We are to fear and love God, so that we do not betray, slander, or lie about our neighbor, but defend him, speak well of him, and explain his actions in the kindest way. (Luther's Small Catechism)

"You'll never believe what I just heard..."

Last week Shannon and I headed down to Chicago for the largest toy soldier show in the world. Shannon, owning one of the major retail outlets in America, loaded a trailer with inventory and headed down for five days of buying, selling, and schmoozing. Manufacturers and collectors came from all over the world: Argentina, Hong Kong, Australia, the UK, France, Canada, California, Boston, and the list could go on. All eyes of the toy soldier world focused on the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Schaumburg.

Every day we set up shop in our hotel room and did a brisk business. Every evening we sat down with dealers or manufacturers for dinner and a drink. This is one of the rare times when we get to actually meet face to face with people in the industry. Minnesota isn't exactly a hot-bed for toy soldier collectors or dealers!

As the conversations got going, we invariably got around to telling stories. Every dealer has stories of strange customers that they've worked with. Manufacturers all have their quirks. Other dealers do strange things. The stories flowed and grew more and more bizarre. Collectors are an 'interesting' bunch!

I easily found myself wrapped up in it all.

• Could you believe that Bob charged more than retail for his soldiers? He was taking advantage of people, the jerk!
• You know Hank, he's just a self-promoting fool! Sure he does some nice work, but he his ego combines with his paranoia to make him REALLY scary.
• Robert doesn't have a clue as to how to run a business! He keeps changing the rules regarding minimum dealer orders...who wants to work with an idiot like that?
• You'd never believe the customer who came into my room and asked for a discount on a $2 figure. What kind of moron would even consider that? 

As the stories poured out, every person looked worse and worse. We only looked at one side of their behavior. The context of each situation was lost.

• Bob has a wife with cancer...and bad insurance. He needs the extra money to pay the chemo bills.
• Hank was in charge of a squad of first responders in New York City on 9/11. Most of his men died when the twin towers went down. That impacts how he acts even today!
• Robert may be struggling to keep his business afloat and is grasping straws to find ways to keep things going.
• The customer may not have been able to afford much...so even a slight discount could help him a bunch! 

What happened to defending him, speaking well of him, and explaining his actions in the kindest way? How easily that all just went away.

I am a child of God. Those 'idiotic morons' are God's children. May God help me to stand up for the poor, the defenseless, and even those who act foolishly.