Lifting Others Up

This past Saturday I went to a celebration of life gathering for a friend of mine who had gone home to be with the Lord. It was wonderful.

One would have thought there was a church service going on, judging by the number of cars in the parking lot. Nope. My friend touched a lot of people's lives.

I looked around for my buddy's wife but couldn't find her. The fellowship area of the church was filled with people standing and sitting, talking and laughing. It resembled a normal Sunday morning after church lets out and everyone heads for the coffee and treats.

Then the sea of people parted and there she was. She was sitting down, a little dizzy from the day's events.

I had to wait a bit to see her but it was worth it. When she saw me she reached out her arms for a hug. So I bent down and gave her one. That's when it hit me - the topic for today's story.

I dropped to my knees in front of my friend and we had a wonderful conversation. It was a little hard getting up afterwards but it was worth it. Lol!

When we interact with people in our daily  lives we often do so from "our level." We do not tend to meet people where THEY are, emotionally or spiritually. To pick something up, don't we first bend down to get it?

A grieving widow should not  be the one to be walking around. We should come to her,  offering encouragement and support. And not as one handing scraps of food down to a dog under the dining room table. No. We should meet them face-to-face, heart-to-heart, if you will.

Think about it. A child can feel lonely in a room full of adults who are standing there, talking. But get down on the floor with a child and interact with them at their own level and you've gained a friend.

We spend too much time trying fit people into OUR lives. Instead, shouldn't we be trying to fit into theirs? And when we do, we can see them face to face. 

"For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face." - 1 Corinthians 3:12

I have heard it said, "Just be yourself. Your friends will find you." But if we truly love the lost and hurting, won't we search for them no matter where they are, until we find them and join them in their pain? To take them to a much happier place?

"And if I go and prepare a place for you, I am coming again and will take you to Myself, so that where I am, there you also will be." - John 14:3

“Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn’t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, ‘Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep.’" - Luke 15:4-6