Today I picked a fight with someone :(

[Life2Christ]

I swear I don't know where my boldness is coming from. I was walking down the street today and I see an infant sleeping in a carriage with no one around it. No adults, nothing. So I shook my head and kept walking. Then I stopped and blamed myself for being apathetic. So I went back to see if anyone was going to claim this baby. So I waited and waited. I was protecting the baby to make sure no potential "human trafficker" came by.

The carriage was parked in front of a store so I went in the store and said, "did anybody leave a baby out front". So this man (who was over 6 feet tall, British man) says "Yeah I did." I told him straight up that it was irresponsible and not safe for him to do that. He told me to take a long walk off a short bridge. He apparently had been "watching" the carriage from the window of the store. But when I walked in, he was deep in conversation with the owner and his back was turned. All it takes is one second! He told me he "didn't need advice from a stranger". I said fine, and I left. I was more at peace that at least somebody was close by. I don't care if he insulted me.
I just cared about safety.

Did I do the right thing? What would you have done?

 

[gideon123]

call if even and let it go.

you did the right thing by checking that someone was watching the baby.
given all the crazy stuff that's going on these days - that's understandable.
but it's pretty clear that the guy was watching his kid ... just in a somewhat unusual manner.

move on. don't worry about it.
and since no-one was hit with a 15-inch wrench,
i'm not sure it counts as a real fight

gideon123

 

[LilLamb219]

You did the right thing...what IF the baby had been abandoned and when you went in the store no one claimed the poor child?

Okay so that "dad" was an idiot. If you had taken a photo of the baby in the carriage showing no one around...you could have easily had the police involved which might have gotten through to dear old dad. Or not. Maybe it would take his wife finding out through the police? People can be so stupid.

 

[Puptart]

You did what you could. I won't say it's right or wrong, you just did what you could, and no one can fault you for that in my book anyway.

 

[ApparitionXVII]

What would Joseph's brothers have done?
Just sayin'.

 

[BFine]

You told a man who had left his own baby outside a store
while he talked a lot to the clerk, and you watched the
baby and kept it safe. God had you at the right place and at
the right time....praise the Lord that child didn't get taken!

He may not of liked your scolding but believe you me, he
would not like to of went home and have told his wife their
baby got stolen because he left it unattended while he shopped in a store--
nor would he liked what the police would of said and charged him with
child endangerment or worse!

 

[cmarie423]

Seriously you were totally in the right. I would have been way more harsh then you were, you CANNOT leave a baby out anywhere. That man is insane.

 

[ezeric]

You did right - and the SPIRIT gives boldness to live the LOVE life.

and this LOVE protects.

The Dad had his 'Dadness' questioned, and probably feels insecure (deep inside) that he isn't that good as a Dad and wonders about himself, and now this happens!

But that is 'ok' - make Dad think a bit what is wrong with that? He knows he dropped the ball, but his pride was at stake. The flesh doesn't like it.

Sometimes we can do these things, with the opportunity for the person to 'save face', and by Grace get out of it while at the same time, learn a lesson in love.

-eric
The Exchanged Life

 

[benromana]

Hi there. Since a forum provides the natural benefit of stepping back and pondering a situation, please take this response in that light. Who knows - I might have reacted in the same manner you did if I were in the actual situation.

That said, here goes.

If loving others is the starting point, which includes the baby's father as the receiver of that behavior, I think I'll bring forward the apostle Paul's exhortation to "...not be arrogant or proud" (1 Corinthians 13:4).

It's tempting to dish our "righteous anger" but as far as I know, Jesus didn't teach that.

If we accept that idea, then the question is "could we have delivered the same message, and achieved the same or better results, in a loving manner?"

 

[paul1149]

Think about it. You were hanging around outside the building, and that did not concern him. You could have been anyone. He must have been totally oblivious to any potential danger.

I think you did the right thing. Of course, after you left, he may have gone back to his stupid ways, but it's at least somewhat doubtful. Another policy is simply to call the police after seeing the baby unattended for a couple of minutes, and walk away and let them deal with it. It might be safer for you that way, and teach the lesson more effectively.

My mother used to tell us how she would leave us in a stroller while she went into stores downtown. This was a long time ago. There wasn't a thought about danger. Those days are gone, and it is getting worse. There has been a noticeable increase in lawlessness in my area in the past year or so.

 

[Jupiter Drops]

I swear I don't know where my boldness is coming from. I was walking down the street today and I see an infant sleeping in a carriage with no one around it. No adults, nothing. So I shook my head and kept walking. Then I stopped and blamed myself for being apathetic. So I went back to see if anyone was going to claim this baby. So I waited and waited. I was protecting the baby to make sure no potential "human trafficker" came by.

The carriage was parked in front of a store so I went in the store and said, "did anybody leave a baby out front". So this man (who was over 6 feet tall, British man) says "Yeah I did." I told him straight up that it was irresponsible and not safe for him to do that. He told me to take a long walk off a short bridge. He apparently had been "watching" the carriage from the window of the store. But when I walked in, he was deep in conversation with the owner and his back was turned. All it takes is one second! He told me he "didn't need advice from a stranger". I said fine, and I left. I was more at peace that at least somebody was close by. I don't care if he insulted me.
I just cared about safety.

Did I do the right thing? What would you have done?

I wouldn't have called this 'picking a fight.' You were only concerned about the child and you told him the truth. Now, if you kept on persisting AND even mocked him, there would've been problems.


The baby is his responsibility. You did the right thing as a Christian. Next time, if he loses his child, it's really his fault. Pray that this man will protect his child and be aware of his surroundings.

 

[Ark100]

I think you did the right thing. Some people are ungrateful. He should be grateful that you even bothered to mention it to him.
Oh well...hope he has learnt his lessons.