“If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. If they obeyed my teaching, they will obey yours also. They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the one who sent me.
- John 15:18-21
“All this I have told you so that you will not fall away. They will put you out of the synagogue; in fact, the time is coming when anyone who kills you will think they are offering a service to God. They will do such things because they have not known the Father or me. I have told you this, so that when their time comes you will remember that I warned you about them. I did not tell you this from the beginning because I was with you, but now I am going to him who sent me. None of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ Rather, you are filled with grief because I have said these things. But very truly I tell you, it is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will prove the world to be in the wrong about sin and righteousness and judgment: about sin, because people do not believe in me; about righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and about judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned.
- John 16:1-11
You, however, know all about my teaching, my way of life, my purpose, faith, patience, love, endurance, persecutions, sufferings—what kinds of things happened to me in Antioch, Iconium and Lystra, the persecutions I endured. Yet the Lord rescued me from all of them. In fact, everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted, while evildoers and impostors will go from bad to worse, deceiving and being deceived.
- 2 Timothy 3:10-13
Boilerplate
I’m Harold Dykstra. I’m retired, but I go to food bank distributions all over Tracy and talk to people that need someone who will listen to their story. My time is well spent. A police lieutenant suggested that I write down the conversations that I had with an angel. I did not know she was an angel at the time. The angel, for a little over a year, indwelled a life-sized posable action figure my children bought me, so that I would not be perceived as travelling alone. And in a way, she was training me for what I do while talking to the needy. She probed my heart to find out what I believed and how I express love for others. She changed my life.
In her leaving, she said someone would come. I had thought that was Jesus, in His second coming, but a new Babs, a little older, the model for the posable action figure arrived. While I had no desire to start over with romance, Morrie helped her move in, thinking she was the other Babs who had returned.
This Week’s Question
Last week, Babs was being silly, playing a children’s game with me. This week, she was not in a mood for games.
“Harold,” she said at supper. “Do you know Mildred down the street?”
I decided to be playful. “I know a Mildred Somerset. I don’t know a Mildred Down-the-Street.”
Then I saw the pain in her face. I regretted not checking for that earlier. I asked, “Oh, dear, what happened?”
Babs, with tears filling her eyes, “All I said when I went on my walk was, ‘God loves you and I do too.’ She hurled insults at me. As I walked past, I didn’t see her, but she spat at me. I heard it. When I got a block or two further away, I stopped to see if she got me with the spit. Harold, I was just being nice.”
I nodded and I put my arms around her. “Mildred has been the neighborhood curmudgeon since she was far too young to be considered a curmudgeon. Anything that the government did that was wrong in her eyes was the Christian influence in government. When Christian work crews came by to fix people’s front porch and things like that. There were a few wheelchair ramps installed. Well, she yelled insults at them, saying that she didn’t get any help like that. One church handed her a form for her to fill out, and the church would be glad to help her if they had the skills she needed. Reportedly, the man got spit in his face for his effort. He smiled and said, ‘I guess you don’t need the help then,’ and he walked away.”
Babs asked, “Why is she so angry with God?”
I shrugged, “No one knows for sure. She does not believe in God, but then she blames God for everything that goes wrong in her life. I heard that someone asked her about that contradiction and she threw a rock at the guy.”
Babs said, “She was still on the front porch, and she threw a rock at me on my return trip to the house.”
I asked, “Are you alright?”
Babs tried a half smile. “I said that she was on her front porch, and she is getting old. She didn’t reach me, but the rock bounced across her driveway, so I turned and saw the rock stop rolling a few feet from me. I just don’t want her coming after us.”
I sighed, “In other countries, we might have a group of goons beat us up. In some places, we could be arrested. But as for Mildred, I think she was sending a message to not bother her anymore. Even saying ‘Hello’ might be too friendly.”
Babs started crying anew, “And she would be the first to fall and not be able to get up. And so many neighbors would be happy to help, but she chases them away.”
I huffed, “You can exclude the neighbor from across the street. He’s the male version of Mildred. Stick to you blowing his security camera a kiss. That will either soften him up or drive him crazy.”
Babs sighed, “But how do you show love for such people?”
I smiled, “Let’s wait a month or so, so that the gift is not connected to you. Let’s start sending a monthly gift box to the guy across the street and Mildred. Let’s research it first to find the best place that will not betray our secret. Their names and addresses, but sender unknown. We’ll see if an act of kindness, a few months in a row will change their attitude. If they announce death threats if they ever find out who, we can stop. But Babs, evangelism is done by us, but the salvation part is done by the Holy Spirit. As for us, Jesus promised us persecution. That’s in John 15 and 16, but in 2 Timothy 3:10-11, Paul speaks of the persecution in his life, some of it witnessed by Timothy. Paul was attesting to the fact that Jesus’ prophecy, if you will, was coming true. Since Jesus is God, it was not as much prophecy, but what He knew would happen.”
Babs moaned, “But our neighbor across the street and Mildred are just people we have to pray for and love from a distance? How will they ever hear the Gospel?”
I sighed, “Maybe they have. Maybe they think that they tried Jesus and He did not do as they demanded, thus He was not worth the effort.”
Babs gasped, “But we accept Jesus unconditionally. We surrender to Him. He does not do as we tell Him to do.”
I looked her in the eyes, eyes that were still wet, “Some people hear what they want to hear. Some pastors preach what people want to hear. Either way, they did not get what they wanted out of Jesus. But then, there is the family member who died, and they were not prepared to face death at that point in their life. There is the person who prays a lot and praises God a lot but then abuses others to get what they want. Some people reject Jesus because a Christian runs one stop sign one time when a thousand other drivers run ten stop signs every day. I was in a carpool once and I stopped at a red light. I looked both ways. I was the only car on the road, and I drove through the intersection. I was having a bad day. Morrie and Willie both had the flu, and my wife was angry that she had to take the day off to care for them. That was the only red light I ever ran. Everyone else in the carpool had their traffic laws that they ignored, but I was thrown out of the carpool, but only after I delivered everyone to their homes that night. The last guy was assigned with letting me know. Petty or significant, we make mistakes, and as Christians, others will not allow those mistakes.”
Babs sighed, “But that is so unfair.”
“I know, Babs.” I put my arms around her again. “But let’s pray for Mildred that the Holy Spirit will move in her life. Until then, if saying ‘Hello’ is a burden to her, walk by without saying a word. Pray and wait for her to break the ice. But in the meantime, pray for everyone in general along the route you take for your walks. And start reading people’s body language. I know some street evangelists who know that God will deliver someone to their path every day. But then, they know how to read people. And they know good conversation starters.”
Babs chuckled, “So, you are saying to pray, and God will deliver the person to me instead of me trying to meet the other person?”
I smiled, “You have to be a willing participant. You have to fervently pray. But when the Holy Spirit has shown that person that they need a Savior, they might not spit on you or throw a rock at you.”
Babs smiled, a genuine smile at last, “I like that idea.”
And we had a three Mississippi kiss. If Morrie came in the house and claimed it was four Mississippis, we did not want him starting to make wedding plans. I was not that far along, and Babs says that she wanted the dating experience. Baby steps for both of us.
Credits
All these conversations remind me of my conversations with my wife. We would talk about anything and everything. And most of the time, it sounded like a discussion in a Sunday school class.
My wife often had long sessions of sorrow after she tried to talk to her friends about Jesus. Since they went to church, she thought they would be receptive. When she got harsh words in return, she would not be in a good mood for at least a day afterwards.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley 
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