Got a few minutes for a couple of stories?
The only thing I love better than hearing a good one is to be the guy telling it! That’s a rather unflattering admission, I fear, but completely accurate.
The first is a story from my son, of the time last Saturday when he stopped to help a woman who had a flat tire and almost killed her in the process. It’s almost funny–but not quite–and makes a good point that in helping people we must be careful not to do them harm.
The other story comes from a non-pastor friend who decided to insert himself into a conversation at a nearby table in the restaurant where he was having lunch.
Knowing how, as Robert Frost said, one road leads to another (meaning: one story makes me think of another), I will probably end up dropping in another tale or two before this is concluded.
Anyway, here’s what happened to my son Neil last Saturday morning.
He had driven to the church near his house to vote. As he pulled into the parking lot, he heard a “pop” like a car had hit something. Looking around, he saw an elderly woman drive into the lot with her hub cap following behind. Seemingly unaware that something had occurred, she parked, got out of her car, and went inside to vote.
Neil saw that the woman’s car had a flat tire. He picked up the hub cap and laid it beside the car, then went inside.
He and the woman were in separate lines. When he finished voting, he walked outside, spotted her heading toward her car and walked over. He gently mentioned to her (not wanting to alarm her) that she had a flat tire, and he would be glad to either change it for her or call someone.
“I’d appreciate it if you could change it for me,” she said. She was driving a Camry like Neil’s mother’s so he knew what to do.
Inside the trunk, the spare tire and tools were pristine. They had clearly never been taken out since the woman had bought the car.
He took out the carpet, lifted off the cover, unscrewed the bracket holding the tire and jack, and made a discovery. The small brackets that held the jack and the “tire iron” together had practically melted together. He had a hard time breaking them loose.
That’s when it came in handy for Neil to be a big guy. (Something like 6’5″ and over 200 pounds. Pure muscle, no doubt. Hey, he reads these things and he is my namesake!)
This was going to require all the muscle he could exert. As he strained to pop the brackets loose, they suddenly broke apart with a vengeance. That’s when the tire iron flew right into the chest of the elderly woman, startling her and doubtless causing considerable pain.
She recovered and assured him she was all right. He apologized profusely, and felt terrible the rest of the time he finished the job. When she offered money, he refused, saying he hopes that when his mother finds herself in that predicament, someone will do the same for her.
That was five days ago and he still feels awful about the way he clobbered that sweet matron whom he was trying to help.
People in need are vulnerable and easily hurt. We must always handle with care.
The other story comes from my friend John, a businessman who takes seriously the teachings of Jesus. I’ll let him tell you just as he passed it on to me.
One day recently I was eating lunch at a salad place called Sweet Tomatoes. Next to me was a table with eight diners.
Among the eight was one man who thought he was in charge and talked long and loud. At some point the conversation turned to church and religion.
A couple of the ladies began to talk about how they had enjoyed the sermon and their time at church the previous Sunday. The “in charge” fellow began to say that he just could not handle church and religion, that it was for weak minds.
One of the two women started right in witnessing to the guy. She laid it all out in detail. She had memorized the four spiritual laws and a string of Bible verses. You name it, she knew it. She was obviously a well-trained Baptist!
I could see that Mr. In-Charge was beginning to get uncomfortable.
The woman was speaking in the most loving way and with authority. In fact, it almost appeared there was a glow around her.
The rest of the table had stopped eating and were listening. The diners at a couple of other tables within earshot were also watching and listening.
I had finished my lunch and was about to leave. An idea popped into my head.
As I walked past the woman, I stopped, put my hand on her shoulder and leaned over and spoke to her: “He said you’re doing great. Keep it up.”
I heard a gasp from her neighbor as I quickly stepped out the side door and hurried away. I did not look back.
I got into my truck and drove away and laughed, “Thank you, Lord. That was fun.”
John adds, “It was a little thing at the time, but who knows now what has become of that man or the others there since this dear lady, a faithful servant of the Lord, spoke to him. I think the Lord really has a good time using the little things to, shall we say, start a fire for His work.”
I have a question for you.
Do you think my friend John spoke out of turn? Did he possibly use the Lord’s name in vain, saying the Lord said something that He had not? First, notice that he never used the Lord’s name, only “He said you’re doing great; keep it up.” But it’s the clear implication, that it was a word from the Lord.
My own experience is this: sometimes a believer will speak a word of truth to another and realize later, “that was God.” The Holy Spirit placed it in the mouth of the disciple to speak at that moment. We pastors pray all the time that this divine-magic will occur every time we take our place behind the pulpit.
This is not that type of story, but John’s tale reminds me of something Alfred Hitchcock did once.
The great film director was on an elevator with a colleague, descending one of Manhattan’s skyscrapers. At one point, the door opened and several people got on. Hitchcock said to his friend, “And so I reached down and pulled out the knife, took a dishcloth out of the kitchen drawer and wiped the blood off, and laid it in the sink. I used the cloth to wipe away all the prints, then slipped out the back way, going down to the street by the fire escape.”
The elevator stopped and the passengers got off. Hitchcock turned to his friend, “They will talk about that for the rest of their lives.”
I love to find a story that I will talk about the rest of my life. They make excellent sermon illustrations–that is, unless they are so strong that they overpower the sermon. In that case, the preacher does one of two things: discard the story because the message of the Word always takes precedence, or build the entire sermon around the story.
Let’s end with this quote from the famous UCLA basketball coach (and brother in Christ) John Wooden:
Talent is God-given; be humble. Fame is man-given; be grateful. Conceit is self-given; be careful.
Do I think your friend John spoke out of turn? No, no, no. I think that the Lord did not give him a spirit of timidity, and that he took an opportunity to encourage another Christ-follower.
Way too often, we use the reserved atmosphere of society as a barrier to sharing simple, small blessings with others. It seems to me that a loving word or action is not using the Lord