Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest! John 4:35
If you’ve ever been to a major sporting event or a huge concert, you know what a challenge it can be trying to get out of the venue after the event. Keeping your group together, finding the right exit, and getting to your car or the subway or a taxi can be an enormous undertaking.
Now imagine trying to accomplish all of that as a blind person. I read a story about a young woman who noticed a blind man struggling to hail a taxi at Wrigley Field after a Cubs game. The streets were packed with people, and the blind man, not realizing people were stepping in front of him, kept getting passed over. The young woman noticed what was happening, asked the man if he was trying to get a taxi, and when he said yes, she asked if he would like help. When he said yes, she took his hand and hailed the cab for him. Someone on a nearby roof watched the whole thing take place and snapped a few pictures to post the good deed on social media a testament to a bright spot in a dark world.
There’s more than just a good story here, though. There are several evangelism tips we can take away.
1. In the course of the young woman’s regular activities, she noticed someone else struggling. How many people passed by the man with the white cane? How many people do we pass by each day?
2. She risked getting involved. What if he had been deeply offended that she offered to help? What if helping him involved more than just flagging down a taxi? Are we too quick to assume it’s not our place to intervene, or that someone else will? Are we overly protective of our schedules and our time?
3. She was courteous and respectful. She never patronized the man. How often do we lose the right to be heard because we condemn or lecture rather than listen and engage?
4. She impacted others. Although she didn’t act so that she would be seen, she was. Her kindness served as an encouragement and an example. Are we carrying out our charge to let our light shine so that God is glorified?
Scripture often uses physical blindness as an example to teach us about spiritual blindness. It is significant that while Scripture records that others performed miracles even raising the dead, only Jesus gave sight to the blind. Only Christ can give sight to the spiritually blind. And only Christ can give fresh vision when we become self-absorbed … tired … complacent … and ultimately blind to those around us.