A Concern for Lost Souls (1)

A Concern for Lost Souls (1)

In the March,1981 issue of Eternity magazine (1950-1988) , Jeffrey Cotter shared the story about a pastor dressed in a comfortable pair of old blue jeans, who boarded a plane to return home. He settled into the last unoccupied seat next to a well-dressed businessman with a Wall Street Journal tucked under his arm.

The preacher, a little embarrassed over his casual attire, decided he’d look straight ahead and, for sure, stay out of any “in-depth” conversation, but the plan didn’t work. The man greeted him, so, to be polite, the pastor asked about the man’s work. Here’s what happened:

“I’m in the figure salon business. We can change a woman’s self-concept by changing her body. It’s really a very profound, powerful thing.” His pride spoke between the lines. I said to this man, “You look my age. Have you been at this long?”

“I just graduated from the University of Michigan’s School of Business Administration. They’ve given me so much responsibility already, and I feel very honored. In fact, I hope to eventually manage the western part of the operation.” I then asked, becoming impressed despite myself, “So you’re a national organization?”

“Oh, yes. We are the fastest growing company of our kind in the nation. It’s really good to be a part of an organization like that, don’t you think?” I nodded approvingly and thought, “Impressive. Proud of his work and accomplishments. Why can’t Christians be proud like that? Why are we so often apologetic about our faith and our church?”

Looking at my clothing, he asked the inevitable question, “And what do you do?” I replied, “It’s interesting that we have similar business interests. You are in the body-changing business; I’m in the personality-changing business. We apply ‘basic theocratic principles to accomplish indigenous personality modification.’ ” He was hooked, but I knew he would never admit it. (Pride is powerful.)

He replied hesitantly, “You know, I’ve heard about that, but do you have an office here in the city?” “Oh, we have many offices. We have offices up and down the state. In fact, we’re national: we have at least one office in every state of the union, including Alaska and Hawaii.”

He had this puzzled look on his face. He was searching his mind to identify this huge company he must have read or heard about, perhaps in his Wall Street Journal.

I continued, “As a matter of fact, we’ve gone international and Management has a plan to put at least one office in every country of the world by the end of this business era.” I paused and then asked him, “Do you have that in your business?”

“Well, no. Not yet, but you mentioned management. How do they make it work?” I told him, “It’s a family concern. There’s a Father and a Son, and they run everything.” He asked skeptically, “It must take a lot of capital.”

“You mean money?” I asked. “Yes, I suppose so. No one knows just how much it takes, but we never worry because there’s never a shortage. The Boss always seems to have enough. He’s a very creative guy, and the money is, well, just there. In fact those of us in the Organization have a saying about our Boss, ‘He owns the cattle on a thousand hills.’ ”

“Oh, he’s into ranching too?” asked my captive friend. “No, it’s just a saying we use to indicate his wealth.” The man sat back in his seat, musing over our conversation. “What about with you?” he asked.

“The employees? They’re something to see,” I said. “They have a ‘Spirit’ that pervades the organization. It works like this: the Father and Son love each other so much that their love filters down through the organization so that we all find ourselves loving one another, too. I know this sounds old-fashioned in a world like ours, but I know people in the organization who are willing to die for me. Do you have that in your business?” I was almost shouting now. People were starting to shift noticeably in their seats to listen.

He said, “Not yet,” Quickly changing strategies, he asked, “But do you have good benefits?” I countered, with a gleam, “They’re substantial. I have complete life insurance, fire insurance—all the basics. You might not believe this, but it’s true. I have holdings in a mansion that’s being built for me right now for my retirement. Do you have that in your business?”

He answered wistfully, “Not yet.” The light was dawning. “You know, one thing bothers me about all you’re saying. I’ve read the journals, and if your business is all you say it is, why haven’t I heard about it before now?”

“That’s a good question,” I said. “After all, we have a 2,000-year-old tradition.” “Wait a minute!” he said. “You’re right,” I interrupted. “I’m talking about the church.” “I knew it. You know, I’m Jewish.” I asked him, “Would you like to sign up?”

This story effectively illustrates the blessings we enjoy as Christians and provokes the question, “Why are Christians not telling others about the Lord and what He has done, is doing, and will do for us?” One key reason is many believers do not have a burning heart for God and a burden for men’s souls.