A Jump (02/24/2025)

As I walked to my car with my Kwik Trip purchases, I heard the sound of a car engine not turning over. I realized it was the car next to where I was parked. An elderly gentleman sat inside, trying multiple times to start his older vehicle. Then another man emerged from Kwik Trip, heard the sounds, and followed them to the dead car. He stopped for a second, looked at the car and the elderly gentleman, and then walked to the driver’s window and knocked on the glass. The driver rolled down his window. The slightly younger man said, “Sounds like you need a jump.”

The rescuer suggested that they needed to get the car to the end of the lot to give it a jump. So, the driver steered as the rescuer pushed the small vehicle out of the stall and to the end of the building. Then he got his car, drove it around and parked it facing the dead vehicle – almost bumper to bumper. He went to his trunk, extracted jumper cables, and attached them to his battery and the dead battery. And shortly, the dead battery was revived. The two stood and talked for a while as the cars ran. Then the rescuer detached the cables, wounded them up nicely and returned them to his trunk. And they left.

I don’t know if they noticed me watching from my car. I was fascinated by the situation. I wondered how many drivers in that parking lot had jumper cables in their cars. I know I didn’t. I also wondered how many drivers in that parking lot would have offered to help if the one gentleman hadn’t volunteered to help.

What makes some people “helpers”? Is it simply that they have the equipment? Is it that they have the time? Is it that they can spot the problem and know how to fix it? Is it that they care and even without the equipment they will find a way? I sat for a while wondering what I would have eventually done if the gentleman with the cables hadn’t come along.

As we journey in faith, hope and love, are we attentive to others around us and to their needs? Do we reach out to others when we notice they are experiencing difficulty? Do we offer to help? Do we give of our time and resources to help others? Do we care?

Are you old enough to remember the WWJD bracelets? “What Would Jesus Do?” was a great reminder to us in the world to see the others around us, to listen so we might hear their pain and needs, and to offer what we could in the moment. I haven’t seen a WWJD bracelet in years. I wonder if the gentleman with the jumper cables ever had one.

May we walk in faith, buoyed by hope, and fueled by love. May we let that love for our living and present LORD help us to recognize the needs of others and give of our time and resources to accompany others lovingly. May we recognize the LORD’s providence at work in our lives and our world and give into it.

Until tomorrow, let us all love well.