Opening Up

   One day my family and I went to a restaurant called Good and Plenty. It is a family style restaurant. That means you sit at a table with other people and pass the bowls of food around. While we were there we met a nice couple from Georgia. She had relocated to this area and he had traveled up to see her because it was his birthday. She did most of the talking, I assume because he was tired from his trip. She was also telling us about where she was taking him that day.

   For a good 15-30 minutes she did most of the talking with us. Then the man started to open up. We found out his family was from Cuba and they lived in Florida. As we asked him more about his family and life he became more animated. He smiled more and started using his hands more. It was then that we saw that his hand was mutilated.
   Now, some people when seeing that would have freaked out. Some may have even stopped talking to him. We just kept talking to him and her. We didn't judge him; if we would have, we wouldn't have had a great conversation with them.
   Sometimes when we walk down the street we judge people. It's something we do out of self-preservation. We don't want to get hurt so we stay away from shifty people. We think someone is different or strange so we stay away from them. Is that what God would want us to do?
   Think about Jesus. Was he only visiting the Jews and the rich? No, he went to those who were sick, looked down upon by society, and those who sinned. He loved and cared for all. He took the time to get to know them. That's what we are called to do. We are called to love God and love others. To love others we need to get to know them. That means we need to open up and they need to open up. Sometimes people have a hard time opening up, so that's when we open up first. We tell them about Jesus, because that's what we are called to do.
   So, do you judge others before you get to know them? Do you open up to others and tell them about Jesus? What can you do to show love to someone new today?

   1 Timothy 1:5 and Matthew 7:1-5

   Image from here.