Person of Promise

The story is told of 12 prominent businessmen from Minnesota who decided to pull their resources and head over to Rwanda for a two week trip in search of a "Person of Promise." This "Person" could be a Father a Mother a Daughter or Son, just someone who they felt could make a life for themselves given the right setting and the right education. At the end of their two weeks they had met several "some one's" who would fit their description and who had a desire to be something in life given the right turn of events.

Then something amazing happened. A man from the village they were in asked if they would go with him to check on a small group of people not heard from for a great while. They drove as far back into the wild as they could until they were hiking the rest of the way into the jungle interior. Heavy rain fell and as they approached the village it seemed like an almost waste of time and energy as they couldn't locate a single individual.

Finally a girl in her late teens met them and relayed to them that all of the adults in the village save a few elderly individuals had died from Aids, leaving only a large group of children and herself to care for them. These children had been scrounging the jungle in search of food to sustain themselves.

These twelve men without a word began to fix roofs and huts to the best of their ability in the pouring rain. One took off his coat and wrapped it around a small child with the other eleven following suit, until they had given every article of clothing they could save their underclothes. They made every effort to show these children that they would give them everything they could possibly give to help them.

And then in too short a time they were back in their jeep and gone, to fly back to the states the next morning.

They had found their "People of Promise."

It wasn't in the package they went out to find, but these children were full of promise and simply needed someone to care for them.

Now for a little transparency. Are you up for it?

Today is Saturday. We ate a good breakfast, listened to a kids radio program and I decided to stay home with my youngest while the rest of the fam went visiting.

Not so terrible, eh?

Today I just decided to stay home. I decided that the people Joel was going to visit were not my "People of Promise." Some of them on his bus route would not have even understood that I had come to visit, or can even fully acknowledge their care for Joel or I.

Interestingly enough today is pouring rain.

I am wondering if I exchanged places with one of those twelve men today if I would have the heart to do the same thing that they did, leaving me tired and wet and uncomfortable.

Today, this afternoon, If I don't even have the will to visit a few folks on our Handicap route, what makes me think that I would show the love of Christ to anyone and everyone God sends my way??

That is a shocking, terrible thought.

In fact what is worse is the fact that God may not be sending anyone here to Haywood, because He knows I will not care for them.

He knows I am too busy caring for myself.

I am looking for a "Person of Promise" who can make good on my investment and time in them.

He reminds me that I was once, poor, destitute, naked, and blind.

After all, I John 4:19 tells us that, "We love him, because he first loved us."

We couldn't even love Him unless He first loved us.

Do we love "them" because He first loved a dirty, rotten hopeless sinner like us?

And by "them" I mean everyone God sends our way.

We love to hear and share stories of people giving everything to help someone else, but are we even willing to give something???

Are you looking for a "Person of Promise" or are you promising to love on every single person God sends your way??




Hmmmmm....

Good thought.



If I do say so myself.