Walking with the Wise #236: Truths that Transform

“When a man's ways please the LORD,
He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.”
—Proverbs 16:7

This past April, Christianpost.com ran an article[1] about Patrick Greene, a man who moved from frustrated atheist to Christian convert because of some acts of kindness by Christians. In late 2011, Greene was threatening to sue Henderson County, Texas, if they didn’t remove a Nativity scene from its courthouse lawn. But not too long after his threat, he was diagnosed with a rapidly deteriorating eye condition that would leave him blind, so he dropped his threats and focused on healing, but he couldn’t afford to get the help he needed.

This is where the kindness of some Christians comes in. Jessica Crye, a Christian woman from Athens, Texas, asked her pastor, Erick Graham, if they could help Greene. He agreed and the church ended up giving thousands of dollars in donations to help Greene, who began reconsidering God as a result, and eventually became a Christian and now wants to become a pastor.

Incredibly, the transformation that occurred in Patrick Greene’s life was predicated upon the kindness of Christians. When we, as God’s people, are living as Christ to a lost world, even those who are avowed enemies of Christ stand up and take notice, which is the outworking of today’s passage. When our lives please God, He transforms our enemies to be at peace with us—and not only us, but also to be at peace with God.

Are your ways pleasing to God? Is your life such that people can see Jesus in you? Are you taking care of "the least of these" and doing acts of kindness so that people might see the Lord who bought you growing up in you? Put away any slander or idleness, and do works representative of your life in Christ so that Christ might be seen in you and others might be drawn to the Lord Jesus Christ because of it. Amen.

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[1]Jeff Schapiro, “Atheist Activist Becomes Christian After Believers Show Him Compassion,” April 4, 2012, http://www.christianpost.com/news/atheist-activist-becomes-christian-after-believers-show-him-compassion-72655/, accessed on 12 June 2012.