A Life Changing…
…commitment. This is a new idea for me and it is a life changer. Something that would lead to a good life which we should strive for everyday.
A lawyer tried to trap Jesus, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Jesus said, “What is written in the law?” The lawyer answered, “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, of and with all thy strength, all thy mind, and love thy neighbor as thyself.” “Who is my neighbor?” The word had scarcely left his mouth when he regretted the question.
The story of the Good Samaritan, one of the most recognized stories there is. The man was beaten so severely that he was left for dead. The two religious guys passed by on the other side, after all you wouldn’t want the preacher to be late for church. The Samaritan that stopped was an outcast, a half breed. They and the Jews were enemies.
The Crux of the story, the Samaritan gave the man everything he had, treating his wounds with expensive wine and oil. Put him on his own beast and subjected himself to walking. Obligated himself to pay whatever it cost to the innkeeper. How often do we offer everything we have to meet someone’s need?
The preacher tells the story that his son fell in the yard on a tin can that had been cut up by a lawn mower. The hand was attached by only a small piece of skin. They had to work to get the bleeding stopped. The local hospital couldn’t help but said there was a doctor 90 miles away that could, so off they went.
When they arrived, the surgical team had just left the hospital after a grueling 15-hour operation. The doctor said he could not ask them to come back. The minister’s wife pleaded so the doctor called his team back in. The doctor was exhausted from working through a magnifier doing an impossible task of attaching nerves and muscles. The nurse explained you have to determine which ones go where. And there are hundreds.
The operation was completely successful and today the boy is a young man with two good hands. They thanked the doctor profusely but the doctor said, “No I want to thank you for giving me the pleasure of serving you. I didn’t go to school to have a fancy house or a fancy car, I went to school to serve people. Thank you for allowing me to serve you.”
This was a completely new idea to me. If we ask God to show us someone with a need that we could help, there are people in every direction that we will become aware of. The story ends in a command to the lawyer and to us. “Go thou and do thou likewise.” When is the last time that I have been late to church, or gone out of my way stopping to help someone? Lord help me meet someone’s need today.
—James Neuhouser
