What the person is often mars
the value of what he does. J. R. Miller, The Glory of the
Commonplace. A pastor was commending Christ
to a boy, expressing the hope that he would trust in Christ
in his youth, Religion is a continual joy, he said. Look at your sister,
Sarah. How much that dear girl enjoys
her religion. Yes, drooled the boy with frank
candor. She may enjoy her religion, but
nobody else in the house enjoys it. There are professing Christians
of whom it is true that their families do not enjoy their religion. It is not sweet. It is not a
comfort to people. It is critical, rasping, censorious,
exacting. It was a serious condemnation
of this girl's religion that her family did not enjoy it. A keen observer has said, many
a woman spoils her testimony in the church by her tongue in
the kitchen. Another has said, there are people
who lead us heavenward, but stick pins in us all the way. In a
conversation overheard on a railway train, one reports catching the
fragment of talk. Yes, I suppose she's a Christian,
but she certainly isn't pleasant to live with. A Christian who
isn't pleasant to live with is shameful. We may do all our duties
faithfully, conscientiously, bearing our share of the burdens
and cares, and yet, if we are not pleasant to live with, we
fail in the most essential quality of love. An unlovely spirit,
frowns and chilling looks, sharp, impatient words, overbalance
the painstaking Christian service that does so much to help in
practical ways. What the person is often mars
the value of what he does. Therefore, as God's chosen people,
holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness,
humility, gentleness, and patience. – Colossians 3.12