Hiding in Plain Sight
GOD showed me what it’s like through his eyes. Insight from God’s point of view.
I was driving to Starbucks with my son and my fiancé. As we turned the corner I caught a glimpse of a man sleeping in the shadows under a tree. My heart sank. There he was in plain sight but you’d only see him if you were looking. Invisible out in the open. He was wearing all black hoping to blend into the shadows.
My heart was convicted the moment I saw him. I knew to get him a water bottle and something to eat. I’m an addict in recovery and I know that there are people struggling with addiction that ask for money. I’ve given money to people holding signs up. I’ve got hot cocoa for people and food for others. Whatever the holy spirit convicted my heart with. I was convicted in my heart to do so. This time it was different the man was laying down not asking for anything.
Do we find ourselves doing that with GOD hiding in the shadows blending into the background? Trying to go unseen. Does God give the things we need but we don’t ask for? Doesn’t God know what we need at that moment?
Of course, the line was long but the bottled of water and the snack pack was ordered. I was having a hard time trying to figure out what to order for this man to eat. I got him a boiled egg cheese almonds and apple slices. Something just didn’t feel completely right.
Moving up in the line I was telling my fiancé what I had seen and what my plans are to bring him food and water. My fiancé smiled. He pointed out a man walking right up the side of the drive-through. The man was wearing all black and made his way to the front of the convenience store next door. I watched him I wasn’t sure if he was the man laying down but it was very possible. Do blessings happen to those who go get them? The ones that put action to faith?
I watched as he sat down in front of the store. I knew then it was him. He just sat there as people just walked on by not looking or saying anything to him. I even thought in my head “I wonder how long he has become invisible to this world”. I was sickened by just watching people live their everyday life. Ignoring this man that is in need. No one helped. I saw an older lady walked past him then turned around and said something to him. That made me smile he is not invisible as much as everyone wants him to be.
We watched as he was making his way back down the side to where he had come from. I could see the back of his shirt had a poop smear on it. You could tell he wasn’t showered. My fiancé stated that he is probably a veteran.
We got our coffee and the water and snack pack we turned down the road to where he was laying. He then walked in front of the sonic just roaming around. Do we do that when God is on his way to us as we aimlessly wander? Looking and trying to get what we need but God is already on the way with what we need.
Pull up beside him I asked if he was the man sleeping under the tree. He agreed and spoke about how he is hungry and has been looking for food. I told him he is in our thoughts and prayers and about DSS. At that moment I handed him the water and food. I realized he had no teeth. Driving away I felt like I haven’t done my part because half that food he won’t be able to eat. Getting a backpack on sale for $1 and some healthy snack bars he’d be able to eat and they have shelf life wouldn’t go bad on him before he ate them. Grabbed some Gatorades and headed back to him.
Sometimes we leave the places of blessing because we had already been blessed. When I returned I searched the whole area looking for this man. I never found him the backpack is still filled in my back seat. Like God waiting for us to return to him to get the blessing he really wanted us to have.
Usually, when I do something my heart has been convicted for, feel good. This time I didn’t feel like I did my part. I feel like I could’ve done better. I wonder if God ever feels that way?
I wonder how many times I have settled for the “just get you by” blessing until the big blessing. I wonder how many times I walked away from blessings because I thought I had already gotten one. I wonder how many times God has watched me walk in faith and not get a blessing I had hoped for. I wonder if that man met God today because I did.
