Yesterday morning I wrote about my desire to be a part of a community in which we attempt to make this world a little more like God intended by our existence.
I ended with a question yesterday that simply said, “What is one thing you can do today that will make this world more like God intended?” I went ahead and answered my own question by saying “Today, I want to extend grace.” Sounded like a good thing, a kind of Christian-like thing to say.
Three hours later I found myself in the checkout line at Lowe’s here in Nashville. The cashier, Gail, was not the quickest cashier in the store. I guess you could say she was down right slow. I knew as I watched her check out the customer in front of me that I was in for an ‘experience’. Then it was my turn.
This poor lady was a disaster. She couldn’t do anything right. She couldn’t find the bar codes. She couldn’t find the prices in her book. When it was time to pay up she couldn’t figure out how to swipe the card. She canceled out my transaction twice and we had to re-scan everything. My first thoughts were, “Are you kidding me. Come on lady, I don’t have time for this. Get with it. How hard can this be?”
Than it hit me…this is it. This is your chance. Extend grace now. I started to think about how difficult her life was. I can’t imagine that in her mid-thirties this was where she thought she would be in life. Is she a single mom? Is she struggling to make it financially and this new job is exactly what she needs? Is she lonely? Is she scared? Is she overwhelmed and having a hard time balancing it all?
The more I questioned myself the more my heart started to soften. For the next 15 minutes (yes, it was actually 15 minutes) I had the opportunity to try to help her pull it together. I tried to make her laugh and assured her that we all have days like this. I tried to calm her down by telling her to take her time and I was in no big rush. I can’t tell you how many times she apologized and commented on how thankful she was for my patience (patience…those of you who know me are laughing right now).
I don’t tell this story to say “Hey, look at me and the good things I’m doing,” but rather to say, when you ask God for opportunities he will deliver. When we commit to allow God to use our lives to make this world a little more like He intended, He will use us.
looking for more opportunities,
pete
I know the feeling…she must work at Home Depot on Saturdays.
Grace when received is amazing…when exhibited is refreshing.
I love this post. Thanks for sharing.
Impatience is something I struggle with too–like this story, I find the more I think about what a person’s life is like, what she feels like, and see her as another human struggling through life, the easier it is for me to extend grace. It’s much easier to be rude when we don’t know someone and are only self-focused.
Pete…excellent post. Hey we have something in common, lack of patience. Thanks for helping us stop and think about the other person that is having the struggles.
I’ve been praying lately that God will give me compassion and a kind heart. I guess for moments like this as much as for the big things that we need compassion for.
Loved this post!
i had to get the word grace tattooed inside my wrist in order for me to remember to show it to others (and to accept it myself, as that’s also hard to do sometimes). it’s super hard to flip somebody off when i see it as my hand is on the way up….just sayin’.
This is so true Pete.
You know I had a similar incident over a glass of milk at IHOP’s, and God just warmed me.
The exciting part isn’t really what you did.. But WHAT GOD did. Maybe as you said she was struggling or had something on her mind or maybe her boss just came down on her and she is the sole provider. And for 15 minutes God spoke and she laughed and was thankful and I’m sure she left and got in her car and only to remember those precious 15 minutes.
Hey your new pictures ROCKS!!
Pete, I have come to refer to such people as “certified patience instructors.” In this land afflicted with hurry sickness, we all sometimes need someone like this to help slow us down so we have an opportunity to show God’s grace. He certainly is patient with us, isn’t He? I actually developed a patience prayer one day while stuck in Atlanta traffic: “Oh Lord, be as patient with me as I am with other people.”
But be careful about praying for patience because the only way we get it is to be made to wait.
God really takes us at our word. Problem is sometimes we forget to take God’s Word seriously
Great post, Pete! So often we “say” things and then when God gives us the opportunity to ante up to our words, we fail. Good for you for recognizing this opportunity to “put your money where your mouth is” and for following through with obedience.
BTW: Chris just left for Lowe’s…can’t wait to share this with him when he gets back!
Good example of post. As someone who works in retail I can relate to her side very well. It seems that some days nothing goes right.
