"If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you." Matthew 5:41-42
I once had a little girl in my church who sold Girl Scout cookies. Well sell isn't quite the right word. She was a Girl Scout cookie apostle!
She set a goal for herself to sell 1,000 boxes of cookies. I think she would get a prize or something for selling that many. But 1,000 boxes are a lot of cookies.
One day she came into church and was depressed. I asked her what was wrong and she said she had talked to everyone she knew and had only sold about 150 boxes.
"I don't know what to do, Pastor Troy!" she exclaimed. "I'm praying everyday."
(Never underestimate the power of a little girl's prayer.)
I told her that if anyone could sell 1,000 boxes that she could. And then I asked her what her favorite kind was.
"OOOOO!!! I love the Thin Mints!" she squealed. "I could eat a whole box at a time. You know the chocolate is awesome and then you get the mint filing which is just right. They don't fill you up... . ." and on and on. For about five minutes I heard about the virtues of Thin Mints.
When she paused to catch a breath, I said, "Well why don't you tell people what you just told me. I know I'll buy a couple of boxes after hearing that."
A light bulb went off in her head and she gave me a big hug and off she went.
I was fairly proud of myself. I had circumvented a pre-teen crisis in a decidedly preacherly way. Little did I know I'd end up buying about 20 boxes of Girl Scout cookies that year.
She knew Girl Scout cookies were good. She knew all the facts about them. She had a good understanding of the facts about Girl Scout cookies and a belief that most people really liked them.
But there's a difference in knowing the facts and having a belief in something and going the next step and showing others what faith is all about.
There's a whole bunch of people out there who believe in God. Some can recite to you the facts about Noah's ark or the Ten Commandments. Others can talk about the Virgin Birth or that Christ died on the cross. The world is filled with people who believe!
But having faith. That's something else entirely.
Having faith means that you don't just believe, but you live out that belief. That you just don't know the facts, but you understand the meaning of the events. That you don't just work toward a goal, but you live a life so that others will know what your faith is all about.
My little friend went from a person who sells cookies to someone who had cookie faith. She would go up to someone and start talking about Thin Mints. Or Tagalongs or Samoas. And afterward, she left with not just one or two boxes sold, but dozens. She was a cookie apostle and her excitement spread to everyone she talked to.
I wonder how different this world would be if we all were transformed from believing the facts about God to showing each other that we have faith.
Let us pray.
Our gracious God. We sometimes just don't understand. We think that if we just believe and know some facts that we automatically have faith. We pray today that you will transform us and strengthen our faith so we can be disciples of Jesus Christ to the whole world. In Christ's name we pray. Amen.
PASTOR TROY CONRAD IS MINISTER OF FARMINGTON UNITED METHODIST CHURCH. EMAIL: [email protected].
Religion on 07/13/2016