I don’t remember much from before I turned ten years old, but there is an occasional ingrained memory.
One such memory happened when I was about eight-years-old. It was dark outside as we sat in the living room of our tiny Berwin Heights home in Maryland. There was a knock at the door. Dad answered the door to a man he hadn’t seen in years. My dad and this man had worked together years ago when my dad had a government job. The man told my dad that he and his family had become Christians. Their lives had completely changed and they were getting baptized at their church. He was hoping that we would come.
This man said he knew my Dad believed in Jesus because of what they would talk about. But it was the way my dad lived that impacted this man’s life, more then any conversation that took place. He watched my Dad for years. He credited my Dad for living a life that was different, and that difference was one of the major things that lead him to Jesus.
That memory has helped guide me going forward. It has often, but not all the time, kept my actions, conversations and lifestyle in check. It also affirmed that even when we are not verbally sharing our faith, we are living examples of what we believe.
I have had moments when it has been extremely hard to walk around with a smile on my face. Other times, people give me a hard time because I am always upbeat and positive… “too happy.” The reality is, that is exactly how I am on most days, so I wear it and live it. I hope and pray that others see a difference in me.
I hope that I can truly be a living example, much the way my dad was. Conversations and telling others stories about Jesus and what He has done in my life are important, but so is the life lived as evidence.
Keith Sampson
Executive Coordinator – God of Hope