So for years Disney World has been called "The Most Magical Place on Earth." I went to Disney World last week hoping to find out if that was true. I saw a little magic. Here's my story...My wife, mother-in-law, my two kids and I were at the Magic Kingdom. Peyton, my 3 year old son, desperately wanted to drive the Grand Prix cars. (If you're not familiar with this ride, it's basically go-karts on a rail system so that no one can wreck anything.) The wait for the ride was about 30-40 minutes. We were making the most of the time by arguing over who was going to win and what color cars we wanted to drive. We watched little kids, teenagers, senior citizens, moms, dads, and anyone else you can think of climb into the cars and speed around the track. I'm sure this day was just like any other day at the park. That was all about to change...
You see, anyone can ride these cars. You just have to be a certain height to ride them by yourself. There was a young boy who had stood in line for what I'm sure seemed like an eternity for him. He was expecting to hop in a car all by himself and speed around the track. His family was watching him from the grandstands. They had watched him weave through the line and wait patiently for his turn. The problem was no one had measured him. He was a few inches to short to drive by himself.
When his turn came he was measured by the attendant and told he couldn't ride without an adult. The line was packed shoulder to shoulder with people who were waiting. Without an adult to ride with, he would have to be escorted out. He hung his head in disappointment as the girl in charge put her arm around him and led him to the exit. That's when the magic happened.
From out of no where came a Disney Executive who happened to be walking through the park. In his suit and tie, with his fancy gold Disney name tag and black brief case, this guy started jumping line. Literally, he jumped the fence, went under a divider, unhooked a chain from the railing, jumped over another rail and met them at the exit. He waved his hand to the girl in charge in a matter of fact way, as if to say "I've got this". He smiled at the boy, put his arm around him and led him back to the car. They got in the Grand Prix together. The guy in the suit took the passenger seat and the little boy hopped in behind the wheel. Seats belts were locked in, they looked at each other, and they sped off.
We were almost to the front of the line when their turn was over. I tried my best to snap a picture as they drove by. They were both smiling and laughing. They shared something together that neither of them will ever forget. What they didn't realize was I wouldn't forget it either.
I believe this is a modern day picture of what Jesus was talking about in Matthew 25:40. He said, "The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'
The guy in the suit didn't give the boy water, or clothes. The kid didn't need those things. At that moment, all that boy needed was someone to ride with him. This man was willing to be what that kid needed. It was truly a blessing to see, and a challenge to be that kind of blessing to someone else.
God may never call you to let some kid drive you around a glorified go-kart track. But if you'll keep your eyes open like this guy did I'm sure God will show you how you can step up and help someone right when they need it. And when you see it, I pray you'll jump fences, go under dividers, unhook chains from the railings, and do anything else you need to do to meet the need God reveals to you.
So does Disney World live up to its "Magical" billing? Thanks to that dedicated Disney employee who was willing to go way outside his job description, I believe it does. For at least a few minutes, it truly was the most Magical place on earth... Both for that little boy, and for me.
