Hair Cut

This past Friday I decided to get a much needed hair cut. Unfortunately the coupon I had that would have knocked three dollars off my bill was to a hair cut place that I couldn’t find. It’s not like hair cutting places all have the same name but they do all smell the same and sell the same products. It’s very easy to get confused. I think I past three hair cutting places all located within a mile before I reasoned to forget about my coupon. I was about to walk into one store, when I saw that the line was very long. This is why they have multiple hair cutting shops located so close to each other I thought to myself. I got back in my car and went to the next shop. I walked in and there wasn’t a line, so I put my name on the sign in sheet.

The girl who sat me down to cut my hair was a young, nose pierced, southern girl. She asked what she could do for my hair and I told her. The nice thing about getting your hair done is it opens up opportunity for conversation and that is exactly what we did for the next thirty minutes. We didn’t talk about normal social events or anything typical but instead the topic revolved around church. I told her I went to Emmanuel College and she inquired if that was a private school. This started the very meaningful conversation.

The hair dresser, Jenifer, explained to me how she used to go to church but doesn’t anymore. The hypocrisy is just too much she huffed. What the Lord challenged me to do was to listen without pushing anything on her. I did. She admitted to me that she needed to be back in church and I asked her why? She said that she was raised that way and that she wasn’t living right without being in the church. I asked her what she meant by that and she defended her case and said that she wasn’t living that bad but she didn’t feel it was right. My heart broke. The Lord reminded me that worldly people don’t need to know when they are wrong nor do they need correction because it is a natural understanding. What they need are real people who are willing to love them and bring them to the Lord who lives in us.

I only had ten more minutes with Jenifer but I made the most I could to show my love. It reminded me of the quote from Hammarskjold, “It is more noble to give yourself completely to one individual than to labor diligently for the salvation of the masses.” I did give all I could with the time I had but unfortunately I wasn’t at a place relationally to show her my Lord with words but only with my actions. She has been so hurt by other church people that she said she didn’t like those who imposed their views on her and she was thankful that I was not like that. Yet, I knew I had done that before, so what made me different now? The Lord whispered in my ear, love.

For the sake of her soul maybe silence was the required seed to plant and God will use one day to bring her to Him? Are we willing to pay whatever the cost for one soul? Whether it be silence or death or punishment are we willing to do it in Love? The reality that she might eternally die gripped my heart as I gave her the tip and I smiled, almost with tears, as I said my last goodbye. God didn’t want me to speak yet I felt very obligated. What type of people stand by and watch others die? We should say something LORD!? Silence ensued as she took the tip and I walked away. One seed fell and hit the cold ground.

Dear God, help us be obedient to you. Forgive us for not making the most of every opportunity and forgive us for doing things our way instead of walking in your perfect love.