Do you see others the way Jesus sees them? After you read this story, you may change your answer.
As I waited for my daughter in the Walgreen’s parking lot, I noticed a young man walking up and down the busy street carrying a sign that said, “Homeless”. I tried to dismiss the idea of talking to him, thinking my daughter would walk out of the store any minute.
But she didn’t. I kept waiting and finally, I grabbed a $5 bill out of my purse and stepped out of my car to talk to him. I asked him if he was from around here. He wasn’t. I asked him about his parents. He said his father was deceased and his mother wouldn’t have anything to do with him because of drugs. I asked him what brought him to town and he said he was here for the methadone clinic. I gave him the $5 and told him I would be praying for him. He seemed very grateful. His name is Michael.
I rarely do this kind of thing. I give to the poor through other means. The thing is, I can’t get Michael out of my mind. God keeps reminding me to pray for him. I don’t know what makes him special, I just know that I’m supposed to pray for him. I may never see him again, but if I do, I trust God to help me know what to say and do.
The next day, I ran across the following story and it made me think about Michael in a completely different way.
As a man explored caves by the seashore, he found a canvas bag full of hardened clay balls. Apparently, someone had rolled the clay balls and left them out in the sun to bake. They didn’t look like much, but intrigued, the man took the bag.
As he strolled along the beach, he threw the balls one at a time out into the ocean as far as he could. He thought little about it until he dropped one and it cracked open on a rock. Inside was a beautiful, precious stone!
Delighted, the man started breaking open the remaining clay balls. Each one contained a similar treasure. He found thousands of dollars worth of jewels in the 20 or so balls he had left.
Then it struck him. He had thrown maybe 50 or 60 balls with their hidden treasure out into the ocean waves. Instead of thousands of dollars in treasure, he could have taken home tens of thousands, but he had just thrown it away!
This story made me think. Michael is like one of the clay balls. He doesn’t look like much on the outside, but there is treasure on the inside for the simple reason that he is loved by God. And, God has a purpose for his life. We can look at someone and think we see all there is to see. But the truth is, there is always a lot more that we don’t see.
I pray that this story will change the way we see others, making us more approachable so that we can better love like Jesus. Because, isn’t judging what makes us unapproachable? It’s something to think about……
May we be transformed!
“Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.” Romans 12:2 NLT
“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’” Matthew 25:40 NIV
With Love, Cindy

Click this link to learn more about Jesus: Who Is Jesus?
Photo by Amirhossein Azandarian Malayeri on Unsplash
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What a thoroughly beautiful inspiring post Cindy! The clay balls analogy is completely accurate, oh how we need to beyond the outward appearance of folk we encounter. God bless you this weekend sister.
I am going to repost this on DingDash.
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Thank you, Alan, for your kind remarks and the repost. Blessings, Brother!
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This is a powerful story and made me reflect on how we should view others.
I really like the story of the treasure within the clay balls.
May we view others how Jesus sees them.
Thank you Cindy.
Blessings 💙
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Thank you! I appreciate your thoughts so much. Blessings, Perth!
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This is beautiful. There is so much more to every person we meet than we realize unless we take the time to uncover their story. Thank you, Cindy.
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And you know that so well! Blessings, Patty!
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Following through with the prompting of the Holy Spirit, when that happens is kind of neat, sort of like planting a seed, and then the urgency to pray for them. Being faithful in little things brings bigger things! Keep those eyes open! Blessings Cindy!
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Thanks for reading, Bruce. You are a blessing!
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Wow. Such a stirring post, Cindy!What a reminder that there is so much more to a person than we know. I pray this seed planted in Michael will flourish and he will find the love of Christ as he continues on.
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Thank you so much, Mrs.M! Blessings!
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I will add Michael to my prayer journal. Please update us if you learn anything more.
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Thank you so much!! I will! Blessings, Kathy!
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“We have this treasure in earthen vessels…” 😉
I try to carry a few gift cards for Chick fil-A in case we encounter a hungry person (one who might be tempted to spend cash on something less healthy.) I’ve only had one person give me a dirty look (“What am I supposed to do with this?), but the rest were grateful.
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That’s a good idea. Thanks for sharing it. Blessings, Annie!
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Loved reading tthis thank you
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Thanks for stopping by. Blessings, Miles!
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