Lua and the Sick Man in 'Akká

*A retelling for children, based on **Portals to Freedom** by Howard Colby Ives (George Ronald, 1937).*

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Lua Getsinger was one of the very first Bahá'ís in America. Long ago she made the journey to the prison city of 'Akká, where 'Abdu'l-Bahá lived as a prisoner, so that she could be near Him.

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One day 'Abdu'l-Bahá told Lua that He was too busy that day to visit a friend of His who was very sick and very poor. He asked her to go in His place, to take the man food and to care for him as He had been doing. Lua went gladly. She was proud that 'Abdu'l-Bahá had trusted her with this job.

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But she came back quickly. The man's house was filthy, she told Him, and the smell was so awful that she had almost fainted. She had run away because she was afraid of catching a terrible disease.

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'Abdu'l-Bahá looked at her sadly and sternly. Then He said:

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> Dost thou desire to serve God, serve thy fellow man for in him dost thou see the image and likeness of God.

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That means: if you want to serve God, serve the people around you, because in every person you can see the image of God.

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He told her to go back. If the house was dirty, she should clean it. If the man was dirty, she should wash him. If he was hungry, she should feed him. And she should not come back until it was done. He Himself, He told her, had done this for the man many times. Could she not do it once?

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Lua later told this story, and Howard Colby Ives wrote it down in his book.

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*This is a retelling for children. For the fuller account, see ["Cannot You Serve Him Once?"](/stories/pf-cannot-you-serve-him-once).*

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