He stood holding a sign that read, “Hungry! Please help!”

I was out on a walk with my children when I saw a younger man standing near a stop sign of an intersection holding a piece of cardboard. I couldn’t read it from where I was, but the kids and I were headed in that direction anyway. As I got closer, I was able to read his sign that he was hungry… very hungry so it seemed.

His clothes were torn and worn, and his body was thin and hunched, but his face was clean and well kept. I approached him first with fleshly skepticism and confusion. I’ve heard many stories of people who pose themselves as beggars in order to receive handouts, and I felt like this man was carrying on similarly. However, I could not stop thinking of Jesus when He said, “For I was hungry and you gave Me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave Me nothing to drink” (Matthew 25:42).

My heart then softened for this young man, because whether he was truly hungry or just wanting my money was not my place to decide. I noticed there was a Little Caesar’s Pizza restaurant across from where he was standing, so when I reached him, I asked him if he were hungry.

“I am very hungry,” he replied.

I told him I would love to buy him an entire Little Caesar’s Pizza and offered for him to come with me across the street to pick it up since I was pushing my children in the stroller and would not be able to carry it back to him.

He hesitated, but then agreed. He started to follow me, and then slowly drifted behind me. When I turned around and noticed he was no longer walking with me, he responded with, “That’s ok. Thank you, though” and continued walking back to his spot near the stop-sign.

When I turned around and headed back in his direction to finish my walk, I asked him why his sign said he was hungry if he weren’t really hungry, and he responded with, “Well, I don’t want to miss my ride when they come back to get me.”

I remember walking away trying to understand what had happened. I didn’t know his situation or what chain of events played out for him to end up on the corner asking people for money, but I did know that Jesus loved this young man as much as He loved me. My heart broke for him as I headed back home with my children.

Several months later, I was heading back to my car after purchasing some office supplies. I saw another man sitting in the shade near the entrance of the store. He had a shopping cart full of personal belongings, and he was sweating heavily from the hot summer day. I didn’t want him to dehydrate, so I pulled a couple unused waters from the back seat, put them in a plastic bag, and slipped some money inside in case he was hungry, too.

I pulled up next to him in my car and offered him the bag of cold waters. He looked at the bag, looked at me, and then said, “That’s ok. I have enough water.”

Both of these situations have been profoundly impactful during my journey to living in freedom with Jesus. It has made me realize how similar I am to both of these men in my relationship with God.

There have been too many times where I have rejected the invitation to experience abundant life with Jesus, because He offered me something different than what I wanted. It’s as if I, too, were crying out for God to fill a need, when in reality, I just wanted to get His attention so I could ask Him to give me something I wanted instead. Thankfully, God cannot be fooled by our manipulative cries for help, because He already knows what we need before we ask Him (Matthew 6:8), and He is always faithful to fill those needs.

I can honestly say I have denied God access to areas in my life, because I knew He would offer me a bag full of Living Water in order that I would be sustained and hydrated spiritually during the difficult seasons I was in. Unfortunately, in my ignorance, I didn’t want any more Water. I wanted something that would pull me out of my circumstances or situations instead of being sustained during them. What I failed to embrace was not only does God supply everything for my needs, but He, too, hides gifts and treasures inside the things I need simply out of His loving-kindness towards me.

In other words, “how much more will our Father in heaven give good gifts to those who ask Him!” (Matthew 7:11).

We will not experience freedom found in the grace of Jesus if we are not willing to allow Him to fill our every need regardless if it doesn’t appeal to us in the moment. We have to trust that He who began a good work in us will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus (Philippians 1:6); His way, and how He sees fit. That means repenting from every attempt to manipulate God to give us what we want, repenting from rejecting His grace to give us what we need, and committing ourselves to trusting Him in the season where we are.

Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely, and may your entire spirit, soul, and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The One who calls you is faithful, and He will do it  (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).