Barefoot and Broken

We live in a broken world.  

 Sometimes I forget that. I get all caught up in the mundane irritations and find myself completely blindsided by this fact. And there is nothing I can do about it…is there?

As I drove down a road I take multiple times per day, a young girl darted out in front of my car and ran down the road in front of me. She was barefoot and had on oversized fleece pants and a tshirt. She made it to the corner and collapsed on the curb.

I looked at the building I had passed and saw a young man obviously looking for something. 

At the stop sign, I could see her sobbing. I wanted to help. I wanted to “be Jesus to her”. I wanted to not drive away worried about her. 

But that’s what I did. I didn’t feel safe. (I’m such a snob). I didn’t want to be nosey. (What an excuse). I didn’t have the nagging feeling that I was supposed to stop…so I drove on to work. 

So many senarios rolled around in my head. What if she’s hurt? What if she just needed a ride? What is it was just a lover’s spat that will be fixed with an apology and a hug? What if stopping makes her situation worse? What if stopping makes me a part of a situation? 

I did the only thing I felt equipped and led to do…I prayed for her. Which, to be honest, feels like a lazy and cowardly way to help. 

I know we are here for a reason. I know God is leading me and my family to serve and love in our new place. I also know that I can’t fix all the hurts or the broken because there is just too much of it. 

What would you do? How do you handle these unexpected reminders of our broken world?

-Tiff
Heavenly Father, I feel knotted and sad. The glimpse of something different from my life today made me realize that you probably see so much broken each day. I really don’t know how to pray for the young girl. Please help her find what she needs. Whatever it is. Please give her hope and comfort. Maybe she already has that and what I saw was out of the ordinary for her. If so, thank you. 

God how do I love this broken world? What steps do I follow to love people well and help them? How can my family love this community? Please give us a heart of thankfulness and open our eyes to how we can do something rather than just driving by. Amen

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