👼 WHAT IF THE ONE YOU IGNORED WAS SENT BY GOD?
Before You Delete the Request, Walk Past the Stranger, or Say “I Can't Help”—Perhaps We Should First Ask, “Lord, What Would You Have Me Do?”
“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.” — Hebrews 13:2
Every day, across the social-media accounts of Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International, messages arrive from people asking for help.
Some are from the Philippines.
Others come from Africa, Asia, the United States, and places scattered around the world.
The stories vary.
“Pastor, can you help my family?”
“We don't have food.”
“My children need help.”
“I need money for medicine.”
“Please help with school expenses.”
“Our house was damaged.”
“Can the ministry please help us?”
After you've received enough of these messages, something can happen.
You become suspicious.
And understandably so.
We know scams exist.
We know people create false stories.
We know photographs can be stolen.
We know social media has made it easier than ever for dishonest people to manufacture emergencies.
So eventually the mind develops a shortcut:
ANOTHER REQUEST FOR MONEY = PROBABLY ANOTHER SCAM.
Delete.
Next message.
Delete.
Next.
I've done it.
But this morning, the Lord dealt with my heart about something that had become so ordinary, repetitive, and almost thoughtless that I barely noticed myself doing it.
And the question that came to my heart was incredibly simple:
“WHY DON'T YOU ASK ME IF YOU SHOULD HELP THEM OR NOT?”
That stopped me in my tracks.
🤔 WAIT A MINUTE, LORD...
It wasn't:
“Give money to everybody who asks.”
It wasn't:
“Believe every story you receive.”
It wasn't:
“Throw discernment out the window.”
The question was much deeper:
“WHY DIDN'T YOU ASK ME?”
That's different.
Because suddenly the issue wasn't the person asking for money.
THE ISSUE WAS ME.
Had I prayed?
Had I sought God's direction?
Had I even considered whether the Holy Spirit might want me to respond?
Or had I simply decided:
I've seen this before.
I know what this probably is.
Delete.
And then another thought entered my mind.
One that wasn't particularly comfortable.
HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE DONE THE SAME THING TO ME?
💔 MAYBE SOMEBODY HAS DELETED MY REQUEST TOO
How many times have I posted about people struggling in the Philippines?
How many times have I asked someone to help us feed a family?
Support a student?
Assist with disaster relief?
Help with our missionary work?
Contribute toward an outreach?
Stand financially with Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International?
And how many people saw the request and immediately thought:
“Another ministry asking for money.”
Scroll.
“Everybody wants something.”
Scroll.
“Probably another fundraiser.”
Scroll.
Maybe even:
“How do I know where the money is really going?”
Scroll.
I don't say that with bitterness.
I SAY IT BECAUSE I UNDERSTAND IT BETTER NOW.
Because I've been on the other side of the screen.
I've received the requests.
I've become suspicious.
I've deleted some of them.
And suddenly I had to ask myself:
“JAMES, HOW CAN YOU ASK PEOPLE TO PRAYERFULLY CONSIDER YOUR REQUESTS IF YOU DON'T PRAYERFULLY CONSIDER THE REQUESTS THAT COME TO YOU?”
That one stayed with me.
🙏 HOW OFTEN DO WE ACTUALLY ASK GOD?
Think about this beyond money.
How many decisions do we make every day without ever asking God what He wants?
Should I help this person?
Should I make this purchase?
Should I accept this opportunity?
Should I make this telephone call?
Should I respond to this message?
Should I say something?
Should I remain quiet?
Should I go?
Should I stay?
Should I give?
Should I wait?
Should I walk away?
Should I forgive?
Should I become involved?
We say we want God's will for our lives.
But how often do we actually stop and ask:
“LORD, WHAT IS YOUR WILL IN THIS?”
Not only in the enormous decisions.
The ordinary ones.
The inconvenient ones.
The interruptions.
The moments when we're tired.
The person standing in front of us when we would rather be somewhere else.
Which brings me to something that happened several years ago.
🛒 THE WALMART PARKING LOT
A few years ago, Cecilia, the children, and I had finished shopping at Walmart.
It had been a long day.
I was hot.
I was tired.
And frankly—
I WAS READY TO GO HOME.
We were in the parking lot loading our purchases into the rear of our van.
You know the routine.
Bag after bag.
Move this.
Put that there.
Make everything fit.
Close the door.
Get in.
Go home.
That was my agenda.
Then, while I was loading the van, I heard a voice behind me.
“Hi, Sir.”
I turned around.
There stood a young man.
