Why I love my dear friend Eddie

Not many Pastors would take the time but he does it and I know he pleases God

Blogs by Eddie Thompson

"A Simple Handshake
3/8/2008 10:58:19 AM
Sometimes, something as simple as a handshake can be taken for granted.
Last night, after service, I had an opportunity to minister to a young
lady who has had a very hard life. She hasn't had a day of peace in her
life. From a very early age, this world has been cruel to her. For so
many reasons, she lives in fear. Fear of people. Fear of failure. Fear
of everything. Due to the unique problems she faced as a child,
continuing into adolescence, she simply can't abide to be touched.
There are a hand full of people who she has come to trust enough to
allow physical contact. Literally, a hand full. It's not that she
doesn't love, or doesn't care, or doesn't desire affection from others.
Simply, she can't stand physical contact because of what she's been
through. Even entering the doors of my church was a huge risk for her
last night. Her eyes darted around, constantly in fear that someone
would perhaps come up to her and want to hug her and she would recoil,
leaving the impression that she was snobbish or standoffish. The
reality is, she simply can't abide contact. A church like ours is a
loving church where everybody hugs, shakes hands, and slaps backs, etc.
It was her biggest nightmare. Yet, she was drawn to come to our church.
Some people in our church have reached out to her, loved her, and cared
for her. It's made a difference. During my message, I was aware that
God was dealing with her. The Word was washing over her. After service
was over and everyone cleared out, she made her way back into the
sanctuary, where I was waiting for her. She sat with obvious distance
between us as her friend sat by her and comforted her. We talked. We
talked about the love of God. We talked about how valuable she is to
Him, and to me. We talked about how God accepts us just the way we are.
That He gives us hope for a better tomorrow. That all things are
possible to those who will just believe in Him. Off and on, she cried,
she smiled, she shook nervously, and she clasped her hands together.
God ministered to her. After our conversation, she assured me she'd be
back. She felt hope. She felt that maybe, just maybe, God could help
her, too. Then she did something that touched me deeply: She extended
her hand slowly and looked at me with a shrug. Taken aback, I slowly
reached out my hand, took hers into mine, and shook it: Just like I've
done to practically thousands of people in my life, never thinking
twice about it. For the first time in my life I saw the simple act of
human contact in an entirely different light. For the first time, I
actually "shook a person's hand." And I realized how much it meant to
her to be able to do that. As tears rolled down her cheek, all I could
think was "God is so good." "

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Remember we never know who we are speaking with and our words or action may be the very thing that makes all the difference in the world.
Be loved you are