[Faith-talk] Daily Thought for Wednesday, July 24, 2013

[Paul]

Yes, here in North America it's called hump day, but for a certain segment of our population it's an important day.  Can you guess what that day is? I won't tell you, as some of you may know what happened on this day in 1847, if you're even a little knowledgeable about American history.  If you wish to know, just email me at oilofgladness47 at gmail.com and I'll tell you.

Onto other things, I hope that your day is going well or went well, by God's matchless grace and His providential care.

Geno Lawrenzi Jr. is a writer from Missouri, and he presents an article today entitled "Conversations on a Bus," rendered as follows:

It never starts out the same way.

I usually take my seat next to the window while the other passengers are boarding the bus.  Then I relax, usually with a book I am reading, or maybe I write something down on a notebook pad that I always carry in my back pocket.  But I am always aware of the other passengers on the bus--where they are sitting, what they are wearing, how they are acting, and more.

And then it happens.  The conversation.

People on buses, at least most of them, do not talk to each other.  Once in a while you find someone who talks to himself, usually in a muted voice so nobody can hear what he is saying.  But for the most part they just sit there, often in the same seat, day after day, going to and from work, to and from the grocery, to and from the day care center, and to and from the mall.

"Congratulations," I say to the tall man in the Stetson.  He is in his 60's, sitting next to a woman he obviously knows, perhaps his wife.

He turns and looks at me quizzically.  "Fer what?" he says in that distinctive Missouri drawl that makes him decidedly rural.  Probably a farmer.  Maybe retired.

"When I got on this bus, I thought I had the best looking hat in the place," I say, touching my black Larry Mahan Stetson.  "And then you had to get on board."

He grins, she laughs appreciably.   A couple of passengers who overheard the brief conversation smile.  And the talk begins.

I tell him a hat story, about the time Actor James Caan and I met in Phoenix where he was competing in a calf-roping competition.  Yes, Caan is a roper.  He would rather rope than act, he told me during an interview.  We were having our boots shined and both of us were wearing hats.  Before the interview ended, we had swapped hats and I kept Caan's hat until it expired from wear and tear.

Before the hat wearer and his wife--I discover they have been married 37 years--leave the bus, I hand them a card and invite them to my church.

"We have a really great lunch the first Sunday of every month," I say.  "It starts right after church.  Bring a plate if you'd like, although it's not required.  You'll meet some great people and the preaching and Bible study classes are outstanding."

On another bus occasion, I am sitting across from a woman.  She appears to be in her early 30's and she is reading a book.  I try to see the title but can't make it out because her hands are covering it.

"What are you reading?" I say.

She doesn't hear me--she is wearing earplugs, I discover.  So she removes the earplugs.  She tells me the name of the book.  We start talking.  I tell her I am a writer, have published two books that she has never heard of, and ask her how the book reads.

Another passenger gets involved in the conversation.  He, too, is a reader and tells us what he has been reading lately.  The talk goes around and we get to the woman's bus stop too quickly.  Before she leaves, I hand her a card and invite her to our church.  She smiles, says, "I'll think about that.  Thanks."

Since I began my _ministry of turning strangers into friends on buses, I have met hundreds of people.  Some of them have accepted my offer to come to church.  Others have asked me to help them on manuscripts they are working on since I am an editor as well as writing teacher.  And several have even had lunch or dinner with me and my daughter, Rossana.

I even expanded my ministry to include restaurants.  For this to work, you need a conversation opener.  I have several, but my favorite one is to pass a table with two or more people and to comment to the oldest person, "Whatever you do, don't let them stick you with the bill."

I say it in a conspiratorial tone in order to avoid offending, and nearly 100 percent of the time, my comment elicits a laugh and smiles all around.  Once in Albuquerque, a 90-year-old woman who was being treated to a birthday dinner by her six grandchildren, whispered back, "But I'm the only one with an unexpired credit card." The kids loved it.

Now if I meet you on a bus and you are wearing a hat or a dress with an interesting design, be careful.  My outreach ministry is at work.

And there you have it for today.  Nothing fabulous, but interesting.  By the way, have any of you handed out cards to invite others to your church? You might tell them about it, but if they have a card most probably the physical location of the church is printed on it, whereas if you tell others about your house of worship, they might or might not remember the address.  I've done that in the past while travelling to or from work on a Baltimore city bus, and some have accepted while others haven't.  If they don't come, don't worry.  You've done your part to plant the seed, even if the recipients of your cards aren't Christian.  After all, isn't that what we're supposed to do, plant seeds and sow the Gospel into others' hearts?

And now may the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob just keep us safe, individually and collectively, in these last days in which we live.  Your Christian friend and brother, Paul