A Witnessing Story

Matthew 18

Go ye therefore and teach all nations...

In line with our challenge last week to witness and share Christ with others, I have a story to tell.  Last year I was trying to make a bit of extra cash by selling books.  This was really prompted by my committment to get off the diet roller coaster and come to a point where I wanted to sell all of my diet books (photo on the blog).  One day I received an email from an Amazon customer who asked if I had mailed his diet book that he had purchased 2 weeks earlier.  I could not find an email confirming that the book had been sold.  I panicked, as I am a very committed book seller desiring good customer feedback, and checked all my inbox folders.  There tucked away, unread, was the confirmation that the book had been purchased yet never shipped.  I sent a long apology, sent it right away and gave him a credit for the book as an act of good business.  I received a phone call one week later from an elderly man saying that he received the book and thank you but that he also received a credit.  I explained that that was intentional as I was so sorry that I had missed sending it on time and didn't want him to be upset.  He laughed and said that if anyone really got mad over some simple oversight like that, then they don't have their perspectives right in life.  I laughed and agreed but told him I still wanted him to keep his money.

Later that week I received an envelope in the mail from Nevada with a small book of the Gospel of John and this letter:

My husband, Gordon, told me he called and talked to you about the book.  We do appreciate you sending the book to us.  We want to send this to you for your kindness.  I have a good little book for you.  I hope it makes your day.  I wrote the poem.  Gratefully, Linda Wilkins

Taped inside the gospel tract was this poem:

Open me and you will see

Glimpses of truth and eternity.

The best gift is from above,

God's Word shows us His love.

No matter what season it is:

Always time, we know He lives

In this book you can know

A friend whose love He will show

If you should not open this book

The dust on it for you to look.

Return me, someone will find

The treasure you missed, left behind!

A friend in Christ, Linda Wilkins

What a precious thing to receive from a stranger because of my oversight from sending my diet book!!  It encouraged me to not only keep leaving my tracts behind in public restrooms and handing them to check out clerks, but to see the example of an elderly Christian couple, whom I've never met and who live so far from me, taking the opportunity to share Christ with me was enough to spur me on to do the same.  May the habit take root in my life to spread Christ in ways both big and small!!