Two Stories

Story 1

As the new pastor started to get to know the people in his new church he noticed that the name of a former pastor kept coming up. One day the new pastor spoke to one of the older members and told him what he had noticed. What was it about that former pastor that made him so well remembered still today?  The old man got a tear in his eye and he looked down at the floor for a moment before he spoke.

Well, pastor, he just loved us, was the old man's reply.

Story 2

An older widow man in church was having a tough time. He felt lonely and alone. He felt ignored and unloved. He often sat alone during service. And he had a bad habit of forgetting to put his phone on silent during service. One morning his phone rang again and he fumbled trying to turn it off. The pastor paused in his sermon to glare at the man. People around him sighed loudly and one old lady told him to stop disrupting the service. Finally the service was over and the only people who spoke to him criticized him for his poor phone habits. The old man never went back to church.

One evening he decided to visit a tavern to see if he could find someone to talk to. He ordered a drink and sat at the bar and just then his phone rang. In a rush to silence his phone he knocked his glass onto the floor, spilling the drink and breaking the glass. His face reddened in anticipation of the barrage of criticism he was expecting. But in an instant a waitress came to his side, put her arm around his shoulders, and asked if he was alright. Someone else picked up the broken glass, and joked about it with him. The bartender told him not to worry about it and gave him a fresh drink. The manager mopped the floor, joking with the old widow. He left that evening with a smile on his face. He has made that tavern his home away from home and they are always glad to see him when he comes in.

People are fragile. Once lost they may never be found again. But treat them with love and respect and kindness and they will be with you for a very long time.

"And they spoke to him, saying, if you will be a servant to these people today, and serve them, and answer them, and speak good words to them, then they will be your servants forever." 1Kings 12:7