God and Me at Walmart

I've been extremely busy these days. Hence the reason for the lack of writing activity. That's a teacher's life at the end of a school year, especially at a charter school which doesn't end 'til the end of June.

I finally had a break on Saturday. Some plans got cancelled, and it was a very slow day. I spent some time with family but also had some alone time and a chance to reflect a bit. Some positive and hopeful thoughts were in my head, but the one negative kept coming back to me. Through all the business, there was one main thing I focused on throughout. ME!! I focused on how I would get through each day; how I would spend my free time in the summer; how I would accomplish this, and how I would accomplish that.

I've always been a bit too self-centered in my opinion. I thought I was improving, but these past weeks have shown me how much I am not. Anyway, I decided to focus my thoughts on others instead. God has put me on this earth to do good works for Him. That means being a light for others.

I decided to let my light shine brightly as I entered the Walmart parking lot. I had several apprehensions immediately. First, I was asking God for help in making people's days. Would God do this immediately, even though I was so self-focused for so long? Like I can turn on the selfless switch just like that? Also, Walmart is not the easiest place to do this. Most employees I see there don't seem too happy being there. And, especially on a Saturday, it is crowded with slow moving people that don't give much time to look or make a wrong move. Challenge on!

I decided I was going to take this to the extreme. First of all, it wasn't crowded, but I was going to smile at every person that I passed. It can't be that easy, can it? But it was! I wasn't rediculous about it. Just a "hi, how are you smile". Instead of receiving the suspicious stares back, I received a return smile from almost everyone. Then came the best part. The cashier. Usually they are the most unhappy in the place. There were only two or three open. I took the least crouded one. The cashier was so typical. She did not say a word to the two customers ahead of me, except for answering a quick question and noting the price. She worked hurriedly. An employee came to her with a paper which she quickly threw to the side. It landed on the ground but she did not pick it up. Ok God. What are you going to do with this?

Finally it was my turn. I used a sincere smile and greeted her. She actually hesitated and actually took a quick look at me. This was the first time I saw her make eye contact with any customer. The look was.."did you just say something nice to me"? I let here do her thing, she quoted the price and I paid. I thought that was it for our encounter. I was thankful that I was even to put a small dent of positivity into the encounter. However, instead she picked up her head, made full eye contact, and with a big, sincere smile said thank you. I then wished her a good day, and her demeanor changed even more to the positive.

This encounter completely made my day. Not because of anything I did, but because within minutes of asking, God answered a prayer. He answered regardless of the fact that I have been completely lacking much regard for other people in the past few weeks. All I did was agree to be a beacon for His light to shine, and he took care of the rest. He confirmed that, as long as I do my part, He will do the rest. He can make something positive happen in a challenging environment.

I did not see this girl with any other customers, but I strongly believe her demeanor was different for the rest of the day. She was happier after the encounter, and so was I. This is a lesson to me that I've seen and heard many times, but needed to experience it again. God will respond immediately if we ask in prayer and are willing to play our small part. As a result, we get blessed and so do the others around us. I will never forget this short, routine shopping experience, and I will use it as a reminder about how easily we can be a blessing to others just by asking and to willingly be used by God for His greatness.

Thanks for reading. Have an excellent day : )