"Now which do you prefer? Shall I come to you with a rod of correction,
or with love and in a spirit of gentleness?"
(1 Corinthians 4:21)
When I first came to Portland Oregon I met a student on one of the campuses
where I worked. He was brilliant and looked like he was always pondering
the esoteric. His hair was always mussy and the entire time I knew him,
I never once saw him wear a pair of shoes.
Rain, sleet, or snow, Bill was always barefoot. While he was attending
college he had become a Christian. At this time a well-dressed, middle-class
church across the street from the campus wanted to develop more of a ministry
to the students. They were not sure how to go about it, but they tried to make
them feel welcome. One day Bill decided to worship there.
He walked into this church, wearing his blue jeans, tee shirt, and of course,
no shoes. People looked a bit uncomfortable, but no one said anything. So
Bill began walking down the aisle looking for a seat. The church was quite
crowded that Sunday, so as he got down to the front pew and realized that
there were no seats, he just squatted on the carpet-perfectly acceptable
behavior at a college fellowship, but perhaps unnerving for a church.
Suddenly, an elderly man began walking down the aisle toward the boy.
Was he going to scold Bill? My friends who saw him approaching said
they thought, "You can't blame him. He'd never guess Bill is a Christian.
And his world is too distant from Bill's to understand. You can't blame
him for what he's going to do."
As the man kept walking slowly down the aisle, the church became utterly
silent, all eyes were focused on him, you could not hear anyone breathe.
When the man reached Bill, with some difficulty he lowered himself and
sat down next to him on the carpet. He and Bill worshiped together on the
floor that Sunday. I was told there was not a dry eye in the congregation.
The irony is that probably the only one who failed to see how great the
giving had been that Sunday was Bill. But grace is always that way.
It gives without the receiver realizing how great the gift really is.
As this man walked alongside his brother and loved him with
all he had received from Christ's love, so must we.
"With Love And Gentleness"
A Devotional Reading by
Rebecca Manley Pippert
(1949-
Acclaimed Christian author and international speaker
Founder of Becky Pippert Ministries.
"When it comes to personal evangelism, let's not repeat the older way
by sharing truth with little relationship. Nor the newer way that is
often relationship with little truth. Let's follow the biblical model of
sharing the beauty and truth of the gospel in the context
of authentic, genuine relationship."
-Becky Pippert
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