Inside Out

Luke 11:40 – You foolish people! Did not the one who made the outside make the inside also? (NIV)

Several years ago, my husband treated me to the concert of a woman whom I much admired. She'd certainly "paid her dues". For years and years, she had scrubbed floors by day and sung in smoky bars by night, until the recognition and respect she so deserved came her way.

The concert was in a quaint old theatre. Our balcony seats, though small, were offset by the plush velvet upholstery and gilded interior of days gone by.

Hers is a voice that reaches right into one's soul, twisting out tears of joy — as well as empathy. From the moment she began, we were engulfed in her beautiful, deep, full, soul-searing voice, until the last note of her third encore.

When we emerged from the concert, there on the pavement sat a woman in comfortable old clothes that had obviously served her well for many years.

The hymns she was singing resonated throughout the whole outdoors in as beautiful a rich, full voice as we'd just heard inside. As I stopped to give her some money, I commented that she should be indoors, as she was every bit as good as the woman whom we had just paid for the privilege of hearing.

In her thanks, her response was that she chose to sing outside so that all could hear her freely, especially those who couldn't afford to pay to go inside.

Throughout our lives, we are presented with situations that often cause us to make quick judgements or assumptions without considering the other side. I had assumed that the woman outside would want to be inside, and perhaps should pursue that avenue. She presented me with another side, a more compassionate side than I had even considered.

Prayer: Father, help us always to take a moment to turn things "inside out" that we might consider another side before jumping to conclusions. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.

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