The Man in the Red Cadillac

By: Cameron Shoemaker

Exodus 17:10-13

“10 So Joshua fought the Amalekites as Moses had ordered, and Moses, Aaron and Hur went to the top of the hill. 11 As long as Moses held up his hands, the Israelites were winning, but whenever he lowered his hands, the Amalekites were winning.12 When Moses’ hands grew tired, they took a stone and put it under him and he sat on it. Aaron and Hur held his hands up—one on one side, one on the other—so that his hands remained steady till sunset. 13 So Joshua overcame the Amalekite army with the sword.”

A few weeks ago, my wife and I moved to a different apartment in Lincoln, NE. It was very hot, and I was on my way to load up the last of our belongings.

As I was waiting at a busy intersection, I noticed that traffic was building up around the left turn lane. There was an older gentleman in an old beat up truck that died and wouldn’t start up. I pulled off into a side lot and ran over to help the man push his truck off the road. 

When we were about halfway through the intersection, a nice red Cadillac pulled off the road in a hurry. A man jumped out and ran over to help us push. All together, we were able to quickly move the older man’s truck off the street into a gas station, where he could call for help.

When I think about this interaction, I don’t think about how I did a good thing by helping. I don’t think about the older man that got caught in traffic. I don’t think about all the angry honking drivers that just were swerving around without offering to help. 

I think about the man in the red Cadillac. 

The older man and I were moving the truck at a reasonable pace. We weren’t really struggling, everything was going fine. 

But, seeing a problem that wasn’t yet resolved, this other man hopped in and help complete the job. His extra help made quick and easy work out of moving that truck.

Moses was tasked with a pretty heavy burden. As long as he kept his hands raised throughout the battle, the Israelites would defeat the Amalekites. When Moses needed help, both Aaron and Hur each held an arm to help Moses until sunset. 

I’m sure either Aaron or Hur could have helped Moses, and it would have turned out fine. Maybe they could have taken turns holding up arms. Maybe one could have stayed and the other could have gone to help the battle. But, with both of them actively helping, they managed the task easily and made sure everything worked out well.

Sometimes one person is enough to get the job done. But, how much better, easier, and quicker could it be if two or more people worked together? How many more problems could be resolved? How many “stuck” people could be moved forward? How smooth and easy would the process be for everyone involved?

Tip for Today: Find somebody’s project that is already underway, or somebody that already has just enough help. How could you make quick and easy work of the task?

Cameron Shoemaker is the owner and founder of Coffee Fund, a service focused on providing effortless fundraising for churches, schools, and nonprofit organizations. His mission in life is to encourage, enable, and assist passionate people, so they can better their lives and the lives of those around them. He has worked with several worship ministries over the past decade; helping them realize and develop their God given potential so they can better the world and exemplify the kingdom of God.