We have all experienced times when cutting back on things we wanted became necessary to meet the family’s needs, especially today, as the cost of everyday living increases. This pinch makes it challenging when our Lord brings us others in need. Do we respond in sacrificial love and experience joy?
I have often found myself grabbing a coffee at a local drive-thru window. Coincidentally, this is one of those practices I have had to limit due to the changing times. Recently, when at the window receiving my coffee, the cashier said, “No charge! The person in front of you paid for your drink!” What a nice gesture, I thought! I immediately wished I could thank or repay that person. The Holy Spirit responded in my heart with the invitation to do that for someone else instead, which is exactly what I did for the person behind me.
This experience reminded me of a story I once heard. A woman was at a drive-thru paying for her order when, in her rearview mirror, she noticed a woman driving a convertible sports car behind her. A voice within her heart told her to pay for the other woman’s meal. She also thought, “There’s no way she needs me to buy her meal! She can afford that fancy car!” However, the voice in her heart again invited her to pay for it. Despite being resistant and ashamed that money was tight, she found herself at the window paying for the other woman’s meal. After leaving, she stopped at another store to run an errand. When she parked her car, she saw the woman in the sports car parked next to her and getting out to thank her for the meal, but the woman began to cry, saying that her marriage was falling apart and her business venture was falling through. She said she was asking God why he didn’t care. Yet, when the cashier said that her meal had been paid for, a voice in her heart said, “You are not alone. It will be okay.” Knowing she was not alone, the woman thanked her, saying she felt joy in her heart.
The purpose of Jesus’ revelation of the highest order of love is joy. It is in our essential nature to desire joy. Jesus poured love into his disciples, and as his present-day disciples, we share not only in love but also in the joy of the one who gives. Although random acts of kindness can seem small or undeserved, the sacrificial act of love can bring us much-needed joy as we model our Lord’s example.