Clothes make the man? Sometimes

I met a man in Africa I'm likely to never forget.  He was a preacher who lived in a hut in a tiny village without roads, telephones, running water or even a sewer system.  He grew sugar cane for a living, and during the week he was visiting I never saw him change his clothes a single time.

Every day was the same shirt, the same slacks, the same shoes and the same thread-bare jacket.

He'd arrived in Arusha by bus so I knew he had space for luggage ... so why just a single set of clothes?

Because he was so on fire with the gospel that he was saving his money, almost literally every penny, to buy a used scooter ... so he could travel to neighboring villages and share the gospel. He figured it would take him almost three years to save $800.

But he could reach four, maybe five villages who'd never heard of Christ if he had a scooter.  And he was already well on his way to his goal.

When I saw Vernon during his last visit he told me yes, Patrick got his scooter.

--   --   --

Some people enjoy ... and insist upon ... dressing in their best for church.  So others will know what they've got and who they are.

But then there's others who don't pay attention at all to their clothes and can't wait to share the gospel with the un-churched instead.  So others will know the assurance they've got ... and who Christ is.

Just imagine if Patrick had a Harley.