October 12, 2025
“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” (1 Peter 4:8)
Most young pastors anticipate a week of church camp as a time to connect with many students—hoping to teach broadly, influence widely, and maybe inspire a few future leaders. A preacher friend of mine told of his experience serving as camp pastor at one such week. He arrived late on Sunday afternoon, a few hours after the program officially began. As he unloaded his luggage, a very anxious, socially awkward girl recognized him from the year before. She rushed clumsily toward him and exclaimed, “Hi! I hope I’m on your team!” My friend confessed that when he saw her gawkiness, his first thought was, “I hope you’re not.”
He carried his bags to the dorm, settled in, and made his way to the cafeteria. He said he was the last in line for dinner, and the only open seat in the packed dining room was at a table where a girl sat by herself—the same socially awkward girl. He sat down and strained through some uncomfortable small talk.
Then the camp dean stood and announced, “This is a full week, so to avoid chaos at mealtime, please take note of where you’re seated. That will be your assigned seat for the week.” My friend thought, “Oh no. Every meal, every day, the entire week?” It was definitely not how he had anticipated the week going.
My friend said the girl eventually began to get comfortable talking with him, and he said he became big enough to really pay attention and listen to her. “I discovered that under that awkward exterior was one of the most intelligent and spiritually deep young people I had ever met. She was the daughter of missionaries, and we had rich discussions about the Bible and our Christian worldview.”
By week’s end, it was clear that what my friend anticipated as a week of broad impact with many students became a week of more meaningful impact with just one. In fact, I think more of an impact may have been made on my preacher friend than on that young girl. Forced to narrow his focus to one overlooked student, my friend explained that he learned to slow down, listen, and see as God sees—not the outward appearance, but the heart.
God’s people are commanded to love one another with a heartfelt compassion deeper than the world’s understanding of love. We’re challenged to love not just people who are like us and share our interests, but those who are difficult to love. Someone labeled them EGR people—Extra Grace Required.
God’s influence isn’t measured by scale, polish, or appearances but by faithfulness and humility. Discipleship grows as we stop scanning crowds for potential and start seeing individuals as God sees them.
Christ loved us and paid the supreme price for our sins while we were still sinners and most unlovable. The challenge for us is to love one another—even those who are difficult to love; even those who despise us. Jesus asked, “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. And if you lend to those from whom you expect repayment, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, expecting to be repaid in full. But love your enemies, do good to them, and lend to them without expecting to get anything back. Then your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High, because he is kind to the ungrateful and wicked.” (Luke 6:32–35)
This lesson reaches beyond people’s looks. We can be just as captured by appearances of success—polish, platform, giftedness, perfect plans. Yet God often does His best work through what seems least impressive—the least gifted communicator, the least attractive, the least resourced—so that His grace, not our polish, gets the credit.
“The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” (1 Samuel 16:7)
Warren Wiersbe wrote, “We share brotherly love because we are brothers and sisters in Christ and have likenesses. We share agape love because we belong to God and therefore can overlook differences. It’s a spiritual love, a sincere love, a sacrificial love.”
Phil Russell is the son of Bob Russell.