A Fine Christian Woman

Having others see Jesus in us is a lifelong pursuit.

I recently watched the movie, “The Blind Side.”  It came out in 2009, but I never saw it. I knew it was supposed to be a heartwarming movie based on a true story, with a happy ending. I love those kind of movies. The basic story is a wealthy, white family takes in a homeless African-American teenager, Michael, and help him learn to play football and get into college.

It’s a fabulous success story about what can happen when people are willing to help those in need and how when those in need, take the offered help and make their best effort to succeed, the sky is the limit. The family has been very blessed and have their children in a Christian school and seem very willing to give back.

All of that, made me teary and gave me the warm and fuzzies. The mom, Leigh Anne, was played by Sandra Bullock and she was a very strong Southern woman. She always wore a cross around her neck and seemed determined to do the right thing. But, the part that has stayed in my head, is her meeting with the Michael’s mother.

She had learned from a case worker that the woman had twelve children and was a crack addict. Michael was a ward of the state and there was no reason to even try to contact her. I’m sitting in my comfortable chair at this point, just thinking what trash this woman was. How could she have that many kids? How could she smoke crack and lose her kids? I’m thinking, she should just write her off.

She doesn’t. Leigh Anne looks for her and finds her in a very sketchy housing project. She just sits right down on her couch and begins talking to her, not condescendingly like I felt like she deserved. She told his mother that she wasn’t getting any money from the state for taking him in. She spoke to her with kindness and when she did, the woman’s defenses came down. She openly spoke of at first, not remembering Michael’s daddy’s name. Leigh Anne moved over onto the couch next to her and asked her if she wanted to see him. Here’s the two lines that have stayed with me.

“You are a fine Christian woman.” Leigh Anne answered, “I try to be.”

That scene and those words have weighed heavily on my mind. The character in the movie was a fine Christian woman. Even in Michael’s mother’s misery, she could see the face of Christ.  Lee Anne makes me ask myself how I’m doing. Do people look at me and see a fine Christian woman? Do they see Jesus? If they see him in me at church, that’s great. But, am I that woman at the grocery store or at Wal-Mart? How about when someone cuts me off in traffic? What about when someone is unkind to me or my family? What about when someone has made horrible decisions like the woman in the movie? Would I be willing to speak kindly to her?

It’s easy to do the right thing when things are going well or when people treat me kindly, but it’s much more difficult when people are unkind or when they have treated people I care about unkindly.

The Bible tells us that we should love one another because God loves us. He loves everyone, so we should too. That’s a tall order. I have to admit that I often fail miserably. Even so, I feel I should try. I believe that being a fine Christian woman is a goal worth shooting for. What do you think? I’d love to hear from you.

Have an awesome day!

Wendy 🙂