Spare Change

As I reach my last week of my summer job, I've started thinking about what I've accomplished. I start wondering if I've made any kind of difference. I start asking myself if I've served the purpose I was supposed to serve. Here's what I've come up with:

I've worked hard and persevered through pain every day to do things my doctor says I can't do. I went in every day and showed my boss I wasn't afraid to work. She know about my torn rotator cuff and kept telling me not to do any more than I could do easily. I told her I could do what needed to be done. I didn't give up!

I've been a welcoming smile to every customer that walked through the door. No matter how I was feeling, I greeted them warmly, helped them when needed and asked them to come back. They always started their shopping experience with a smile and ended it just the same. Who knows how many friendly greetings they received the rest of their day. I'm proud to say I made sure they at least got one.

I've built relationships with lots of regular customers. The one I'll miss the most is Miss Carol. She comes in every day for the newspaper. Once in awhile she buys a few other things. Mostly just the newspaper. She's a precious lady. She's a smoker. She's been battling a nasty cough. Today I told her that it didn't sound too good. She said, "I know. It's the cigarettes." I said, "Well, you know what to do about that." She said she knows she needs to quit. I can talk plainly to her. She's shared with me about family issues. She knows I pray. She wants me to pray for her. So I do. And she knows it. She gives me a hug most days and tells me she loves me. I love you too, Miss Carol!

Perhaps the biggest way I feel like I've made a difference there is with spare change. I've gotten into the habit of keeping loose change in my pocket. Usually just pennies and nickels, sometimes I'll have dimes and quarters, too. When customers are just a bit short or they would end up getting a handful of change back, I'll pull some change out and tell them it's all good. Some have just thanked me. Some have asked how they can pay me back. I always tell them, "Don't pay me back. Pay it forward." Many have been shocked that I would do that. I know many cashiers would probably expect them to put something back so they had enough money. If I can minister to people a few cents at a times, I'll do that. The best one was a man who came in yesterday. He was digging change out of his pocket to find enough to pay for his items. He seemed embarrassed. He said, "I'm so sorry. It's the day before payday." He was 11 cents short of what he needed. I pulled the change out of my pocket, took the money he had and gave him his receipt. He asked how he could pay me back. I said, "You can't. But you can pay it forward." I explained that he could help someone ahead of him in line when they were a bit short of the amount needed. He assured me he would do that and be sure to tell them it was because of the cashier at Dollar General. I said, "Just tell them it's what God wants you to do." He smiled and said, "I always want to do what makes God happy!" Today I helped a young mom buy a few jars of baby food and a bottle for her baby. She was a dime short. Guess what was in my pocket? Yep, a dime.

There have been many days I wished I didn't have to go to work. I had so many other things I wanted to do this summer. I had so many parts of our house I wanted to reorganize. But, I've accomplished a lot at home plus made a difference in my community. Besides, I have time next week and the following week to work hard at home. Injured shoulder? That's no excuse to not work hard! If God tells you to do it, you do!

It Started with Green Beans

Her name is Jane. She shops at Dollar General. Our paths crossed  for the first time last week. She was looking for the store brand cut green beans. There were only French-style on the shelf. I helped her search for them. The assistant manager checked the inventory and saw there were 12 cans in the store but we couldn't find them anywhere. We searched all over. Nothing.

It was rainy that day. Torrential downpour kind of rain. We chatted about the rain and the standing water in the parking lot. That parking lot always has standing water when it rains. It always has. I told her that I remembered riding my bike there to the grocery store when I was a little girl and I knew I had to go in the back way if it had been raining. She told me she lived on a street a bit north of the store and had for 35 years. She described the house. I know it well. She always decorates for each season. I admire it every time I drive by. She went out into the rain to go home.

I kept my eye out for those green beans. 12 cans were somewhere in that store. I simply had to find them! I told the manager to let me know if she found them. Several days went by without green beans. Today, I went over the the store to get some boxes for my cleaning project. While I was there, the manager said she had found the green beans! My daughter and I picked up three cans of them. I told her we needed to make a delivery.

Away we went towards the well-decorated house. It sits right along the Saint Joe River. It's not a fancy house. It's not a huge house. But it's very welcoming. We pulled into the driveway and walked up to the door. I heard her through the window when she saw me. She said, "Why, hello there!" She met us at the back door. I told her we had a little present for her. I gave her the bag of green beans. She was elated! She was shocked that I would even think about those green beans. She invited us in and even offered to make us lunch. We met her husband, Wade. She showed us around her house. She has two daughters and no grandchildren. I have a feeling they don't get much company.

As we were leaving, she said, "I forget what your first name is." I told her it was Brenda. She said, "I'll remember that for sure! I have a daughter named Brenda. She lives in Florida." You know what? I don't think Jane was supposed to find those green beans in the store last week. I think I was supposed to find them today and take them to her. I am pretty sure Sarah and I were the ones who were blessed today. But I do hope that Jane and Wade were a bit blessed, too.

