Somebody’s Son

My husband, Carl, and I were running errands and decided to stop and eat at a local sandwich shop.

The young man that delivered our food seemed somewhat shy and wouldn’t look at us as he nervously asked who had the mac and cheese with their French Dip. His speech wasn’t really clear and it was obvious he was doing his best in a world that he didn’t quite fit in with.  

But he was super sweet. You can always tell the sweet ones…

I don’t know if it was my “Momma’s heart” or me being ultra-sensitive, but big, giant tears began to roll down my cheeks as I watched this young man awkwardly doing his job, a job well done, nonetheless.

Yet, all I could picture in my head was someone being mean to him, yelling and getting angry, probably not knowing or maybe not even caring that he just might need a little more patience than others.

I thought about his own momma sitting at home knowing that her son working a job would actually teach him to live and survive in a cruel world once she was no longer there to protect him. And also scared out of her mind with worry that someone would treat him badly, maybe even hurt him while she wasn’t around.

I wondered if she was remembering him as a little boy…vulnerable, small, and sweet.

I wondered if that momma was praying for her son at that moment.

I wondered….and I could feel her inconsolable pain and anxiety in my own heart.

I immediately thought about all the people that made me angry, the strangers I didn’t know who may have been fighting a battle I didn’t even know about…and how badly I had treated them because I could not look past my own ill-perceived self-righteousness. I thought about family and friends I had lost my temper with, raged against, held grudges for longer than I should have. I was ashamed.

But that young man…he is somebody’s son. And that somebody loves him with her whole heart.

I thought about how God loves us with His whole heart… Each and every one of us.

He loves each of us so much that He sent Jesus to take our sins and die on a cross for us and rise again to give us eternal life with God our Father.

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

And since His love runs that deep, I can only imagine that when someone hurts one of His children…any one of us…. that it breaks His heart and kindles an inconsolable pain even deeper than that momma I thought about.

God takes it personal when we don’t show others the mercy, love, and grace that He shows us.

But those of us who refuse to treat others with patience, kindness, and respect… He won’t put up with it for very long. And one day soon His wrath will be unleashed on all evil performed against His children.

 ^“but for those who are self-seekingand do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury. There will be tribulation and distress for every human being who does evil, the Jew first and also the Greek,” Romans 2:8-9

I pray that the momma of the young man rests easy in the knowledge and grace of the love of God in her life and the life of her son.

My prayer for me is that I may see others the way God sees them…love others the way God loves them…treat them with dignity and respect…. loving them the way HE loves me.

“A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:34-35

“…walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” Ephesians 4:1-3

Let’s be mindful of how we treat others. It truly matters.

Everyone out there is Somebody’s son or daughter and they are deeply loved

….and that ”Somebody”

 is God our Father.

And HE takes it personally

Soli Deo Gloria

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