Seizing every opportunity to help
Being unfamiliar with the city of Victoria, B.C., I got lost and was driving around in circles. I was on my way to return my rent-a-car to the depot at the airport. The weather was beautiful, and nearby a middle-aged man was taking his two big black and white dogs for a walk. I pulled the car to the curb and rolled down the window.
“I seem to be lost. Could you please tell me how to get to the airport?” I asked.
“Oh certainly,” he replied. He listed directions, naming streets, avenues and turns. Then he noticed the puzzled look on my face. “That is too complicated,” he said. “I will take my dogs home and then come and show you.” A few moments later he returned in his Nissan van.
“Follow me,” he said. He stopped five minutes later, got out and added, “Stay on this street and it will take you right to the Victoria airport.”
That made my day. I thanked him and we both continued on our way. I got to the airport in good time, returned the car to the depot, and then waited for WestJet to take me back to Edmonton. Without his help I might still be driving around in circles, trying to find the airport.
Life today brings many rewarding opportunities to help people in big ways, as we see in the outpouring of help for flood victims in southern Alberta. But there are also many small acts of kindness that reflect the mercy of the Good Samaritan, as told by Jesus in the parable recorded in Luke 10:25-37.
I live in an assisted-living complex. A few days ago I was walking across the parking lot and noticed a middle-aged woman struggling to get a senior’s walker into the trunk of her car. I stopped and asked if she needed help.
“This should fit,” she said, twisting and turning the walker. I turned it upside down and she was able to close the trunk easily. She thanked me and we both continued on our way.
Moments later an elderly woman in a wheelchair was struggling to open the door of our residence. I stepped up, opened it and she wheeled her chair through. I did not need to be thanked.
Jesus said in Matthew 25:40: “Just as you did it to one of least of these, you did it unto me.”