Exasperated Children

I didn't blog yesterday (like I should have) for a couple reasons. 1) Time got away from me. 2) I truly didn't feel a sense of what God wanted me to blog about. Today that has changed.

Today was a busy day at Dollar General. I had a wide variety of customers come in - lots of the regulars, kids from the neighborhood, people from our neighborhood, people traveling through, etc. Two families that came in brought me to the point where I audibly heard God say, "I want you to write about how to treat children."

Ok, I've always had an intense love for children. I've helped with children's Sunday School since I was 10. I've been an aunt for almost 33 years. I've been a mom for more than 22. I've been a Grandma for almost 21 months. I've be a summer camp director, Sunday School teacher, Bible quizzing coach, teacher, tutor, and babysitter. I've done all these things because of my love for children.

Today I heard words spoken to children that broke my heart. One set of parents had their son who  was around 4 or 5 years old. He was a cute little boy. Clothes were clean, he had sweet little chubby cheeks that seemed to glow when he smiled at me. However, as they walked through the store, I could hear lots of, "Get your butt over here!" and "Why can't you control your son?" I felt so sorry for that poor little boy because everyone in the store could hear it. It just broke my heart.

There was also a Grandma with her 5 and 3 year old granddaughters. During the 15-20 minutes they were in the store, Grandma was constantly yelling at them. She kept threatening to "beat your butt" and telling them to behave or they'd "be sorry." But the straw that broke the camel's back was when they were coming up to the cash register. At this point, Grandma said, "You're going to drive me to drinking! Quit it!!" My heart sank. I wanted to snatch those precious girls up and give them love. I was so close to risking the last 3 weeks of my summer job by telling this woman off. But God kept me quiet and reminded me how I was going to respond.

So, here is my challenge to you...whether you're a mom, grandma, aunt, cousin, big sister, teacher, bus driver, neighbor...anything else, PLEASE show respect and love to the children in your care or who cross your path. Children were never meant to enter into a parent's life just to be a tax deduction. If that's why you had children, you had them for the wrong reason. If you can't show love to your grandkids, then don't offer to watch them. Treasure each moment you have with your children. Those days fly by fast. Before you know it, they're getting married, having kids, joining the Army, etc. Then it will be too late. Be there for them. Support them. Let them know they matter. Take time to teach them manners. Help them learn right from wrong. Give them your time. Give them your attention.

But Jesus called the children to him and said, "Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these." Luke 18:26

Parents, do not exasperate your children; instead, bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord. Ephesians 6:4

When God Says, "Sing"

Last week I blogged about feeling like my light was being snuffed out. Like I had lost my joy. I felt like God had me in a dark place and my light for Him couldn't shine through. Now, I'm not about to tell you that those feelings are completely gone. I still feel like the darkness around me is great. I have times that I feel I've lost my joy. But God is doing great things in me if I'll only open up my eyes to see them.

This week He's been telling me to sing. I don't think He literally means I'm to sing some sort of melodious tune. I see something a bit different here. Now, before you think I've gone crazy and think I've decided to change the definition of the word "sing," hang in with me.

Go back with me to Tuesday. I was headed to pick my daughter up from work and had my Carpenters station playing on Pandora. I heard the mellow voice of Karen Carpenter (one of my favorite singers!) begin singing a song first heard on Sesame Street. *side note Karen made it a hit in 1973. In the song, I heard the words (and sang loudly along):

Richard and Karen Carpenter

    Sing, sing a song
    Make it simple to last your whole life long
    Don't worry that it's not good enough for anyone else to hear
    Just sing, sing a song.

Again, I get more than literal singing out of this. As I listened to this song I've heard hundreds of times before, I felt something I hadn't before. We all have a song to sing, a story to be told. We're all worth being heard. Sometimes we feel like we're not quite as good as everyone else. We think we're less than ideal. However, it doesn't matter what anyone else thinks. It matters that we tell our story.

This morning, I woke up with a song we've sang a couple times in church. It's called "Did You Feel the Mountains Tremble" by Matt Redman. The chorus has been in my head and on my lips all day long. I've whistled it, hummed it and even spent some time singing it. The words to the chorus are:
   Open up the doors and let the music play
   Let the streets resound with singing.
   Songs that bring Your hope
   Songs that bring Your joy
   Dancers who dance upon injustice.

Here I feel like God was telling me not to be silent. Don't sing quietly. Don't be ashamed to let people know I'm a Christ-follower. I've been trying to let my light shine just by being kind. By smiling at those people with whom I cross paths. To ask them how they are. Try to relate to them by their purchases (if they're buying diapers, ask how old their little one is, if they're buying dog food ask them about their four-legged companion, etc) But God wants more from me.

I'm going to sing. I'm going to tell my story. As long as God keeps writing the pages of my book, I'll keep reading it aloud to those I meet. People will know I love Jesus. They will know I follow Christ. They will know He is the reason I live and move and breathe. I won't be silent! I'll shout it from the rooftops.

Oh, and if I offend you by singing my song and sharing my Christ, well...I won't apologize. Love me or leave me.