The Zoo Cage Prophet
His face said it all. Hate. Disgust. Jealousy. Even sprinkles of deep, dark evil. He would treat others with the utmost respect and sincerity. But I was treated like the lowest, dirtiest, slimiest form of scum.
Every day he would greet me with a look that could kill. His lifeless, hate-filled daily stare was at times chilling.
For eight months he openly spoke ill of me, spreading rumors all over the prison yard. Much effort was put forth to discredit my testimony. He even pulled me once into a small room and challenged me to a fight.
Although my hair is falling out and my gut doesn’t let me see my toes often, I’m still a man with testosterone pumping throughout my body. So naturally I wanted, at first, to give him a taste of his own evil medicine. You know, an-eye-for-an-eye and a-tooth-for-a-tooth. My flesh begged to use its sharp tongue to slice him down.
Mentally I had made a long detailed list of all his faults and sins. I knew enough about his past to belittle him and verbally drag him through the gossip mud.
But God would not let me.
The Spirit within me urged me to lean toward him with love, kindness, and lots of grace. So I did.
For eight months, every morning, I made it a sincere habit to greet him with a solid, but friendly, “Good morning!” Not once did he return the greeting.
About once a week I would bring, and offer him, a snack. He always rejected it.
Every so often I would compliment him on his well-ironed clothes and well-kept shoes. His response was always filled with off-color, homophobic words.
If I saw that he had painted himself into a corner, I would jump in and quickly take the blame. He would later let me know to mind my own business.
There were even times when I “felt” him staring at me. So to catch him, I would quickly turn around and give him a silly face. Eyes crossed, one brow up, half smile with tongue out. That would set him on fire!
Overall, I tried my best not to let my kind acts come off as rude. Genuinely I wanted to be a real, but not perfect, example of kindness, love, and grace to the man. Besides that, I had no real goal.
I didn’t have a plan, or a limit I would reach. All I know is that he did not deserve to be treated like he treated me. So I kept the kindness going no matter what. Each day, stretching forward to impact this man with God’s grace—in all its forms.
About a month ago, a co-worker of mine came over to my work closet and pointed out the obvious – the obvious that had escaped me. “Hey, I don’t know what you did to him, but have you noticed that he likes you now?”
I had, but I hadn’t really sat down to analyze it deeper.
“In all my years,” my co-worker continued, “I’ve never seen someone win a man over with kindness. You’re the first.”
We talked a little more about the phenomenon, then he left. But I was left praising God, in my heart, for the work He—God—had done in this situation. How awesome it is to see and experience God’s Word in action. And for others to witness it, too.
As Christians we will face these situations all the time. How are we reacting to them? Can we say, honestly, “… just as Christ loved me.”? Because, if we think about it, before we came to Christ we were the ones who spewed hate in God’s face on a daily basis each time He showed us His love. Yet, He never stopped loving us.
If you are currently facing someone who shows you nothing but hate, as children of God it is our job—our calling!—to return his/her hate with pure love. It’s not easy, but God never said it would be.
Because He did it for me, I can do it for others: Love
—Adrian G. Torres
© 2014 Friends of Adrian
