Who's the Good Samaritan?

In Aaron's most recent comment, he indicated the text for his upcoming sermon is the Good Samaritan story. One of my favorite reflections for this (and other) texts is: "Where am I in the story, and where is God?". I think it's fairly typical to not want to admit being the hypocritical religious folks who walk on by. Yet I think it's presumptuous to believe we're the Good Samaritan, willing to make an unconditional sacrifice for a stranger/enemy in need. Rather, I think, we are the man beaten by the world and left for dead, yet saved by the grace of God (in the person of the Samaritan in the story and of Jesus in reality). Certainly we are called to emulate the Samaritan, as Jesus instructs his disciples to love one another as he has loved them. However, I believe being a "neighbor" (as in the "love thy neighbor" sense of the text that kicks off the story) is borne out of the grateful acknowledgement that we are already accepted by the one who has provided all we need for our recovery.

I don't know why I can't enter a title for this, but here it is:

I was visiting with one of the new teachers at school the other day and we began a discussion about religion/faith issues related to her nearly-grown children and their moving toward a more agnostic position than they were raised to believe. What I want to comment on isn't the "answer" to her issue or the specifics of our conversation, but rather my thought that it is in these "chance" encounters where we choose to engage with one another over faith issues instead of avoiding them that God acts more obviously to enrich, enlarge, and illuminate our understanding ("where two or more are gathered in my name..."). It seems to me that, in addition to developing a discipline related to Bible study, worship attendance, or prayer, we should be more diligent in looking for and being open to those opportunities for God to speak to us in and through conversations with others.