Seeing but not seeing...

How many people do you think you see in a day? 50, 100, 200 or more?

I was thinking about the people I see. Most of them I just drive past or vaguely see in the store...so wrapped up in my own stuff that I push past them without really seeing them. We say pray for the lost...they are all around and yet unrecognized.

There is a couple that I see frequently at the corner near my house. They sit or stand with their sign, begging for money. I get frustrated with people who use signs to beg. I pass judgment on them for where they are at and what they could be doing without knowing a single thing about them.

Last week, I stopped. I reached in the back of my car and pulled out several bottles of cold water. Walking toward them, I lied and said I didn't have any money. I was intimidated by them. They are like I used to be and that scares me. I'm afraid that I'm only a few short choices away from being back there again. My past is still pursuing me and I haven't let the ties be severed yet.

I told them I had water. They said they love water..."whoever gives even a cup of cold water to the least of these..."

I told them I'd been where they are and there is a better way. The man said he preferred and actually loved the lifestyle he had because he was free with no responsibility. She longed for security of a home. I can relate. Security is a deep need that we have and can only find in the One who gives eternal security.

I was afraid to look too long into her eyes, I might see a reflection of my own. The fears that drive those who do not know God lurk in the dark, whispering lies that my life is still the same...

I gave her a card with my number. She has not called. I still see her at the corner. How long til I actually reach out to her? I think in order to face the fears of the past and embrace the present, I must put the effort into reaching her.