genuine interest

All sorts of different people cross our paths each day. Some planned. Some quite unexpectedly.

Today I bumped (almost, but thankfully not quite, literally) into a man whom I haven't seen for a good few years. He's retired now, but he used to teach at the school where our sons got their education.

I don't know how many pupils he must have known in his time; thousands and thousands. And every pupil with a parent or two. And it's maybe as much as six or more years since our sons left school. So we're talking a long time back with a man who's had to cope with thousands and thousands of pupils and their parents.

I was impressed that he knew straightaway who I was. HIs explanation was interesting.

"It tends to be parents who took an interest in their children," he said, "that I remember."

Which made it sound like it's only the occasional parent who's interested in their children. But he explained he was talking about things like parents turning up at rugby matches to watch their children play.

Not so many were always there, week by week and match by match and from start to finish each time.

He said that some parents sometimes asked - "when will the match be finished?" To which he'd reply - "when you see the boys all coming off the pitch, that's when the match is over!" Be there for your children, in other words.

Parents who take an interest in their children. A novel concept!

But you see what the man was getting at. And his words today brought to mind the words which were written about a rather shy young man, a long, long time ago, by the name of Timothy.

"I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare. For everyone else looks out for his own interests, not those of Jesus Christ."

It tends to be people like that you remember best.

And the lesson was further impressed on my heart when I called on a person who'd been at our worship yesterday.

Getting on up in years now, the person is easily missed (and perhaps dismissed) by others far more gifted and 'successful' - and probably feels it, too. The person had really been challenged by what the Lord had spoken through his Word, and sought to respond to the call which the Lord had been making.

My going round to the house tonight meant the world, I think, to the individual. Someone was taking 'a genuine interest'. It was a humbling experience to hear what the person then prayed; and to sense at that moment the outbursts of joy that there was in the glory of heaven.

I have always been challenged by those words first applied to the shy young man, Timothy: I have no one else like him, who takes a genuine interest in your welfare.

That, I suggest, is a quintessential hallmark of a pastor.