The older man had a sign that he was carrying around. He had another one taped to the outside of the small suitcase he was pulling behind him. Later in the parking lot, I saw his car. It had the same sign hanging in both back windows of his vehicle – one man with four different signs and all with the same message. 

“Treat Everyone Like Jesus.”

I do not know the backstory. I could not quickly find anything about it on social media. There were no explanations, brochures, video links, or sermons: just an elderly man and his signs.

I have been thinking about him for days now. I wish I had taken the time to talk to him. I wish I had invited him out for a meal or coffee. I wish I had asked his story and why he carried the sign. I wish I had gotten to know him so that I could tell you the rest of the story.   

Unfortunately, I was too busy. I was rushing from one thing to another: so much to do and so little time to finish it. I saw him standing there and walked by without hesitation. A quick mental note about the sign and on with my day.

In reflection, I thought Jesus would have probably stopped and talked to him. Sadly, I am no Jesus; then again, maybe that is not the point. Perhaps he was Jesus to me that day. But who has time to think about that?

Developing disciples of Jesus is nothing like killing snakes.

Imagine you walked into the shed behind your house, filled with venomous snakes. Our natural reaction would be to go after them with all our energy. There would be no plan other than to destroy the one who threatened to harm us. We would randomly swing our rake in all directions to keep the creatures at bay. We would aim to make it out of the situation alive and undamaged. 

Sometimes I watch new believers go about discipleship the same way. We want to be like Jesus and go after it with all our energy. We have no plan other than to attend whatever event is closest to us. We listen and read anything labeled “Christian,” hoping to learn as fast as possible. Our goal is to make it through this life and spend eternity in heaven.

Discipleship is not like killing snakes. Instead, it is a long slow process. It requires day-by-day attention to our souls. It is intentional without being hurried. We plan to gain knowledge and practical advice from those who have gone before us. We are mentored and equipped in the service of the Lord. Our goal is to become like Jesus until we can spend our days with him. In the meantime, we will help other people become better disciples too. 

I love the energy and excitement of a new believer. I wish I could bottle it up and share it with those who have followed Jesus for a lifetime. But their exuberance for faith is often like killing snakes; the sad result is that it usually ends up killing them.

I hope you are excited to become all that God desires for you but walk the path slowly and methodically with a clear end in mind. Quite often, slow and steady wins the race.

Humans love to label and categorize things, including people. We do this in dozens of ways, from simple descriptions like introvert and extrovert to intensive psychological tests. Personally, I have taken temperament analysis tests and drawn out my thinking related to animals. All of these are simply an attempt to get to know people better. If we can label people, we hope to understand their behavioral patterns and predict future encounters.

Unfortunately, no one fits into the neat little boxes we create. Everyone has a unique experience and personality. No two people are alike, no two situations are the same, and no one can accurately predict what will happen in any encounter. 

It is even more complicated when we add the “God factor.” People who believe in God understand that he can empower a person, and they can become an entirely new creation.

How would things be different if we got to know people instead of labeling them? What would happen if we looked past how others classified people and tried to get to know the wonderfully unique person that God created?

People will often defy our logic and break through all our categories, which is what makes them worth knowing. People desperately want to be fully understood by others, but that can only happen if we accept their individuality and forget their labels.