By Jim H. Yohe (Bro. Yohe is a Christian columnist & evangelist from Independence,LA)

She knew I was a Pentecostal preacher. I knew she had a Pentecostal background. We were both eating at the McDonald's restaurant inside the local Wal-Mart store. A group of holiness Pentecostal women who knew me passed us, nodding at me and staring at her. With dyed-blond hair, a full compliment of rings and things, and also wearing dark pants that blended with her blue Wal-Mart smock, it was obvious that I was talking to someone who did not follow accepted Pentecostal standards. Noticing the stares of the church ladies, my guest commented to me, " You would not believe how rude some Pentecostal women are!" "Really?" I reacted. "A few years ago I was hired on at Lane Bryant, the plus-size ladies store at the mall, during my orientation even the manager warned me about the Pentecostals!" She continued, "Though small in resident population, our town has over ten Oneness Pentecostal churches. This includes the independent churches within driving distance of Wal-Mart. The standards of the churches run the gamut-everything from forbidding the wearing of neck ties and store-bought clothes to the more widely accepted standards of the UPCI." Surprised, I responded, "Warned You? About us?" Nodding, she answered, " This is what the manager said to me. I need to warn you about the Pentecostal women. They are unfriendly and rude. In fact, they are the most demanding customers we have, but they do spend money.

They get angry because we don't carry Jean skirts year round, but they do spend money! And Jim, she was absolutely right!" Embarrassed by what she had just shared with me, I blurted out, "But surely you have other customers who aren't as polite as they should be?" "Yes, but by their hair and dress, Pentecostal women are announcing to the world that they are holier than everybody else. Here at Wal-Mart, they walk in with their stringy-hair and baggy Jean skirts with the longest faces you have ever seen. We joke in the break room of how unhappy and grouchy these holiness women are. None of us would ever want to be like them. If there is an item incorrectly priced, they always ask to see the manager or demand a discount for their trouble. There is no forgiveness or understanding.... "The Pentecostal women who know I have a Pentecostal background, avoid talking to me by deliberately not getting in my line. It is almost like they resent the fact that I do not attend church regularly and they are angry at me for not being like them." Humbled by what she was divulging to me, I immediately thought of the old adage, "You attract more flies with honey than vinegar."

As Christians, we must realize that our lives are constantly being watched by others. True, they may be looking for one of our faults to surface so they can attempt to justify their own weaknesses, but we must still seek to be an example for Christ at ALL times. We want the world to DESIRE what we have. Getting desperate, I protested, "You probably do not have any more problems with Pentecostals than anyone else. You probably just notice it more because of our ladies distinctive dress and hairstyles." She nodded her head and thoughtfully replied, "I guess because they are Christians you notice it more. You just don't expect that kind of behavior from a Christian." What could I say? Do we only save our smiles and polite behavior for our own brothers and sisters at church? Though we preach, "With joy we draw water from the wells of salvation and the joy of the Lord is our strength," can the world that reads our lives as living epistles, see the joy bubbling from within us? Should we even bother to listen to a report from this unknown individual who takes our money at the store? She is not just a Wal-Mart cashier-but someone who has a soul.

---Bro. Yohe is a Christian columnist and evangelist from Independence,LA

"Keep the Word and the Word will keep you."

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