Julio Diaz is a social worker in his thirties who lives in the Bronx. As he stepped off the subway one night, a teenage boy approached and pulled out a knife. “He wants my money, so I just gave him my wallet and told him, ‘Here you go,'” Diaz says.
The would-be robber looked at his would-be victim, “Like what’s going on here?” Diaz says. “He asked me, ‘Why are you doing this?'” Diaz replied: “‘If you’re willing to risk your freedom for a few dollars, then I guess you must really need the money. I mean, all I wanted to do was get dinner and if you … want to join me … hey, you’re more than welcome.’ You know, I just felt maybe he really needs help,” Diaz says.
Diaz says he and the teen went into the diner and sat in a booth. Diaz asked him what he wanted out of life. “He just had … a sad face,” Diaz says. The teen couldn’t answer Diaz – or he didn’t want to. When the bill arrived, Diaz told the teen, “Look, I guess you’re going to have to pay for this bill ’cause you have my money and I can’t pay for this. So if you give me my wallet back, I’ll gladly treat you.”
The teen “didn’t even think about it” and returned the wallet, Diaz says. “I gave him $20 … I figure maybe it’ll help him. I don’t know.” Diaz says he asked for something in return–the teen’s knife–“and he gave it to me.” *
What motivated Julio Diaz that night? Could it have been Jesus’ words, “Let your light shine before men…”?
There will probably be a situation in your life today that will afford you the opportunity to surprise someone with grace and kindness. You might not be mugged with a knife, but someone may stab you with a harsh tone or degrading words. You might not be robbed of your cash, but someone may steal your time. Your reputation may be the object of someone’s assault.
And then you will have the opportunity to surprise someone with grace, kindness, gentle words, or Christ-like compassion.
“Let your light shine… that they may glorify your Father who is in heaven.”
Blessings,