waiting behind him. The others in line began to tap their feet or make slight sighs under their breath. In that moment, my bad attitude was met with a prompting of the Lord.
I felt the Lord calling me to act, but I was not sure what to do or what to say. I tried to ignore the prompting, telling myself that this man was none of my business, and I would only make the situation worse by interfering. I tried to reject the call of the Lord, but again I felt Him tugging on my heart to go and to SERVE. So, I did.
I helped the man finish his purchase and asked him if he needed help with the door to get out. He told me “no” but engaged me in a 15 minute conversation about how me stopping to help him was a blessing to him, that he had moved here from California and my hospitality was the first glimpse he had seen. I let him share life with me for those fifteen minutes. I let my tight timetable for work go to the back burner, and I let myself listen to this man share his life story. People in the gas station looked at me with sympathy, as if I were the victim who got roped in to talking to the man. I just smiled at these people, because me being a listening ear was not about me, it was not about my day, it was not about me making some big gesture... It was about God calling me to engage one of His children who needed it.
Eventually the conversation ceased, and I left the gas station. I ran another errand and had to drive back by the gas station toward my office. I saw the man in his wheelchair rolling down the road (I am guessing heading to his home). It reassured me that in that moment he needed a friend, his loss or challenge needed to be served. God revealed to me that serving can be as simple as sharing life with someone in need. Serving can be giving up your time for His purpose. Serving during Draw Near may be inconvenient, it may be messy, but it will always be an expression of Christ and His love for us and others. It will always be about bringing Him the glory.
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