I was coming out of work yesterday and there was one of the residents of the facility in which I work sitting outside. She looked a little down so I sat down next to her on a bench. When I asked her what was wrong she told me that she had to bury her husband earlier that day. What a difficult day for her.
So what was I to do? Provide support, yes, but in what way? Do I just listen? Give her a hug? Offer advice? The answer was simple. I listened to her and I listened to what God was telling me I should do. I should listen, I should show compassion, I should share with her some of my tough times and what I did to make it through. It just so happens that she enjoys coloring books. So do I! I have a book that has scripture verses in it along with pictures of flowers, designs, etc. So I’ll take a page out of that book and give it to her. So now the question becomes, what page do I give her. Again, the answer is simple. Listen to what God tells me to do. Open that book up and see what pages are there. He will tell me which one to offer her.
So you see, my point here is that when someone is in need of support, we also need guidance and support on what to do. All we have to do is listen to God. Let Him guide us on how we are to provide support. Just listen!
So to go back to the story, this particular resident asked if I could talk to her some more later. I was supposed to be leaving for the day but God told me to stay and talk. I did, and when we were done with out visit she became tearful and told me that God must have sent me to her to make her feel better. I thought to myself yes He did and He gave me the support I needed to give her the support she needed. Pretty cool!
