I didn't stop!

I drove the 180 miles from Chicago to Dubuque yesterday.
I left at 3:20 pm and arrived home around 8:20 pm.
What was typically a three hour drive turned into a five hour odyssey where my speedometer never went over 40 miles per hour.
Snow, sleet, rain, black ice, temperatures in the mid 20's and cars piled up on the side of the road and in the median like bowling pins that had been slung out of their lane made it for a very long trip.
On one quarter mile stretch five to six cars were stuck in snow banks in the median with their headlights offering soft glowing globes against the backdrop of the black night.
Emergency vehicles were in high demand with the good news being that no one looked seriously injured.
With each stranded vehicle I passed, a milieu of excuses and reasons ran through my mind that persuaded me to just "keep on going":

I don't have the necessary equipment to help those that are stranded...
I don't want to be more of a distraction and a potential hazard for causing another accident...
I am tired and really need to get home...
It's really cold outside and I am not properly dressed...
I don't have time to get involved...
I am sure somebody will come soon to help them...

Why were my excuses and reasons so "outcome" oriented?
Why did I feel the need to fix the problem by the side of the road?
Perhaps what the stranded needed more than anything was for someone to be with them while they waited for assistance.

The bottom line?

I didn't stop!

My iWitness...

There is a great parable that Jesus tells about a man that was beaten and left for dead in a ditch.
Twice, count em...One, Two...very religious, devout men saw the desperate man and crossed to the other side of the road only to pass him by. They didn't stop!

And then the Good Samaritan comes along and saves the day.
Note that Samaritans were the enemies of the Jews. So... a Samaritan helping a Jewish man would be quite shocking to the predominantly Jewish audience that Jesus was addressing.

I wonder if the Good Samaritan ran through the same menu of excuses and reason not to stop and help.

The bottom line?

The Good Samaritan stopped!

Be on the lookout for the stranded this week...
They just might need you to pull over and be present with them for a few minutes during their time of need.

And that's my iWitness...
Laugh often and Fear not!
David!

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” ²⁶ He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” ²⁷ And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” ²⁸ And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
²⁹ But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” ³⁰ Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. ³¹ Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. ³² So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side.

³³ But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. ³⁴ He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. ³⁵ And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ ³⁶ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” ³⁷ He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” (Luke 10. 25-37)