A Nod of the Head

I observed something yesterday that I have been pondering. One of our members was packing his 3 shirts into his backpack, getting ready to leave for the day. As he was doing so a young man came in all hot and sweaty and sat down. He looked over and said, "Hey man, you got an extra shirt?" At first he shook his head no, but then I watched as the wheels began to turn in his heart and mind. He reached back into the backpack and pulled out a shirt to hand to the young man who took the shirt, went into the bathroom to put it on. When he returned he simply nodded and said, "Thanks man." That was it.

I quit being surprised by the generosity of those that are homeless a long time ago, for I see it displayed on a daily basis. Other thoughts are twirling around in my head. What do blessings look like in the middle of a crisis or the middle of a storm so to speak? How do we even see them, or appreciate them? Both of these men were in a crisis. The one packing the shirts had just lost everything!! He was slowly gathering a new stock of clothes, backpack, items to use when he slept outdoors, All the things. The younger man needed a shirt. They both were blessed in that moment.

I am going through a difficult time in my personal life right now. I find it easy to become self-focused. I am stressed when I think of all that lies before me, all that needs to be done and the ones that need to be taken care of. This morning I felt that I heard God whisper to me that He wanted to bless me. That He WAS blessing me. Seriously? I don't feel blessed. Is this really what blessing looks like, because this is awful!

Then I began to look around, so to speak and remember. I recalled the doors that He had opened and how He had made a way. I saw the faces of so many that have reached out, the cards we've received and the prayers - oh the prayers!! I've seen the way He is taking care of us when we feel we have nothing left to give. I have been the receiver of the 'shirt'. The young man was still homeless. He still had to go back into the heat and finish his day, but now he had a shirt and he was grateful. A simple nod of the head. A simple 'thanks'. It's important. I have found it makes all the difference.