I don’t know if I am any judge of character, but I am pretty sure I am no talent scout - at least as far as football is concerned. This became abundantly clear the other day when my wife and I spent a lovely hour or so watching our five-year-old grandson running around in his local leisure centre. It was our first chance to see him playing football with his mates, and I have to admit it was great fun - both for him and for us. His energy was boundless (which you would expect given his age) and his enthusiasm even more so. But as we returned home, we had to admit that, as far as we were concerned he didn’t have much of clue when it came to playing ‘the beautiful game.’

And that’s when we realised just how wrong you can be. For about an hour or so after we got back home to Pembroke, we had a telephone call from our very excited son informing us that, far from being useless, young Luke had been ‘talent spotted’ and invited to sign on at the Cardiff City Academy. As I put the ’phone down, I was reminded of the old Latin proverb ‘festinate lente,’ or to put it more simply ‘if you have to hurry, then do it slowly.’

That’s a sound piece of advice. It’s very tempting to rush to judgment, not least when dealing with people. That’s what I like about Jesus and the way he treated the people He met. Yes He clearly understood that every one of us is less than perfect and that we are all capable of behaving in the most horrible ways. But far from being despondent, Jesus also saw the potential in everyone He met, and as a result did all He could to persuade them to adopt His approach to life. He knew that if they followed His advice they would achieve their full potential and become just like Him.

One former Archbishop of Canterbury put it nicely when he said Jesus was, and is, ‘Paradigm man;’ that is Jesus shows us what it means to be truly human. “Jesus lived a human life that appeared to fulfil the longings and desires of others. This is the impression conveyed by the New Testament. The impact of Jesus, in fact, lay in two directions: in his teaching he aroused men to realise their human predicament, and in his life he attracted men to a fulfilment of their humanity,” (George Carey)

Sadly, all too often, the church seems to give people the impression that Christianity is a rather negative, life-denying thing whereas nothing could be further from the truth. Jesus told anyone willing to listen to Him that He could help them discover life with a capital ‘L.’ It didn’t matter what other people thought about them. They might have felt unwanted and inadequate. They may have made a mess of their lives and perhaps the lives of others too, but as far as He was concerned, they had the most amazing potential and He could help them discover it.

This is what excites me about being a Christian because it’s as true today as it’s ever been. And I could introduce you to lots of people to prove I’m not kidding.

Rob James is a Baptist Pastor broadcaster and writer who currently operates as a church and media consultant for the Evangelical Alliance Wales. He is available for preaching and teaching throughout Wales and can be contacted at [email protected]