This past week our country celebrated the Fourth of July one more time! Aren’t we a blessed nation to be able to commemorate these freedoms year after year? I know several events had to be changed or rearranged this past week because of water and weather. In our area, several kind souls observed their 4th of July by rolling up their sleeves and helping their “neighbors”.
It began early that morning right off Highway 59, outside of Slayton, where seventy or more men, women, and even some children worked hard at filling, tying, and lifting sand bags to be hauled wherever they might be needed to help keep unwanted water from causing more destruction. It was quite a sight to see the cars keep coming, and willing workers descend on the gravel piles to “get er’ done”.
The process was pretty efficient, and even though rain threatened to stop the crew a few times, they persevered. God bless them all!! Their hands and backs got tired, but at the end of the day the sand was no longer in a pile, but in many white bags waiting to do their job.
Help came in other ways too. Many people showed up with water, food for the noon meal, snacks, etc. Tables were set up, and provisions made to help everyone get what they needed. On a day that is set aside for celebrating, and to see so many give up “fun” activities to get sweaty and dirty for a specific need in our community, it was just humbling.
In God’s word, Luke 10:29, a lawyer asks Jesus, “ And who is my neighbor?” Jesus used parables often to teach, and he proceeds in the next few verses to tell the story of the Good Samaritan. You might know this story well, but it tells of three men who walk nearby an injured man. The first, a priest, saw him and chose to walk by “on the other side”. The second, a Levite, when he saw him, also chose to walk “on the other side”. The third, a Samaritan, who it says was on a journey, when he saw him, it says “he had compassion”.
His compassion included bandaging him, pouring oil and wine on him, putting him on his own beast, and taking him to an inn for him to rest. He asked the innkeeper to watch over him, and gave him money to cover the expenses. As Jesus wraps this story up, he then asks the lawyer which of these men proved to be a “neighbor”.
In Luke 10:36 the lawyer answered, “ The one who showed mercy toward him”. Then Jesus said to him, “ Go and do the same.”
Mercy. Compassion, grace, soft-heartedness, tender-heartedness, kindness, sympathy, generosity. These words should describe our outreach to our “neighbors” too. Dan and I have experienced this same outpouring of love more than once, but especially in 2008 when a tornado ravaged our farm. I get tears and a lump in my throat as I remember all the willing workers, food, tractors and skid loaders, and help that descended upon us. In those times, as in these times of the flooding and devastation, you become numb and overwhelmed of even where to start to make things better. May God bless those who extend mercy in any form when their “neighbors” are in need. May we never intentionally “walk on the other side”.
lbeerman68@gmail.com
