The Connection Corner

Embracing Moments that Matter

Daily Devotional, Lisa Williams, Uncategorized

“Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and in truth.”

1 John 3:18

I should have already been on the road. Instead, I was staring at my Jeep’s very flat tire. This was not how the day was supposed to go.

I managed to limp the car over to Christian Brothers Automotive, hoping they could fix my flat quickly and get me back on the road, but they were closed.

So, I left my car there, called an Uber, jumped on a plane, and tried to push the thought of the tire out of my mind.

A few days later, as I flew home, I remebered my car. I hadn’t even called the shop! I wondered….Was my car still in their parking lot? Had they towed it?

When I called the shop, Jed answered and said, “It’s still here. And we actually don’t do tires here.”

Argh.

Before I could even figure out what to do next, Jed kept talking. “We can air it up for you. Or if you’ve got a spare, I’ll put it on.”

I blinked. That was not what I expected. He had no reason to help me, and yet, his offer didn’t cost a thing.

When I got back to the shop, they had already aired up the tires, and I was struck by how intentional they had been with us. They even took the time to teach my son, JD, how to change a flat tire. As a single mom, it meant more to me than words could express. I had tears of gratitude as we drove away.

Jed probably never thought twice about offering his help, but I have not stopped thinking about it. That day, Christian Brothers Automotive truly lived up to their name.

Because isn’t that what following Jesus really looks like? Showing up for people and offering a moment of care when they least expect it? Being kind?

God constantly gives us chances to be that unexpected kindness for someone else. The truth is, we all feel stuck at times—whether it is a flat tire, a flat heart, or a flat hope. What we need most in those moments is not someone to fix us—it is someone to see us and remind us that we matter.

What if today, that kindness starts with you?

March 17, 2025/by Lisa Williams

Turning Pain into Hope

Daily Devotional, David Hall, Stories About Songs

“Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope.”

Romans 5:3-4

Eliza hated the silence. Her life had always been so full of movement and things to do. She spent her days teaching, writing, and serving others. But now, all of that was gone.

The injury had taken it from her.

She lay in bed, her body aching, her spirit restless. The days felt unbearably long, and the quietness stretched on. At first, she fought against it. She asked the same questions over and over: Why me? What now? Where are you God?

But as the days passed, she started to read her Bible. This was not the casual kind of reading for passing the time. No. She was desperate.

And in those long, slow hours spent in the Word, she saw things she had never noticed before. Words she had once skimmed past now felt alive. Promises she had memorized now felt like they were written just for her.

She knew she was not just surviving this hardship—God was doing something in it.

One day, she found herself humming a song she had started writing before the injury. It was just another project back then. But now? The words meant something. It went like this.

“When we all get to heaven,
What a day of rejoicing that will be!
When we all see Jesus,
We’ll sing and shout the victory!”

She had never clung to heaven like this before. She had never needed to. But now, her hope in Jesus felt different. Stronger. More real.

When she finally released the song, it spread like wildfire. People who were hurting and searching found something in those words—something bigger than their pain.

Eliza Hewitt would have never chosen this hardship, but looking back, she saw it clearly. Her pain had not been wasted. God turned her silence into a song of hope, and it was too valuable to keep to herself.

That’s the thing. Sometimes, the greatest good that comes out of our hardship is what we are called to give away. Could it be that the very thing you are wrestling with is the thing that someone else needs to hear?

March 16, 2025/by David Hall

Be the Support Someone Needs

Daily Devotional, Lauren Kitchens-Steward

“Bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ.”

Galatians 6:2

Ursula had spent her whole life being the strong one—the one who showed up for everybody else. But that day on the mountain, she had to be the one who was carried.

One wrong step, a sharp twist, and pain like fire shot through her ankle. She hit the ground hard, gasping. She tried to stand, but the moment her foot touched the dirt, she crumpled.

Miles of rocky trail stretched between her and help. There was no cell service, no way to call anyone, and for the first time in a long time, she felt completely helpless.

Then, three young men rounded the bend, breathless from their run. They could have smiled politely and jogged on past. Instead, they stopped.

One of them, a boy named Troy, crouched beside her. “Ma’am,” he said, his voice steady, “we’ve got you.”

And before she could argue, he knelt down, let her wrap her arms around his shoulders, and lifted her clean off the ground. Step by step, he carried her down that mountain, his friends steadying them along the way.

By the time they reached the bottom, Ursula’s ankle was still broken, but she felt more cared for than she had in a long time. Because kindness like that—the kind that costs something—sticks with you. They didn’t owe her anything. And yet, they gave anyway. Strength. Time. Compassion.

And the truth is, we all get the chance to be that for somebody.

Some burdens in life are too heavy to bear alone. But what if someone’s relief is waiting on your willingness? What if the kindness you offer today is the kindness that changes everything?

March 15, 2025/by Lauren Kitchens-Steward