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Chains or 2nd Chance?"
We live in a bit of a crazy, mixed up and angry world right now. It is clearly apparent every time I get on social media, turn on the TV, or even go just about anywhere for that matter. Intolerance, greed, selfishness and fear are the main staple of our society.
That is not to say that there still isn't good in the world and good people who want to do the right thing. It’s just that it appears so often that the right thing is wrong to many and the wrong thing is right. Our world is in a volatile state, resting on its axis, we are at the tipping point of society. The unrest is undeniable.
I did some Christmas shopping the other day. It was a weekday and I thought it would be good to beat the crowds and get in a few hours of shopping before the evening rush of shoppers hit the stores on their way home from work.
The store I went to has the check-out lines right in front and just as I got through the door a very hostile man who was walking out the door, coming straight at me, turned around and yelled at the cashier lady, “I need a bag!” He was holding a sweater in his hand along with his receipt. She said, “What?”. He repeated louder, “I .NEED. A. BAG!” The cashier was a young lady who spoke broken English, most likely in her early 20’s. The man was so irate; I thought I better stay there in case this escalated.
After his second “request” she said, “ I can give you a bag but it will cost you 8 cents.” At that the man became even more aggressive and started to walk back into the store towards her. He said, “What, 8 cents? Why didn’t you ask me if I wanted a bag when I was paying for the item? You think I now want to run my card for 8 cents?! She replied, “Well they are 8 cents if you want a bag.” Meanwhile, I stood there dumbfounded, frozen in time, watching in disbelief that a paper bag or lack-thereof was causing such a scene. This caught me off-guard as I was walking in very excited and in a merry mood to start my Christmas shopping.
When the cashier said the second time that it would be an additional 8 cents for a bag, the man lost it. He started yelling that she should have asked him earlier and that now he was going to run an 8 cent charge on his credit card, repeating the same thing over and over again.
I started to reach in my purse and give him 8 cents to pay for the bag so he would be on his way. Just then, a person in the next cashier line over, who also was witnessing this altercation, said, “here I’ve got 8 cents if it will make him go away!” He then said to the lady who offered the 8 cents, “What did you say?" Oh dear, I thought for sure the guy was going to come unglued.
The lady offering to pay for his bag looked like she was ready for a fight, and from how tough she appeared, I think she could have taken him. I was ready to drop, roll, and find a good hiding spot. This was going to get ugly! The lady repeated herself, “I said I will pay for the bag!”
For some reason the guy then turned around after making such a fuss and walked out the door, continuing to yell about the bag the whole way.
After he left those of us who were witness to the incident stood there looking at one another not saying a word. Finally the lady in the other line finished her purchases and walked out, still holding her 8 cents.
I was feeling really bad for the cashier who the bag-less man had attacked, so I went up to console her and said, “Are you OK?” Her reply was very calm, “what can you do, this happens all the time?!”
What? This happens all the time? I said to her, “it does?”, to which she replied, “yes.” She was actually unfazed by his rudeness. The cashier seemed desensitized as if her statement was true that this type of altercation happens all the time.
I thought that was really sad. She deals with rude people all the time to the point that she is calloused towards the rudeness?
What are we doing to one another…??
In fact she then just went right on and asked me, “Can I help you with something. “Ok”, I was thinking, “You almost got into a physical fight with a guy almost twice your age over an 8 cent bag and you now can just move on as if nothing happened.” I looked around and the other cashier in the next line was unalarmed as well. Back to business as usual.
So I said, “I forgot my coupon at home, is there a way you can look me up in the system and see that I do have one.” She replied with a stone face, “I can’t do that you will have to go to Customer Service in the back of the store and ask them”. And with that she went back to her routine - unscathed.
So I shrugged my shoulders, guessing that I had been more traumatized by the incident than she was and wondering what had made her so hardened? People like that man, I guess…
So I went about my business and walked to the back of the store to find the Customer Service Department.
I stood in line and when It was my turn the guy behind the Plexiglas said, “Next!”. Without looking up he said, “How can I help you?” I proceeded to tell him I didn’t have my coupon and could he look me up in the system so I could use it for my purchases that day?” He finally looked up and said, “I can’t help you with that. You’ll just have to tell the cashier when you go up there.” I said, well I was just up there and she told me to come back here because she said you would be able help me.”
At that, he picked up his phone, which was a direct line to the cashiers and said, ”Hey, don’t send people back here asking about coupons, I can’t help them”. And with that he hung up and said, “ Next!” While I was still standing there.
I then kind of slithered away from his window, feeling confused and like I had just been kicked, while being ignored.
Wow! Working in retail must really be a tough gig!
I contemplated leaving right then and there. This was not shaping up to be the merry shopping experience I had anticipated. I did however end up staying and doing my shopping, and when I got to the checkout line, there was a new cashier who was pleasant and had a nice customer service way about her. When I told her I didn’t have my coupon, she said, “not a problem, I can help you with that.”
My experience at that store was saved and I will go back. However, there was a lesson in this which reminded me of the story by Charles Dickens, “A Christmas Carol.”
