Strangers in the Store

    I was at Kroger today, and when I checked out, it was a peculiar event. I lined up for the self-serve kiosk when I noticed a Kroger employee cowering in the corner sniffling into a kerchief. Not sure why it caught my eye, or why it held my gaze but I was infatuated with the situation. Was she suffering from an allergy attack or having a breakdown in the middle of the store? I was further perplexed as she approached me asking, "Is that all you have?" referring to the two items in my hand. I replied, "yes" and she continued with, "I can take care of that for you." I was in the self-serve line, but she was scanning my items and taking my items on my self-serve scanner. That may be normal practice, but it was obvious that she was quite disoriented as she continued to sniffle, try to scan my items, take my money, all the while, clumsily stumbling over her own hands, nearly dropping everything she touched and trying to maintain her composure.

    She recognized how she must have appeared, because she apologized. She then went on to explain that she was having trouble with her "little boy" in school. She mumbled something about him trying to tell her last night, but she didn't believe him or listen to him. I have no idea what she was saying, but pain dominated her countenance. She hurt. She made me hurt. I was speechless. Something like, "I hope everything works out for you" fell out of my mouth and I numbly swam out of the store feeling just as confused and disoriented as she appeared.

    The questions immediately began to control my thinking. Should I have said something else? Should I have asked more questions? Should I have said, "I will pray for you"? Then it hit me. Why do I say that? I will pray for you. It's not that I don't pray for them. But why do I make the statement. It's for their encouragement, right? I have found no biblical references for the idea of proclaiming to someone that you will pray for them and then doing it at another time, away from them. In fact there are only two references in the NASB 95 for the phrase "I will pray". The first is Samuel telling Israel to gather and he would pray for them, and he does right then and there. The other reference is 1 Cor 14:15, which is Paul speaking of the Spiritual gifts. So my question then is this: Is our proclaiming to others our intent to pray for them an attempt to seek glory from them? Jesus splashes water in our faces, when in John He asks, "How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the one and only God?" So should we trust in our glory stealing words or trust in the "God who comforts the depressed"(2 Cor. 7:6) to care for those that are weak in spirit so that He might get the glory?