My timer went off, and it was time to go get my clothes out of the dryer. Seconds after walking into the laundromat, my demeanor quickly changed as I realized my clothes were gone! I muttered to myself, half bitter and half indifferent, “Guess someone needed them more than I did.” then turned to exit the building. “It’s just clothes.” I told myself over and over. But it wasn’t just clothes! I work hard for my money, and it’s not fair I have to use it to go buy new clothes!

I had planned to meet up with my mom and spend the day Christmas shopping and going out to dinner. I no longer had the energy nor the spirit to do these things, and that wasn’t fair either. I was robbed of my clothes, and was not about to be robbed of time with my mom, too! I started the car and was about to pull out when I remembered 1 Corinthians 13:7. Love is ready to believe the best of every person. Maybe, just maybe, the person that took my clothes did so by mistake. I turned off my car and decided to wait in faith. Minutes later, a car pulled up, and a lady with a laundry bag of clothes walked inside. They were my clothes!

This isn’t to say every time you assume the best in people, things will turn out the way you want them, and not everyone has good intentions. It is to say, if you don’t at least give people the benefit of the doubt, you could wind up missing out on a lot of good things in life. God doesn’t want us to put ourselves in harm’s way. Use wisdom and discernment. In this case, I really didn’t have much to lose by waiting to see if someone returned with my clothes. I actually ended up having a great conversation with this lady. I would’ve missed out on that as well as my clothes if I had not had faith.