Letter to Matthew

This is the last in the letter series to my children and this one goes out to Matthew.

Dear Matt,

You are the most amazing young boy.  There are things that are different about you from a lot of boys.  One thing I notice is that you hate to play games that match one person against another.  This is something that I certainly understand.  When I was growing up, I never liked to play a video game where it was me against another person.  Do you know why?  Because that meant there had to be a winner and a loser and I hated the idea.  I would much rather play a game that would put me on a team and our team would play against the computer.  Why is that?  Because I wanted everyone to win and I was always searching for a way to make that happen.  In life, I still do that to this day.  Do you know why we do that?  Because we are made like our Dad in Heaven.  The only person he intends to lose is the devil.  He created a system that allows everyone to be happy and have the things they need and want in life.

So don't be frustrated by this son.  The reason you are like that is because God made you that way.  Matthew, God has a purpose for your life and I think it is much like the purpose he has for mine.  There is a special anointing from God on your life.  Now I know at age 7, you probably don't understand much of this but I want you to remember this because there will come a time in life when it will be very important to you.  See Matthew, you are a person who likes to build relationships and not tear them down.  You operate in that area just like God does.  Pretty cool huh.

I also notice what a big heart you have.  You don't like to see people hurting.  This is another characteristic of the calling that the Lord has on your life.  Did you know when you were little that I used to play a game with you.  You would do something funny and I would pretend that it hurt my feelings.  I wasn't upset; I was happy but I would pretend to cry by covering up my eyes with my hands and making crying noises.  As soon as that happened, no matter how mad you were, you would come over and put your arms around me and hug me.  You didn't like to see people hurting.  Matthew this characteristic of you is something that is embedded deep within you and it will play a part in what the Lord has for you later.

There is another thing that I consider special about you.  You are one of the best story tellers that I know.  I am constantly amazed at your ability to retain a story after only hearing it once or twice.  After that, you can tell me the whole story, word for word.  It's pretty amazing.  There are times when I get tired of hearing about Thomas the Tank Engine, Jakers, Kipper and Spongebob but know this that your storytelling ability will be another big part of you when you grow up.  Some people might get tired of hearing it (like Katherine and David) but one day, they will be really impressed with it.

Also, you have the most beautiful voice for a kid your age.  I really love to hear you sing.  As a matter of fact, I want you to sing more.  Son, don't be embarrassed by this.  You and I are a lot alike in that we don't want to draw attention to ourselves and that is a good thing.  But you have a gift.  That gift was put inside you by God to bless you, Him and others.  Please understand that when I ask you to sing it is because your voice is so good, it blesses everyone who listens.  I want you to continue to develop this very special gift.

Lastly Matthew, I want you to know how much I love you.  Son, you are that kid that everyone likes and it's easy to see why.  You are caring, you do your work when asked, you very rarely get into trouble, and you always have a smile on your face.  But I don't love you for any of those reasons.  I love you simply because you are who you are.  You are my son.

Love,

Dad

That's another Opinion of the Minion

Somebody Like Me

This morning I am sitting listening to a song called, "Somebody Like Me" by Jason Crabb.  This song is about a homeless man that walks into a church and no one sits next to him, no one ministers to him and when he leaves no one goes after him.  Yesterday a friend of mine and I were listening to this song as we drove to lunch.  He said something that was true but it didn't sit right with me regardless.  He said that he had never seen this happen at his church and that people would have reached out to this guy if they were at his church.  I agree and that would probably happen at my church as well.  The problem is we get all emotional at church and then what happens when we walk out the door?  If we are Christians, what does Christ look like to the rest of the world?  Will Christ stop to help someone?  Will Christ give to someone in need or will Christ make some excuse about why he can't help.  Understand this - The only Christ that some people will ever see is you and me.

Let me tell you about a couple of places where I faced this situation.  One was in the church lobby a few weeks ago.  There is a lady at my church who I have sort of known all my life.  I have been to basically three churches in my life and her family has been at the same three.  The funny thing is we don't know them all that well.  This particular lady has such a sweet spirit.  She loves God and you can just tell.  On this particular morning, she was a Christian and I wasn't.  The interesting thing is that this particular lady has some type of mental disability and while older than me, she acts much younger.

As she walked toward me that Sunday, I didn't want to talk to her.  I buried my head in my phone pretending to be doing something but really I was just hoping that she would pass me by so I wouldn't have to talk to her.  All she wanted was to talk to someone and have them talk back to her with some amount of interest in what she was saying.  I however was too caught up in myself to be Christ.  As someone walked up and diverted her attention, I quickly got up and walked off.  Oh how easy it is to write this blog and have people from all over the world read it but when it came to actually being a member of the body of Christ I failed that morning.  When the reality of that set in, I was ashamed of myself because I know I am better than that.  Have you ever experienced a situation like that?  If so, you know how it feels to have an opportunity to do something for someone else and miss it.  My Father still loves me but He certainly couldn't have been happy with me that morning.  I know I wasn't.

But the Lord had a special way of telling me and showing me how much He loves me.  I don't speak with this person very often but the next morning as I was rounding the corner, here she came again.  This time was different.  I was excited.  I got an opportunity to talk to her and really more let her talk to me and I took it with gusto.  It didn't last very long but I know she enjoyed talking to me and I really enjoyed talking to her.  This particular Sunday, that somebody was me.  It felt great.

Now let's get outside the church walls.  What does Christ look like at Starbucks on Wednesday morning?  Please do not take the rest of this story as bragging because it isn't.  I constantly deal with the feeling that I don't do enough for other people.  It seems like no matter how many people I help, I never feel like I do much and certainly not enough.  Anyway, as I was sitting in Starbucks working this morning, and a man walked up to me who looked dirty.  He handed me a laminated piece of paper that said he was mute and looking for money for food for his family.  He showed me tatoos on his arms with the names of his parents and the dates of their deaths.  I really didn't want to deal with him because I was enjoying what I was doing.  Before he got to me, he stopped at another table to ask for help and they turned him down.  But here's the difference.  This time I purposed in my heart to be someone God could use.  I decided that God could count on me to show this man Christ.  I wasn't going to be relegated to the side lines this time.  I was going to get in the game.  He was going to see Christ give.  I am thankful that Christ gave me the ability to bless him.

Please don't take this wrong.  I, above all people, know that I'm nothing special.  But I do know that I serve One who is beyond special.  As we get closer to Thanksgiving, I want to challenge you to look around you.  If you are a Christian, what does Christ look like to the people who are around you?  Are you helping?  When was the last time you helped someone who could do nothing for you in return?  When was the last time someone saw Christ in you?  In my own life, people don't see Christ enough.

That's the Opinion of the Minion