Today I pulled a book from my library for a quick re-read, “I Became a Christian and All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt.” The author, Vince Antonucci, shares a story about Mother Teresa, who spent her life serving in the slims of Calcutta, India: “Once a Muslim cleric came and watched for the longest time as Mother Teresa washed a leper. He said afterward, ‘All these years, I have believed that Jesus was a prophet. But today I believe Jesus Christ is God, if he is able to give such joy to this sister, enabling her to do her work with so much love.’”
There are several things about this brief story which capture my attention. One is the subtle reminder that people do watch us. We don’t have to be a Mother Teresa to draw the watchful eyes of people in our world. When people know we are Christ followers, I think it often causes them to look even more intently at our lives. There are people watching you at work, school, neighborhood, fitness club, etc.
The Muslim cleric was drawn to Mother Teresa’s JOY, as she served others. You and I might be able to fake “happy” for a short time, but eventually our true attitude will come out. Antonucci wrote: “Mother Teresa admitted, in personal letters and journal entries, that she underwent intense spiritual struggles in her relationship with God.” The kind of joy which was displayed in Mother Teresa’s life was the type which flowed from a deep, contented relationship with Jesus Christ. Mother Teresa wasn’t joyful because God gave her a perfect, pain-free life; she was joyful because she knew Christ.
The second thing which seemed to draw the Muslim cleric to Mother Teresa was her LOVE. There was no denying the sacrificial serving of Mother Teresa, as she washed the leper that day. Most people would rather run away from those types of serving.
The JOY and LOVE, which were observed by the Muslim cleric, combined to present compelling evidence that Jesus Christ is not just a great teacher or prophet, but He is God. It is that type of witness which is needed in the world today: Christ followers who genuinely reflect the character of God to a watching world.
We need to pray for the Christian disaster response workers who are serving in Japan during this devastating time. I think we need to pray that the JOY and LOVE of Christ will so fill their lives, even while they carry out their unbelievably difficult assignment, Japan will become the land of the rising Son!
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