I LOVE this post!! I also like Hikerdude’s remark that the only way to train for patience is by waiting. How true… I could just hear this girl getting home and saying to her spouse, roommate, kids, whoever, “I was having THE worst day of my life at work today! But then the nicest guy came through the line, just when things were really falling apart….” Who knows, someday she might be standing at Target (men…Lowes, women…Target) experiencing the same thing you were, getting ready to read some poor trainee the riot act, and all at once remember how much it meant to him/her that day when that really nice guy came through the line. You asked us why Christian’s aren’t viewed very positively in the world a few posts back. It disturbs me a great deal that we have such bad reputations and I’ve thought about it a lot. If nothing else, wouldn’t it be great if Christians at least had a reputation for always being ‘really nice guys’? (I can hear it now….”Yeah, they’re judgmental, hypocritical and homophobic…but they’re always so NICE!”) To me we DO seem like the nicest people in the world on Sunday morning and when we talk to each other on the phone or in small group or at parties. What happens to us when we’re not talking to each other is what I’m still trying to figure out. We so love wearing that hat…we just don’t want to wear it every day.
That’s awesome Pete! I don’t know how many times God has had to save me from my patience in a check-out line. I think it is also, because when I was in high school at Walt Disney World, I had a cashier extend my his time and patience as I fumbled around trying to find my money. It has been both sides of coin with me on this one! Isn’t it crazy how such a simple transaction and relationship can flip our world upside down! I love it!
I have noticed that almost everytime I ask God to allow me to “whataver” it always requires me to work on an area of my life that needs improvement. It’s as if God is saying “Well as long as I am going to work with you today I might as well work on you while I’m at it.” If he weren’t God and I wasn’t little ole me that could get very annoying but it is also where the real blessings of being a follower of Christ are found.
Great example of extending grace in everyday life. What has been freely given to us we are to extend to others. Thank you!
http://anuncommongrace.wordpress.com
Blessings,
Darian
Hi Pete: I found your blog by chance, via a link on the homepage of wordpress. I liked your message a lot. What you did with the woman you met at Lowe’s is something I challenge myself to do all the time, but at which I am only rarely successful. So thank you for the reminder to start all over again. It’s worth it. It seems that almost every day I learn of some difficult thing that is going on in the life of someone I know. And I say to myself: Darn! I wish I’d known. I wish I’d been nicer or had offered some assistance. And then remember: I don’t need to KNOW what’s going on in everyone’s life. I just need to remember that ALL of us have something(s) that we struggle with, and being kind and patient is the only way — the right way — to be with one another.
It’s so funny that you shared this – I probably struggle the most with grace in checkout lines because I try to pick the shortest one (don’t we all?) but seem to ALWAYS end up in the one with the slowest and least competent cashier. I try to use what my Mom calls “The Golden Rule” which is to treat everyone, no matter how deserving or UNdeserving, just as I want to be treated (which is with grace). It is not an easy thing to do and I struggle with moments of frustration but I sure do try!! BTW, the new pic looks great!
Oh my gosh…that is one of THE toughest things for me, being in that situation like you at the checkout counter.
Another place I have to learn a lot of grace is in Nashville traffic. If I could lose my salvation, that is where I would come awfully close sometimes!!
Our being able to extend grace has to start with the right foundation – Jesus! We build on that…though the building never stops!
J.
http://www.joecase.com
BismillaharRahmanirRahim
as-salaamu ‘alaikum. Very interesting site, and good story. Thank you for sharing.
-Saifuddin
Thats awesome. That is truly grace, I know on this current mission trip I am on, that I truly needed to practice grace, I might have even failed a couple of times. But in the end, it was truly worth it!
Awesome story. God is so faithful to our requests. We need to be watchful everytime we ask God for something. We have a tendency to believe that God will not deliver on what we ask, because so many times He answers with an opportunity and we don’t see it. God is always looking for an opportunity to incorporate us into His answers to our prayers. We ask Him for patience – He gives us an opportunity to be patient. When we ask God for the chance to make this world a better place – get ready, be watchful – an amazing opportunity is coming your way.
Thanks Pete, for your watchfulness. Praise God for His faithfulness!
good story..
serenity now
I need to get me one of them.
http://www.vagabondrunn.wordpress.com
What a great story. That’s one thing I love about bogging/writing/speaking. God always seems to enjoy giving us opportunities to practice what we preach. It sounds like you passed that test.
Oh…rocking new picture!!
Brad Ruggles
http://www.bradruggles.com
By the way, your new picture looks sexy. I AM secure in my manhood!!
J.
awesome.