It was a simple act. On a bitter cold, windy day a store employee was helping me load some groceries into the trunk of my car. As I thanked him, I offered him one of those wrapped little Life Saver mint. But his response poured out with gratitude. He wondered if anyone noticed the kind of work he did in this bitter weather. There was hardly anything I could do that would be smaller than this stupid Life Saver.
It’s curious sometimes when such small acts of caring put such a smile of thankfulness on peoples’ faces. Now, whenever he sees me, he gets a big grin on his face…, and holds out his hand for the expected mint.
Caring for people is so easy. Just think outside yourself. What do they need? What would they appreciate? What would make a big difference? A small difference. One of my friends left a $100 tip on a $65 meal. He was celebrating having just earned $1 million for the year, so far. It was the beginning of March.
The difficult part is thinking-outside-our-little-self-absorbed-boxes. Putting other peoples’ needs before our own is critical in laying a foundation of caring. After a while, we don’t even notice that we are sacrificing; because it no longer becomes a sacrifice. It’s just the right thing to do.
Allow me to propose some simple, yet significant, unexpected acts of caring.
- Pay for someone’s gas at the pump.
- Cover the meal for the table next to yours, without telling them.
- Pay somebody’s rent.
- Instead of trading in a car for a new one, give it away (unless it’s a clunker).
- Pay for the groceries of the woman in front of you at the grocery check-out. The one with the screaming kids in tow.
- Give more away. 10% is a minimum. Try 15%, 0r 20%. Off your gross.
- Think Random-Acts-of-Caring.
- LOVE…, expecting nothing in return.
There! That should get you started.
Oh…, and do I have to mention?! Merry Christmas!
Honor God, honor people, show you care,
Gary
Dr. Gary Davis, President
NEXT— INTERMISSION— caregiving
Clueless Christianity 