We’ve gotten a lot of a free stuff lately.  I guess it’s a perk of doing what we do.  It’s really not all that glamorous at all, and being away from the people you love is never easy.  We spent the morning at Cracker Barrel yesterday, eating some delicious free southern cookin’.  I guess it was just like any other day but yesterday I noticed something about myself. 

Right near where we parked at the end of the parking lot, the lot receded down a little hill into a really pretty little wooded area.  I was just looking out there admiring it and noticed a homeless man just sitting at the bottom of the hill in a pile of garbage and things.  It was weird at first.  For a moment I just kinda stared as his back was facing toward me.  It didn’t occur to me for a minute or so that it was a person sitting there.  I kinda just looked him as if he was a bunny or a deer.  And it might make me an asshole for lack of a better term, for just looking and I do feel bad, but if I am honest I just looked at that man like he was an animal.  Even if it was just for a moment.  That man, is someone’s son.  Was likely someone’s father, probably someone’s husband.  That man is a person.

I know it’s not directly related, but it reminded of a story.  If you’ve never heard the story of the “Good Samaritan” I’ll give you a little recap below.  Dan actually wrote some beautiful lyrics loosely based off the story.  

(Painting : Van Gogh : 1890)

So the story goes as follows.  There is a Jewish man traveling on the road to Jericho.  (an ancient city that is located in what is now the West Bank of the Palestinian Territory)  Some thugs beat the crap out of him, rob him, and leave him to die on the side of the road.  First a priest passes by on the road and does nothing for the man.  This could have been this dude’s pastor just walking by him and ignoring a real obvious problem in his life.  Then a Levite (a fellow jew) does the same thing.  Sees his common man beaten nearly to death, and just walks away.  Finally, a Samaritan comes by and helps the man.  He cleans the man’s wounds, dresses him, put him on his own donkey and takes him to an Inn and pays for the mans bills until his body healed.  It sounds like a nice happy ended, but this is a story that Jesus Christ told.  Jesus wouldn’t get murdered for just a nice happy ending story.  The catch is that the Samaritans and the Jews generally hated each other in that time.  So it was an enemy loving and enemy.  It made the Samaritan the hero. Which was unheard of to Jesus’ Jewish audience.

Though the homeless guy wasn’t an enemy, it sure made me think that I could have done something more than just stare and walk by.  David offered him bottles of water, and was denied.  I’m not even positive the man still knew how to interact with people.

Hold nothing back, like you’ve nothing to lose.

Love with all you have,

Like you don’t have a clue what it’s costing you.