People are hurting… PERIOD!
You never know who you’ll encounter in your daily travels, so it’s important to walk with compassion. Think about it, you won’t know whether the person standing next to you waiting for the train, in line at your favorite coffee house, or walking in the office door behind you is going through a storm and could use some love.
Listen and Encourage
A young man approached me at my security job and you can tell he was out of sorts. Since you try not to judge a book by its cover, you don’t want to automatically assume a storm; however, it was clear that he was hurting. In the midst of your normal greeting, he told me he was running late because he had come to work directly from the hospital; and then confirmed that he was going through a storm that left me almost speechless. He shared with me that his father was very ill and fighting a losing battle with cancer. As if that wasn’t enough, this young man around the age of my oldest daughter then told me that it was particularly difficult because he has just lost his mother in the past year. Wow! I couldn’t imagine being in my 20’s and losing both my parents. All I could do was try to encourage and pray for him.
Sometimes we can be too self-absorbed in our own lives, and even our own struggles that we forget that others are struggling and hurting. A kind word, a smile, a listening ear (never ceases to amaze me how much and how often perfect strangers will share with you), even a word of prayer can help a person when they need it most.
We often say life is short, but forget to live life as such. At times we’re so busy being busy that we miss the important things. One such thing is being a blessing to someone else. In a world with so many injustices and so many people hurting; it doesn’t take much to help someone by encouraging them. One may think “what can I do? I’m only one person.”; but there are a few things we all can do, that may change someone’s life:
- Smile and Greet People Warmly – People are often taken back by a pleasant “Good Morning!”, followed by “Have a great day!”
- Be Compassionate – Think about your worst day, and how the kindness of another provided (or could have provided) a bright spot
- Slow Down! – In our quest to accomplish more and acquire more, we move so fast from station to station. In our movement, we miss the opportunity to help others.
So my question today will be in the form of a challenge. When you encounter someone through your daily travels how do you respond? If it’s anything less than warm, kind, and compassionate think about changing that; you never know when someone is in need.
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