His clothes were scraggly.
His beard was unkempt.
His posture was somewhat slouched.
Nothing about his appearance was particularly remarkable.
Except—
HIS EYES.
I still remember them.
They appeared peaceful.
Confident.
Honest.
There was something about those eyes.
🥤 “COULD I TROUBLE YOU FOR SOME CHANGE?”
I said:
“Yes, can I help you?”
But remember—
I was tired.
I was hot.
And patience has never automatically been my strongest virtue.
So even while speaking with him, I continued loading the van.
Then he asked:
“Could I trouble you for some change so I could buy a soda?”
Not a hundred dollars.
Not fifty.
Not twenty.
CHANGE.
Enough for a soda.
And with my back still turned toward him, I blurted:
“Sorry, but I don't have any change.”
I continued what I was doing.
Then something registered.
I hadn't heard him respond.
So I turned around.
HE WAS GONE.
👀 WHERE DID HE GO?
I looked across that enormous Walmart parking lot.
Nothing.
I looked in the direction he should have walked.
Nothing.
No glimpse of him moving between cars.
No figure walking away.
No sign of him.
It seemed as though—
HE HAD VANISHED.
And almost immediately, Hebrews 13:2 came to mind:
“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”
Then the thought hit me:
WHAT IF THAT MAN WAS AN ANGEL?
Now, don't roll your eyes just yet.
I'm not telling you that he was an angel.
I don't know.
I cannot prove it.
And I'm not going to build a doctrine around a Walmart parking lot.
But I do know what the Bible says.
Abraham received unexpected visitors in Genesis 18.
Lot encountered angelic visitors in Genesis 19.
And Hebrews explicitly tells believers that some have entertained angels without knowing it.
So could God still do something we don't understand?
I BELIEVE HE CAN.
But whether that young man was an angel isn't really the most important part of the story.
Because either way—
HE WAS A PERSON STANDING IN FRONT OF ME WHO ASKED FOR HELP.
And I never stopped long enough to ask God what I should do.
That was the lesson.
💔 “LORD, I THINK I FAILED THAT TEST.”
Standing there in that parking lot, that was essentially how I felt.
Lord, if that was a test, I think I just failed it.
Not because I was obligated to give every stranger money.
That's not the lesson.
Not because Christians should abandon wisdom.
That's not biblical either.
I felt convicted because of my attitude.
I was impatient.
I was preoccupied.
I had already decided the answer before I had even considered the person.
I SAW AN INTERRUPTION BEFORE I SAW A HUMAN BEING.
That bothered me.
And it should have.
🙏 SO I ASKED GOD TO FORGIVE ME
I asked the Lord to forgive me for being impatient.
Then I asked Him for something else:
PATIENCE.
Wisdom.
Discernment.
Understanding.
And a heart sensitive enough to recognize those moments when He might place someone across my path for a reason.
I have never had that exact scenario happen again.
No mysterious stranger asking for soda and seemingly disappearing into a parking lot.
But I believe God answered the deeper prayer.
Because today I have a heart for giving, helping, blessing, and ministering to people unlike anything I remember having before.
Call it giving.
Call it charity.
Call it benevolence.
Call it missions.
Call it outreach.
Call it helping somebody.
I simply call it:
CARING ABOUT PEOPLE.
Lesson learned.
⚠️ DOES THIS MEAN GIVE MONEY TO EVERYBODY WHO ASKS?
No.
And I want to make that very clear.
Hebrews 13:2 isn't a command to abandon discernment.
Christians can be compassionate and wise.
Jesus said:
“Be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.” — Matthew 10:16
There are scams.
There are dishonest people.
There are manipulative stories.
There are people who exploit Christian generosity.
We shouldn't pretend otherwise.
Sometimes the right answer will still be:
NO.
Sometimes God may lead you not to give money but to provide food.
Sometimes He may lead you toward a legitimate organization better equipped to help.
Sometimes He may tell you to verify the story.
Sometimes He may tell you to pray.
Sometimes He may tell you to walk away.
And sometimes—
HE MAY TELL YOU TO GIVE.
The point isn't that every request deserves a yes.
The point is that perhaps more requests deserve a prayer before the answer.
🔥 WHAT IF WE CHANGED ONE HABIT?
Before deleting—
PRAY.
Before scrolling—
pray.
Before saying no—
pray.
Before saying yes—
pray.
Before assuming—
pray.
Before judging somebody's appearance—
pray.
Before deciding whether somebody deserves your compassion—
PRAY.
It doesn't require an hour-long prayer meeting.
