God just blessed me

I was sitting here whining and feeling sorry for myself because I only have 10.00 to eat on for a couple of days. I went down to Taco Bell and got me some refried beans. I came out and there was a little bitty old man sitting on the ground. He was so skinny and looked like he didn't have anything. I took my change over there to him and asked him if he would be offended if I gave him a little money. He had tears in his eyes and said, ma'm, you don't know what this means to me. I looked at him and said, "I don't but God does. And I know what it just did for me". I got in my car and as I was pulling away I looked over at the man and smiled and waved. He had the prettiest smile on his face and was waving so hard. This was worth a whole lot more than money for food.

I'm not telling you this to make me look good because believe me, I have so many faults. But God just used an ordinary man to teach me an extraordinary lesson.

I love you all. I pray that God keeps us all sensitive to His still, small voice and when He tells us to do something, I pray that we do it with a smile on our face and joy in our hearts.

DebbieDoo

You're so right, Debbie...God uses so many situations to teach me, yet I'm usually not willing to listen.  You've blessed me, as usual!

Oh Debbie Doo...Thanks for sharing! I'm sitting here with tears streaming down my face. It brings to mind a man that God recently brought into mine and Rich's life. There are so many amazing stories to tell as it relates to this man in our lives, but the readers digest version is that he recently moved in with his sister, our neighbor up the street, because he was homeless. He had no job, no auto, very few clothes, long scruffy hair...you get the idea. Sadly to say the neighbors were gossiping about how he looked ... blah blah blah They never took the time to find out that he had a very humble, kind and gentle spirit

Well Rich started using him as a helper and he was an excellent worker and extremely talented. Rich could relate to his background and they became good friends. Come to find out Gary had been a very successful & sought after carpenter but when life dealt him some bad curves he turned to alcohol and lost everything he had many years ago and it's been downhill from there. He started going to church with us and didn't miss a service, even when we were out of town. He was such a blessing to my church family and I'm so proud to say that everyone treated him as if he drove up in a Cadillac! Rich had bought him a Bible, and took him to get his eyes checked and bought him some glasses and he would just beam telling us about the things he was reading in the Bible and books that our pastor had given him. He thanked us over and over for taking him to church with us, I think as much as anything he enjoyed being treated like a 'normal' person again.   
Fast forward to 4 weekends ago...the coroner's office woke us up at 3am asking if we could go be with his sister. Gary had been run over and killed on the highway near our house. He was walking across a busy 4 lane, heading to McDonalds to get something to eat. They didn't find out who to contact until many hours later around 2am. 
He was only in our lives for about 3 months and he gave more to us in the way of the joy and peace that comes with obedience and simply being 'Christ Like' than we could ever have given him. 
People MUST realize that others don't cross your paths and come into your life by accident. It's up to us to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit and let Him guide us in our actions...like you did today. Like you, I'm not telling this to bring glory to us in any way at all. What if we had ignored Gary like so many others had? He might have never known the joy of being part of a loving church family. Most importantly though he might be in hell today instead of Heaven. 
If we had turned our backs on him like so many others had, we would have missed our blessing too!    
Love you Lady!!     

Phyllis,

I am so glad you shared this. You need to put this on its own post. I am so glad that you and Rich did what God spoke to your heart to do. To think that he could have died a very lonely man without God makes me so sad BUT that's not what happened. Thank God you obeyed and befriended Gary. He not only impacted your lives but ya'll impacted his. I am so happy that he turned from his old life and became a child of God. You just earned some jewels in your crown. We don't have to pin flowers on you because they would soon die but what God is going to give you will last for eternity. Thank God for people like you and Rich. May we all be just as sensitive. Thank you for sharing this.

Love you girl,
DebbieDoo

Hey Debbie!
Some of the MOST Satisfying and Savory meals I have EVER eaten with my family were ones that I cooked with love and knowing that $$$ is/was SO tight that ONLY God could pull us through the next few days - week.  And it is a funny thing...those meals were the ones I can remember my kids never fussing about what I cooked too b/c they KNEW that was all that was in the pantry.  It's what I call, Beans n' Tators eatin' and sometimes it is so bad you don't have the tators!  lol 
You know...we have NEVER, EVER missed a meal.  We have always had something to eat.  God has always seen to it that we were not hungry! 
Thanks for sharing your inspirational time you had with us today!  If we all could listen to God like you do, we would be in better shape!  Myself included!