The good man in sandals

as retold by Lois Hess Nafziger

A man was walking down the street. There was a huge hole in the sidewalk and he fell in. It was deep and steep and there was not way out. The man started yelling to passers by: ‘Help! Help! Get me out of here!’

A comfortable, well-off, but not rich Mennonite walked by and felt a twinge of conscience. She hastily dropped a $50 bill into the hole and walked on by.

The man continued to scream for help. A clinical counselor arrived on the scene. He tossed in a prescription for Prozac, and added a sample pack for good measure. ‘I feel your pain,’ he shouted. ‘Stay in the moment! Allow yourself to grieve for all you’ve lost. You’ll make it through!’ And he continued on his way.

A seminary graduate walked by. She was so grateful for her special training! As the man in the hole yelled again, she blessed him with a gender-neutral blessing and walked on.

Someone else came down the street. An ordinary man, although he did have good taste in sandals. The man in the hole yelled for help. He was hoarse by now.

The man in the sandals looked down, then jumped into the hole along side the hoarse, exhausted man. ‘Why in the world did you do that?’ whined the man. ‘Now we’re both stuck!’

‘But I’ve been here before,’ said the man in sandals. ‘I know the way out.’

It seems we have a God who chooses to be with us to show us the way, rather than to rescue us or make our problems disappear. I trust that the one who has been there before and knows the way out is with each of you. Susan Mark Landis Peace Advocate Mennonite Church USA