Sometimes it can be:
“Lord, is there anything You want me to do here?”
Then listen.
❤️ PEOPLE DON'T ALWAYS LOOK LIKE THEIR STORY
That young man in the Walmart parking lot taught me something else.
People don't always arrive packaged the way we expect.
Hebrews 13:2 doesn't say:
“Entertain impressive strangers.”
It says:
STRANGERS.
The person God wants you to notice may look inconvenient.
Unpolished.
Poor.
Confused.
Different.
They may interrupt your schedule.
They may approach when you're tired.
They may ask at precisely the moment when you don't feel like being bothered.
And perhaps that's part of the test.
Jesus said:
“For I was an hungred, and ye gave me meat: I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink...” — Matthew 25:35
Then He said:
“Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.” — Matthew 25:40
Sometimes our encounter with Jesus comes disguised as an opportunity to serve somebody else.
🪞 NOW TURN THE QUESTION AROUND
This morning's conviction caused me to look at my own ministry appeals differently.
Whenever Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International asks for help—
I don't expect everyone to give.
I don't expect everyone to give the same amount.
And I don't want anyone giving merely because they feel pressured or guilty.
But perhaps instead of automatically scrolling past, dismissing the appeal, or assuming:
“Another request for money...”
there's a better response.
ASK GOD.
That's all.
“Lord, do You want me to help?”
If He says no—
fine.
If He says wait—
wait.
If He says pray—
pray.
If He says share the message—
share it.
If He says give five dollars—
give five.
If He says fifty—
give fifty.
If He says five hundred—
obey Him.
The amount isn't the first issue.
OBEDIENCE IS.
🌎 SOMEBODY'S PRAYER MAY ARRIVE IN YOUR INBOX
This is what I keep thinking about.
What if the message we almost deleted was sent by somebody who had just prayed:
“God, please send someone to help me.”
Again, that doesn't mean every online request is legitimate.
But it does mean I don't want cynicism to become so automatic that I become spiritually deaf.
I don't want scams to make me stop seeing genuine suffering.
I don't want dishonest people to rob honest people of my compassion.
AND I DON'T WANT FEAR OF BEING TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF TO BECOME AN EXCUSE FOR NEVER GIVING AT ALL.
Discernment protects generosity.
Cynicism kills it.
There's a difference.
👼 WHAT IF?
What if that person asking for help is genuine?
What if God arranged the encounter?
What if your small gift becomes somebody's meal?
What if your telephone call prevents somebody from giving up?
What if your prayer changes the atmosphere in somebody's home?
What if your encouragement arrives at precisely the right moment?
What if the stranger you nearly ignored was somebody God wanted you to notice?
And yes—
WHAT IF, SOMEDAY, WE ACTUALLY DO ENTERTAIN AN ANGEL UNAWARES?
I don't know when that happens.
That's precisely the point of “unawares.”
🙏 LORD, DON'T LET ME BECOME TOO BUSY TO NOTICE
Father,
Forgive us for the times we've been too busy to notice people.
Forgive us when legitimate caution becomes hardened cynicism.
Forgive us when we judge before we pray.
Forgive us when we become irritated because somebody's need interrupts our schedule.
Give us wisdom.
We don't want to be foolish.
Give us discernment.
We don't want to be manipulated.
But Father—
PLEASE DON'T LET WISDOM BECOME AN EXCUSE FOR A HARD HEART.
Teach us to ask You.
When someone approaches us—
Lord, what would You have me do?
When a request appears—
Lord, what would You have me do?
When somebody needs help—
Lord, what would You have me do?
When we're uncertain—
Lord, what would You have me do?
Give us ears to hear and hearts willing to obey.
And if You place someone across our path whom You intend for us to help—
PLEASE DON'T LET US MISS THEM.
In Jesus' name,
Amen.
👣 LESSON LEARNED
I still don't know who that young man was.
Maybe he was simply a thirsty young man who wanted a soda.
Maybe there was more to the encounter than I understood.
God knows.
But all these years later, I still remember his eyes.
And I remember turning around—
AND HE WAS GONE.
Perhaps someday I'll know.
Until then, Hebrews 13:2 means something a little more personal to me:
“Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.”
So the next time somebody asks—
don't automatically say yes.
Don't automatically say no.
Don't automatically reach for your wallet.
And don't automatically reach for the delete key.
FIRST, REACH FOR GOD.
Ask Him:
“LORD, WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE ME DO?”
Then—
DO THAT.
Lesson learned.
Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International
Your Feet to the Nations
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