My internal voice said, “She needs somebody to talk to.”
She sat at the end of the aisle with a blank stare. Church was over. The pastor had blessed us and dismissed us. But she just sat there.
I smiled at her as I walked past. She returned a joyless smile. The still, small voice of the Holy Spirit said, “She needs somebody to talk to.” I stopped and went back to introduce myself. I told her what the Holy Spirit had said and asked, “Do you need someone to talk to?”
“I’m fine,” she answered. From the tears that sprang to her eyes, I knew that could not be true. So, I sat down next to her. She seemed reluctant to give details. Through her tears, she said that “big things” were happening in her life. That’s okay. I don’t need details, and God knows them already. I simply prayed for her. And she wept.
After the prayer, she shared that she had recently been through a messy divorce, and her daughter was depressed after miscarrying a child. Those are “big things!” I prayed again, specifically for her daughter.
You may be thinking that the voice I am attributing to the Holy Spirit was just me reading her body language and picking up cues. Maybe. But in a church that seats 1000, how did I notice her at all? Why did she decide to attend the first service when she usually attends the second one? What made me choose to exit down that particular aisle?
God orchestrated this “chance” encounter so that she would know that He is with her; He is watching over her. She felt God’s tender love toward her and her family. As she left, her heart was lighter because God had infused the “big things” in her life with His hope.
Wow! Look at what God accomplished because I offered my listening ear. Perhaps I underestimate the value of a sympathetic ear.
How about you? Have you ever considered the significance of investing time in listening to the stories of others? Imagine how many lives could be transformed by God's love and hope, if only we would lend our ears.