W.R.A.P. #3: Caring Beyond the Surface

“Nobody cares how much you know 

until they know how much you care.”

In India a Christian man went into a village to talk with the leaders about how the organization he worked for would like to help them. At first the village leaders were very standoffish. They had seen men ‘like’ this before. They come in, bring in money, try to make tons of changes, & then dictate how the people should live.  

However, when this Christian man entered their village he took of his shoes, he gently declined to sit on the chair they brought for him & instead he sat on the floor as they did. He looked at them in their eyes with genuine care, he listened to their stories before he talked, & he allowed them to share their hearts. The Indian leaders felt so honored, valued, & dignified. Then, as he shared how he would like to partner with them to assist them in the development of their village their hearts were wide open. Thus began a life-long partnership for the man & leaders.

It is one thing to show surface-level care, but it is another thing to go beyond the surface. Help is not always help & kind actions are not always kind, especially when there are stings attached. While that is not always wrong or bad to do something in order to get something, it can be extremely selfish. And more importantly, people can tell when someone is done void of genuine care. How do you feel when someone does something for you, but you know it is because they want something or want to push an agenda?

The Challenge – Wednesday’s Random Act on Purpose (W.R.A.P.)

Today I want to challenge you to show 1 intentional, genuine act of care that goes beyond the surface for someone in your life. This caring act is not to open the door for you to share something with the person, sell something, win brownie points, or push your agenda forward. Choose in your heart that this is going to selfless, loving, genuine, & caring. Today, the point is not about showing them how much you know, it is to showing them how much you care. Get it!

Let’s Do This Together

How do you feel when people do things for you knowing they want something in return? Is it hard for you to show genuine care without expecting something in return?