Many years ago, when I was a teenager, I worked for a man and his wife in a corner grocery store. This was a time when there were no large supermarkets to shop at and most cities or towns had small corner stores every two blocks.
The man and wife were tremendous people; however, they didn’t attend church. Even though they had no children of their own, they were courteous, kind, respectful, and generally known for their generosity. I learned great values and the grocery store trade from them because they took an interest in me. He even taught me to cut meat and work with customers on their orders.
These small stores were not open on Sunday. This was back in the day when people respected the Sabbath day and kept it Holy. Most families attended church. Families traveled to church in one car and sat together as a family.
The couple I worked for were very nice and accommodating. I would tell them of my experiences in church and when it came time for summer youth camp, they never objected to allowing me to go.
1 John 1:7 tells us, “But, if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his son cleanses us from all sin.” ESV
Even though we are around people a good bit of the time, we may never know if they are Christians or not. The couple I worked for never displayed any anger or dismay around anyone that I could see, but they didn’t seem to have the happiness of fellowship with others that Christians have. They did have the characteristics of good people and treated everyone the same, but they were missing something in their life.
After I graduated from high school, went to Junior College and then to the Air Force, I would go by and visit with them when I was home. They were special people in my life, and I cared for them deeply.
One time when I was on leave from the Air Force and I visited with them, the man told me that people he had never seen were in the store asking all kind of questions about me. He would answer their questions however, he demanded why they wanted to know about me. He was protecting me and my reputation. The people worked for the government and were getting me a top-secret military clearance.
This was also the time the couple told me about accepting Christ as their savior and now going to church. They not only attended church every Sunday but even though they had all the manners and discipline of Christians before, they became witnesses for Him and His church.
They had a great life and were a great service to the people around them, however, they really never had a peace about them until they accepted Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Jesus can do the same for you if you will invite Him into your heart today!
