DETOURS OF COMPASSION

WEEK ONE
DETOURS OF COMPASSION

But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was and when he saw him, he took pity on him. Luke 10:33 (NIV)

Have you ever been so tired you couldn’t even see straight? All you want is to get home, climb into your comfy bed, snuggle down deep into the covers, close your eyes and drift into an undisturbed sleep. One minute you are headed toward the land of dreams, the next you are caught off guard by a detour sign. You have a choice to make: ignore the sign and keep going, or obey it, and go where you are being sent.

I yawned as my sister Linda maneuvered the car down the winding road. We had spent the day at a conference where we had heard wonderful speakers talk about God’s grace. We were literally minutes away from Linda’s house. I couldn’t wait to fall into bed and ponder all the things I’d learned that day as I drifted off to sleep. I sat quietly making my “end of the day plans” when it happened. We rounded a sharp curve and there they were: two men in the road.

The headlights pierced the darkness, revealing the scene to our now alert eyes. One man lay on his back; the other man knelt at the fallen man’s side. My sister swerved to the right while slamming on the brakes, the car screeched to a halt at the side of the road. Linda hurried to the scene to find out what had happened while I looked for a flashlight. She was back in a moment, cell phone in hand, trying to get a signal to call 911.

My heart ran breathless to talk to the Lord about it – He is never out of range. He was there waiting for me. I had just begun telling him about the men in the road when a car came flying down the hill. The driver appeared not to see the men as he sped toward them, but at the last moment, the car swerved to the left, narrowly missing the two men as the driver sped on his way without so much as a tap of his brakes.

My dear friend, travel with me to Luke 10:33 where we meet the Good Samaritan. Notice he wasn’t sitting at the side of the road waiting for the injured man to show up. He didn’t have it penciled into his day. He was traveling, going about his business when he came upon the man in the road. Others had come by and had simply gone around, but this man was filled with compassion and stopped.

What about you? How will you respond to the “detours of compassion” the Lord places in your day? Will you stop and follow Him or will you speed past without so much as a tap to the brake of your daily routine.

This would be a great time to stop and talk with the Lord about it.