Day 41- A Tip "First"

Today I had not planned out my "first". I'm driving in town and started thinking about what I would do for a "first" today.  I saw a couple of police officers talking to a lady in the parking lot of a store. The body language suggested she was being questioned for some criminal activity.  How do I know this by body language you ask?  Well, I've watched a good many police shows (The Mentalist, Person of Interest, Barney Miller, Hill Street Blues and maybe even a Starsky and Hutch or two)  plus it just makes for a more exciting day to believe this.  It occurred to me that I had never stopped and offered my help to police officers during the questioning of a suspect. Then, I thought that I also had never gone to jail and decided to keep on driving.

I needed to read a chapter in a book that some guys and I are studying together. It seemed like a good idea to pull into the McDonald's to get a cup of coffee and give the chapter another read through before tonight's study. You might be wondering why I did not stop at a nicer coffee shop like Starbucks or something.  Well, it's because we do NOT have a place like that in Andalusia. Noooo, we have McDonald's and Burger King but no nice coffee shops. Just to be sure, I hit my navigation app on my phone and tapped the coffee button. We have a Starbucks and Peet's Coffee and Tea 36 miles away.  Maybe I'll do a no complaining day before long.  Anyway, McDonald's has pretty good coffee.

The idea comes to me that I have never tipped the lady that takes my order at McDonald's. I mean, who does that?  So, for a "first," I ordered my coffee and she said it would be a dollar and thirty cents. I handed her a $5 bill and said, "I'd like for you to keep the change.  It's just my way of saying that Jesus loves you."

She glanced up from the money drawer and sort of smiled a crooked smile at me. I could not tell if it was a "are you kidding me" smile or "that's pretty sweet" smile.  She said thanks and I stepped back.  When she gave me my coffee a few minutes later (I got good service though the guy in front of me did as well and he did not tip her) I said to her, "Have a blessed day" and she said thanks and gave me the crooked smile again.  I think she did not quite know what to make of it.

I sat down and felt good about the encounter. It's not a big thing.  It's really small, but it is something that I would not have done if I was not doing a year of "firsts."  I was kind of nervous about doing it.  The nervousness stemmed from the "I don't want to look like  dork" thing. I may be one (I hope not) but I sure don't want to look like one.  That kind of thinking has caused me to miss many opportunities to reach out in Jesus' name. I don't want to be dorky or weird. I've seen people try to share their faith in Jesus before and it just seemed forced or rude. That is not what I want to be.  I also don't want to pass up opportunities to make Jesus' love real to someone else. 

I enjoyed my "first."  Maybe the lady with the crooked smile will have a bit more joy in her heart today.

Tipping for the abundant life

Barry

3 things I thank God for today
1. Community Coffee
2. Caps
3. I feel much better than I did yesterday