{"id":1906,"date":"2013-12-09T08:00:44","date_gmt":"2013-12-09T16:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.graceground.com\/?p=1906"},"modified":"2013-11-29T19:21:28","modified_gmt":"2013-11-30T03:21:28","slug":"loving-others-at-walmart","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redeeminggod.com\/loving-others-at-walmart\/","title":{"rendered":"Loving Others at Walmart"},"content":{"rendered":"

Here is a story from Sam Riviera<\/a> about how he showed tangible love and concern for a woman he met outside of Walmart. As we seek to follow Jesus and be the church in our community, loving others with the love of Jesus can be as simple as caring for the person right in front of us.<\/p>\n

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Another\u00a0 winter day, but the temperature in the sun in front of\u00a0 that\u00a0 Walmart here in San Diego was well over one hundred degrees.\u00a0 Somehow I never noticed Annabelle when I went into the store.\u00a0 But I saw her and heard her when I came out.<\/p>\n

\u201cPardon me sir.\u00a0 Would you like to give something to help the homeless?\u00a0 Even a quarter would be appreciated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"lovingAnnabelle was sitting in the hot sun at a small table with a sign that named the group for whom she was fundraising.\u00a0 Another sign said \u201cAsk me for my testimony.\u201d\u00a0 Annabelle was dripping sweat.<\/p>\n

\u201cTell me about this group you\u2019re raising money for,\u201d I said.\u00a0 \u201cHow did you get involved with these people?\u201d<\/p>\n

Annabelle told me about how the group had helped her and her daughter get off the street and break her addiction to drugs.\u00a0 She said that she is following Jesus now.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had a job, but lost it a couple of months ago because of the economy.\u00a0 So I thought I should try to give back\u00a0 by sitting out here fundraising.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYou look like you\u2019re cooking out here in the sun.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI am.\u00a0 I feel like a piece of roast beef, but I\u2019m going to stay.\u201d<\/p>\n

Annabelle went on to tell me that some people are kind to her, and some are not.\u00a0 Some call her nasty names, tell her she is what\u2019s wrong with this country, and some even tell her she is ugly.<\/p>\n

I told her it\u2019s how God sees us that counts.\u00a0 In God\u2019s eyes, we\u2019re beautiful.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know that, but sometimes it\u2019s hard sitting here with people saying some of those things.\u00a0 The devil tempts me to not be nice to them.\u00a0 But I try real hard to be nice to them anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n

After giving Annabelle a donation, I told her my wife and I would pray for her and asked how she would like us to pray.<\/p>\n

\u201cPlease pray for my teenage daughter and my teenage niece who lives with us.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cShould we pray for a job for you also?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cYes, I need a job.\u00a0 But I\u2019m not worried about me so much as I\u2019m worried about those girls.\u00a0 I\u2019m right with Jesus and I\u2019m OK.\u201d<\/p>\n

We shook hands and hugged.\u00a0 Apparently the group of people that had gathered around us listening to our conversation were not familiar with seeing customers and fundraisers hugging in front of Walmart.<\/p>\n

When I got home, I remembered that we had a clip-on beach umbrella in the closet that we probably didn\u2019t really need.\u00a0 A little later I fastened it on Annabelle\u2019s table, since I had to “pass by that way anyhow on my way to an appointment.” \u00a0(My appointment was really in the opposite direction, but Annabelle didn’t need to know that.)\u00a0 Someone had given her a cold drink and she said she had already eaten lunch.<\/p>\n

\u201cCan people see you under that umbrella when they come out of the store?\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cEven if they can\u2019t see me, I can see them and they can hear my big mouth.\u00a0 God bless you and your wife!\u201d<\/p>\n

As I walked back to my car I could hear Annabelle.<\/p>\n

\u201cPardon me, sir.\u00a0 Would you like to give something to help the homeless?\u201d<\/p>\n

Please pray for Annabelle, her daughter and\u00a0 her niece.<\/p>\n

Be the Church in Your Community<\/h2>\r\n\"BeWant to be the church in your community but don't know? Here are some posts which not only explain what it means to be the church in your community, but also gives concrete, practical examples of what it looks like and how to be the church whatever you do and wherever you go.\r\n\r\nRemember, you ARE the church, and wherever you go, Jesus goes with you!\r\n