As my son and I walked along the beach, my head was down looking at the shells and searching for shark teeth on the sand. We passed numerous people as we made our 1 ½ mile trek to the pier. As we were walking, I started wondering if by looking down I was missing out on what God wants me to see or rather who God wants me to see.
We each have our heads down, doing our thing, going through life at warp speed, yet God didn’t create us to be like that. Jesus didn’t rush through life, He didn’t rush at all.
Remember when His friend was dying – and He knew Lazarus was dying – he stayed two more days? (John 11:6). Jesus didn’t keep His head down avoiding eye contact and trying to just get by, or checking something else off His to-do list. He didn’t have His eyes glued to a smartphone, checking out what everyone else claimed they were doing and how wonderful it was.
Instead, He engaged with people, loving them right where they were. Meeting the lame man at the pool (John 5), because he couldn’t come to Him. Healing the ones that were seen by the world as outcasts, yet He saw them. (Jeremiah 30:17).
How often have we passed by someone, but were so focused on ourselves that we didn’t see their hurting, we didn’t meet their need, we weren’t the hands and feet of Jesus to them? What if our interaction with them was the only time that they heard about Jesus? The person too busy and preoccupied doesn’t do much loving their neighbor.
As we walked back from the pier that day, I started focusing on the people before me asking God how I could love them the way they needed. I prayed for the people that we passed by, the mom who looked worn out from a day at the beach, the couple who were both on their phones on the beach, the older couple who was limping hand in hand, and the woman who wiped the tear from her face as we passed by her. This walk along the beach wasn’t just a time for my son and I to be able to spend time together, it was an opportunity to pray for those in my path that day.
Join me today in putting down our phones, and lifting our heads up to see the world that God created. Let’s meet our neighbors, and others that God places in our lives to show them the love of Jesus.
Lord forgive me for the times I’ve completely missed the opportunities you’ve placed before me because I was too preoccupied with myself and other distractions. Lord help me to see the ones that you are placing in my life, help me to shower them with your love. Thank You, Father, in Jesus’ beautiful name. Amen.
