Rich Dixon is thinking about his thinking.

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Last time, in the middle of nowhere, a man demonstrated unexpected generosity.

In hindsight, it would be easy to romanticize a God-inspired moment.

Frankly, I’m ashamed of my reaction. I judged a man based solely on outward appearance.

I didn’t even say thank you. To be brutally honest, I was relieved when he walked away.

I wish I’d shaken his hand, introduced myself, taken time to learn a bit of his story. I wish I hadn’t equated his identity with the place he lived. I wish I didn’t have to wonder how the interaction would have happened differently if a well-dressed white man had approached us in front of one of those prosperous plantations.

I don’t like that question. Maybe you don’t like it either. Sorry about that. Some lessons are hard.

Stepping out in faith sometimes takes you to uncomfortable places in the middle of nowhere.

My fear was all about being judgmental. You’d think a guy who lives in a wheelchair and gets indignant about being judged according to outward appearance would know better. We’re all prone to the same sins in different formats.

I saw a stereotype based on “shabbily-dressed black man who lives in a shack.” God showed me a soft-spoken man with a humble, generous heart to remind me what I miss when I see people through my biases.

I can only imagine what God did with those twenty bucks, how many times He multiplied it, and how many people He touched with a generous gift from a big heart.

When you follow a God-sized dream, some things go well. Some don’t. That’s okay. You try to learn, and maybe you learn most from the mistakes.

God’s grace is pretty big.

To be continued…