Every Monday, Wednesday and Friday a group of friends as well as myself wake up early, super early for collge kids, and go walking before our classes begin.
There are normally about five of us that venture and though the morning person in me is awake and ready to start the day, I can't always say the same for my friends.
For this reason, Friday only me and one other girl found ourselves walking our well-beaten path. While we walked, at a rather brisk, Costa-Rican pace I might add, we found ourselves talking about a certain guy...
...a guy that is very hard for me to love.
He is known for creeping, always having something to say at the most inopportune times and for rambling on for seemingly hours about topics that are irrelevant to everyone but himself.
Most days, I try to humor him by smiling, nodding and attempting to listen intently.
However, as the minutes tick by, it gets harder and harder to comprehend jargon that I'm unfamiliar with or to fakely laugh at jokes that simply aren't funny...
Anyhow, after our walk, life went back to normal and thanks to Rebecca Black, I "got down" on my class-free Friday.
Then, it was time for work. All in all, it was a relatively stress-free night.
Until 9:30 rolled around...
You see, our lobby closes at 9:30, but the drive-thru dosen't close until 10. Normally, this enables smooth-sailing until close, but Friday was an exception.
Drive-thru was busy.
Super busy at that...which was strange-enough in itself...but then, a car especially requested that I make their order.
Creepy, right?
I went to the window to see who had requested my kick-awesome sandwich making skills and it happened to be a Hindu friend of mine and her family, a former Subway co-worker.
So, at 9:47, thirteen mintues before we were officially done for the night, I began on their order of three subs and a pizza with the most cheerful heart that I could muster. I mean, I was glad to see them. They're lovely souls....but selfish me would have been much happier to see them at about 8 o'clock...or maybe even 9:15.
When I finally arrived at the window with their food, my friend looked at me with a distraught-ridden face and said, "Brittney, can you do me a huge favor?"
-You see, apparently in the five minutes that it took me to make their food, her mother, who was also in the car, had found a report describing a recall on shredded lettuce. So, she wanted me to take back their sandwiches and remove the lettuce from them despite the two cars that were patiently waiting behind them.-
I did as they asked and when I returned with their food I was met with a big hug and a heartfelt thank you.
Though my co-workers didn't really understand the madness that had just ensued or how I could handle all of that cheerfully, I can honestly say that it had nothing to do with me. I found God in that pile of "spoiled" shredded lettuce.
Friends, we are CALLED to LOVE one another. Not asked. Not urged. C-A-L-L-E-D. That call isn't just extended to those who are easy to love. It means friends, enemies, ramblers and picky customers alike.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35
In my lettuce inspired moment, I realized that this call to love means making every effort. It means truly trying to befriend someone whom you have nothing in common with. It means listening to repetitive banter until your ears fall off and disposing of the lettuce when it's a hassle...all for the purpose of sharing the Gospel of Christ Jesus.
HE IS WORTH IT.
"We help people every day that will eventually be eternal splendors or eternal horrors. No one is mortal; everyone is immortal because we will go one place or the other. We need to reach out and help other people, and to have real love and charity for them without superiority or presumption."-C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory
Do we really treat others as eternal spendors?
Or are they sandwiches with spoiled lettuce, not worth the time and effort that it takes to remake?
My questions are not rhetorical. They are ones that I'm asking you all and that I will continue to ask myself.
Whatever our responses may be, the kingdom of God is at hand.
There are normally about five of us that venture and though the morning person in me is awake and ready to start the day, I can't always say the same for my friends.
For this reason, Friday only me and one other girl found ourselves walking our well-beaten path. While we walked, at a rather brisk, Costa-Rican pace I might add, we found ourselves talking about a certain guy...
...a guy that is very hard for me to love.
He is known for creeping, always having something to say at the most inopportune times and for rambling on for seemingly hours about topics that are irrelevant to everyone but himself.
Most days, I try to humor him by smiling, nodding and attempting to listen intently.
However, as the minutes tick by, it gets harder and harder to comprehend jargon that I'm unfamiliar with or to fakely laugh at jokes that simply aren't funny...
Anyhow, after our walk, life went back to normal and thanks to Rebecca Black, I "got down" on my class-free Friday.
Then, it was time for work. All in all, it was a relatively stress-free night.
Until 9:30 rolled around...
You see, our lobby closes at 9:30, but the drive-thru dosen't close until 10. Normally, this enables smooth-sailing until close, but Friday was an exception.
Drive-thru was busy.
Super busy at that...which was strange-enough in itself...but then, a car especially requested that I make their order.
Creepy, right?
I went to the window to see who had requested my kick-awesome sandwich making skills and it happened to be a Hindu friend of mine and her family, a former Subway co-worker.
So, at 9:47, thirteen mintues before we were officially done for the night, I began on their order of three subs and a pizza with the most cheerful heart that I could muster. I mean, I was glad to see them. They're lovely souls....but selfish me would have been much happier to see them at about 8 o'clock...or maybe even 9:15.
When I finally arrived at the window with their food, my friend looked at me with a distraught-ridden face and said, "Brittney, can you do me a huge favor?"
-You see, apparently in the five minutes that it took me to make their food, her mother, who was also in the car, had found a report describing a recall on shredded lettuce. So, she wanted me to take back their sandwiches and remove the lettuce from them despite the two cars that were patiently waiting behind them.-
I did as they asked and when I returned with their food I was met with a big hug and a heartfelt thank you.
Though my co-workers didn't really understand the madness that had just ensued or how I could handle all of that cheerfully, I can honestly say that it had nothing to do with me. I found God in that pile of "spoiled" shredded lettuce.
Friends, we are CALLED to LOVE one another. Not asked. Not urged. C-A-L-L-E-D. That call isn't just extended to those who are easy to love. It means friends, enemies, ramblers and picky customers alike.
"A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." John 13:34-35
In my lettuce inspired moment, I realized that this call to love means making every effort. It means truly trying to befriend someone whom you have nothing in common with. It means listening to repetitive banter until your ears fall off and disposing of the lettuce when it's a hassle...all for the purpose of sharing the Gospel of Christ Jesus.
HE IS WORTH IT.
"We help people every day that will eventually be eternal splendors or eternal horrors. No one is mortal; everyone is immortal because we will go one place or the other. We need to reach out and help other people, and to have real love and charity for them without superiority or presumption."-C.S. Lewis, The Weight of Glory
Do we really treat others as eternal spendors?
Or are they sandwiches with spoiled lettuce, not worth the time and effort that it takes to remake?
My questions are not rhetorical. They are ones that I'm asking you all and that I will continue to ask myself.
Whatever our responses may be, the kingdom of God is at hand.
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