How Does One Help A Non Believer?

I was recently confronted with a situation where the person was looking to "feel better". For years, and I mean several years, this person, who is close to me, has been harboring a resentment, an anger, almost an obsessive hatred. Let me say she is not a Christian of any sort. In fact, she is Jewish.

Generally, in my own life, when I have a situation that tries my patience, I attempt (sometimes successfully, sometimes not. May I add the issue is with me, not with the Lord in resolving these incidents) to offer this angst up to the Lord to use as He sees fit. Within my faith, this can be used a couple of ways:

~ self servingly, if you will: Lord, please take this burden from me because I can't take any more

~ unselfishly: Lord, I am offering up this angst in order to sanctify the soul of another (St. Paul said our suffering can be used in this manner)

~ devotedly: Lord, if I can share your cross, if even for a second, allow me to.

These are just a couple of examples. (and I just discovered my answer, as I write this and will go into it later).

Within the Jewish faith, there is no mechanism to "offer up" that I know of. There is one day of atonement, Yom Kippur, centered around prayer and fasting. One day is not quite enough for me to atone. I am not saying I sin to such a large degree that I could occupy a confessional for a week. Did I turn my back on someone in need? Instead of praying, was I thinking about something else? Was I irritated with someone, as opposed to reflecting Christ? We all do this all the time, don't we? If I had only one day per year, the list of even minor transgressions would occupy too much time. I also understand that the spiritual side of the atonement in important; more so than the "list" itself. Sin, major and minor, is inevitable and requires awareness. Otherwise we lose humility.

So, this person is suffering (getting headaches, stomach pain, interfering with her life in general). I am desperate to help. So, first I tried the thoughts listed above without mentioning Christ. Receptive, yes, but something was missing i.e the Covenant of Christ to start with. I wasn't happy with this approach, because I couldn't adequately finish the argument. Now what?

I said forgive the person, offer up the anguish to God and if it takes a year to forgive this person, then it takes a year. Pray on it and you will be answered in God's time. Forgiveness is liberating.

Good enough? Sort of.

I didn't feel right. I wasn't making the point I wanted to make: accept Christ now because He is the only way. How many times does He have to prove it, to anyone with any sense??

And now it dawns on me: I have to pray that God works His plan. In this case, I can't do much except pray that the illumination comes in whatever manner it does. I am just a mere mortal. Why didn't I think just to pray for enlightenment for this person that I love? So, I am doing it now.

There was this famous person, who became a saint. I don't recall who it was exactly (it may have been one of the disciples). I do know, the story goes, that he was in a bath house in Rome. There was an infamous heretic there also. When the future saint's acolytes came to him, they told him the heretic was there and being very loud and, well, heretical.

Now being a future saint, I would have expected him to take on the heretic and try to straighten him out. Seems natural. Instead he said:

"Let's get out of here, before the roof caves in !!!!!"

In other words, in some cases, let God do His work. He is so much better at than we are. We just need to know when to ask for His help and when to take on the project ourselves, in His name.

God bless you.

KJ Price