You meet a lot of people … and every so often, you meet a character.
I don\’t mean that in a bad way. The folks I\’d call characters are those who brighten a room. People you enjoy being around. But they\’re also people with a different perspective. A unique way of looking at life. A special way of living life.
That\’s how David Lee struck me the first time I met him.
I shared a little about David back in November 2006, about a year after I met him in a Bena Bena village in Papua New Guinea.
And he came to mind recently because his ministry among the Bena Bena people continues to bear fruit. He and his co-workers, Rich and Dawn Foster, recently baptized another group of believers, the first four people from their village to place their faith in Christ.
As a public testimony of faith and obedience, the baptism attracted the attention of one man who has yet to put his faith in Christ. “He has been showing a lot of interest lately, so we will be encouraging him to go and hear the teaching in our next outreach,” David wrote.
So … what makes David a character?
A gleam in his eyes … a ready smile … a hearty laugh … and the thing that impressed me the most: a willingness to undergo whatever personal hardships were necessary to reach the Bena Bena people. For David and his wife, Wendy, that meant moving to a remote Bena Bena village and living in their rustic huts, in order to press on in a struggle to learn the language that many thought they\’d never master.
They got the language. And now many Bena Benas have the eternal, abundant life that Jesus came and died to bring.
I know some people think I\’m a bit of a character. I just wish I had the strength of character that David has.
What about you?
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