An Agent of God, Changing the World
Illustration
by Tony Campolo

Dr. Tony Campolo, in his film series, You Can Make a Difference, tells the story of a Christian colleague with a PhD. in English Literature who quit his job and became a mailman because Christ opened up a new tomorrow in his life. Tony went to the man's apartment to try to persuade him to change his mind. Here is how Tony describes that encounter:

Tony says, "I couldn't change his mind, so I came back with the old Protestant work ethic thing. I said, ''Charlie, if you're gonna be a mailman, be the best mailman you can be.''

"He looked at me with a silly grin and said, 'I'm a lousy mailman.''

"I asked, 'What do you mean, you're a lousy mailman?''

"He answered, 'Everybody else gets the mail delivered by one o'clock; I never get back until about five thirty or six.''

"'What takes so long?'' I wanted to know.

"He said, 'I visit! That's why it takes so long. You wouldn't believe how many people on my route never got visited until I became the mailman. But I've got this problem, I can't sleep at night.''

"I asked, 'Why can't you sleep?''

"He said, 'Who can sleep after drinking twenty cups of coffee?''

"I began to get the image of this mailman on the job. He was no ordinary mailman. I could picture him going from door to door and at each home giving more than the mail. I could see him visiting solitary widows, counseling troubled teenagers, joking with lonely old men. I could see him delivering the mail in a way that was extra-ordinary for the people on his route. He's the only mailman I know that on his birthday the people on his route get together, hire out a gym, and throw a party for him. They love him because he's a mailman who expresses the love of Jesus everywhere he goes. In his own subtle way, my friend Charles is changing his world, changing the lives of people, touching them where they are, making a difference in their lives. It may not sound like much, but that man who is delivering mail, like Jesus would deliver mail, is an agent of God who is changing the world."

ChristianGlobe Network, ChristianGlobe Illustrations, by Tony Campolo