The Good Samaritan

Well, today I have a rather simple, but deep experience to write about. It happened yesterday, and it has really left me thinking about things. I was on my way to pick up Spencer from soccer practice, and as I was driving through a neighborhood, I was driving toward a boy about Spencer's age who was riding his bike. He seemed pretty content for the brief second I was paying attention, and then all of a sudden he was crossing a street that intersected the one I was on, and instead of going on the sidewalk, he was headed for the corner as I was approaching it. The gutter was full of dry fall leaves, and as I saw this and briefly contemplated what that might mean for him, he made eye contact with me. Just then, his wheel slipped out from under him, and he fell forward off his bike and into the street right as I passed him.

All of this happened so fast, and I could hardly believe what I had just seen. I gasped and swerved slightly, and looked backward through the rearview mirror, hoping he wasn't too hurt. For a brief second, as I saw the boy gingerly cradling his elbow, I considered pulling over to see if he was okay, and if I could help. I was still recovering from what I had seen by the time I realized I really could have helped him, but I was already far enough away that I just decided to keep going. I resolved that if he was still there when I made the trip back, then I would stop and help.

I made it to the field to pick up Spencer, and when he got in the car I told him about the boy I had seen, almost excited to get back and see if he was still there, and assuming that Spencer would be curious as well. But I was surprised by what I heard my wise little brother saying to me. He asked me why I didn't stop to help him, especially in light of the fact that he hadn't been in a hurry to get home from soccer. I could only make the excuse that I was in the mindset of going to pick him up, and it didn't seem necessary to stop what I was doing to help. He was at once disappointed that I hadn't stopped to help the boy, especially after having found out that he was about his own age, and probably picturing himself in the same position.

But he didn't stop there; he went on to compare the whole scenario to the story of the Good Samaritan in the bible. I have always known my brother is a good listener in sunday school, and that he has a particularly good memory for scripture stories. He seems to learn well from them, and this was the case yesterday, when he said that I was like the 2nd priest in the story who passed the man beaten on the road, and didn't have the time to help another because he had somewhere to be.

This really got me thinking. My immediate reaction was to defend myself, and to explain why it made more sense for me to keep going, but the more I tried to rationalize this in my head, the more insignificant it sounded compared to what experience I could have had if I had taken the time to stop and help another, no matter how minor his injuries may have been.

We passed the spot where the boy had fallen, and I could tell Spencer was eager to help him if we could, but he wasn't there anymore, and it saddened me even more to see how easy it would have been just to make the simple gesture of assistance, and how quickly that opportunity passed when I didn't respond the first time. My conversation with Spencer ended there, but I continued to ponder this concept for the rest of the day, and marveled at the wisdom of my little brother. Even with his simple, pure knowledge of Christ, he could plainly see that I had missed a perfect opportunity to show my love for my neighbor, and my willingness to follow Christ because I was simply on a different agenda. I realized how that was such a weak excuse for my actions, considering all that I profess to believe on a daily basis. I realized that if my will had truly been aligned with His, and that I had been perfectly willing to follow the promptings of the spirit, then I would have ignored all other supposedly sensible judgment, and made the small sacrifice of helping a fellow child of god in his need. The force of that small lesson just really struck me, and I felt a need to share it with others for some reason. I hope that others may learn from that experience as much as I did. We never know what opportunities we could be missing out on unless we just follow the Spirit, and truly look out for our fellow men.
Next time, I am determined not to let my Savior down. I will follow Him in all things, no matter how inconvenient they may be for me. This is what true submission and alignment of will looks like, and I hope that I can be counted on to live it.