We all know the story of Scrooge and how he is a miser, a cold hearted, thoughtless and abrasive man. He is visit by 3 Spirits on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his ways and his ultimate demise if Scrooge doesn’t start being more benevolent and caring. Scrooge realizes he has been very selfish and is reformed overnight due to witnessing scenes from his life, past, present, and future.
This is such a great story of redemption and 2nd chances.
But what came to mind as I thought about the events of my day at the department store was - Marley. As you remember, Scrooge had a partner earlier in life named Jacob Marley. In fact their business name was Scrooge and Marleys. Marley had died some years earlier, leaving the business to Scrooge.
On that same night, before the 3 spirits come to visit Scrooge, Marley appears first to warn Scrooge of the impending visitations. But more than that, he comes to warn Scrooge that if he doesn’t change from his self-absorbed ways, his fate will be that of his.
There have been 135 remakes over the years of “A Christmas Carol”. In most of them, when Jacob Marley appears he is a ghost, still in human form, but as they cut back to a full shot of Marley you can see that he has balls and chains and locks that he pulls behind him as penance for all eternity representing the sins of his life when he was alive. The chains hang off of Marley in long train behind him that he has to lug around forever.
Marley's statement to Scrooge is, “I wear the chains I bore in life. I made them link by link, yard by yard!” Scrooge replies, “You were always a good man of business, Jacob.” To that, Jacob Marley screams, “MANKIND should have been my business!”
As I reminisced about the first part of my shopping trip, I visualized the angry man who wanted a bag, and the chains he must be carrying. How long is his chain of selfishness right now? How much longer will it get? I was not judging him, he may have just been having a bad day, and so was possibly the customer service guy in the back. But I pictured them both, like Marley, lugging around balls and chains, invisible to the eye now, but maybe in the afterlife… not so invisible.
The Bible says, “Even a child is known by his doings; whether his work be pure and whether it is right.” (Proverbs 20:11) I had to think about that… How are we known? Are we known by the goodwill, peace, and joy we bring into the lives of others. Are we going about the business of mankind? Or do we have chains we are baring in this life consisting of greed and self-centeredness? What do our chains look like? How long are they?
The Bible says, “Unless a man is born again, he will not see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
You remember that once Scrooge is visited by the 3 Spirits he vows to change. He then wakes and it is Christmas morning! Scrooge is so giddy, he is like a young boy. He says he feels light as a feather. He realizes he has not missed Christmas day and is so excited that he jumps and sings as he recognizes that he has been given a 2nd chance. Scrooge, is “born again”, a new creature, and one that puts others before himself and uses the resources he has to make others lives better.
To be born again in this life requires much the same as the types and shadows of the Scrooge character. Realizing our wretched state, and believing that we need to change. And in order to do that, we need an agent of change and that is Jesus Christ.
Christ came into the world to show His love for us, but to also show us our sin and the need for a Savior. Christ shows us that we can remain in our current state and continue to build a long chain of selfishness and pride that weighs us down like Marley. Or we can take the 2nd chance He provides, like Scrooge, to turn from our dead-end ways, and grasp hold of life. We can be “ born again”, a new creature with a new mindset, focusing on serving God and loving our neighbor.
So, my question to you is…confronted with this truth - will you continue to add links to your chain or will you take the 2nd chance? Both are readily available, but with one, the consequences are goodwill, peace, and joy.
That is not to say that there still isn't good in the world and good people who want to do the right thing. It’s just that it appears so often that the right thing is wrong to many and the wrong thing is right. Our world is in a volatile state, resting on its axis, we are at the tipping point of society. The unrest is undeniable.
I did some Christmas shopping the other day. It was a weekday and I thought it would be good to beat the crowds and get in a few hours of shopping before the evening rush of shoppers hit the stores on their way home from work.
The store I went to has the check-out lines right in front and just as I got through the door a very hostile man who was walking out the door, coming straight at me, turned around and yelled at the cashier lady, “I need a bag!” He was holding a sweater in his hand along with his receipt. She said, “What?”. He repeated louder, “I .NEED. A. BAG!” The cashier was a young lady who spoke broken English, most likely in her early 20’s. The man was so irate; I thought I better stay there in case this escalated.
After his second “request” she said, “ I can give you a bag but it will cost you 8 cents.” At that the man became even more aggressive and started to walk back into the store towards her. He said, “What, 8 cents? Why didn’t you ask me if I wanted a bag when I was paying for the item? You think I now want to run my card for 8 cents?! She replied, “Well they are 8 cents if you want a bag.” Meanwhile, I stood there dumbfounded, frozen in time, watching in disbelief that a paper bag or lack-thereof was causing such a scene. This caught me off-guard as I was walking in very excited and in a merry mood to start my Christmas shopping.
When the cashier said the second time that it would be an additional 8 cents for a bag, the man lost it. He started yelling that she should have asked him earlier and that now he was going to run an 8 cent charge on his credit card, repeating the same thing over and over again.
I started to reach in my purse and give him 8 cents to pay for the bag so he would be on his way. Just then, a person in the next cashier line over, who also was witnessing this altercation, said, “here I’ve got 8 cents if it will make him go away!” He then said to the lady who offered the 8 cents, “What did you say?" Oh dear, I thought for sure the guy was going to come unglued.
The lady offering to pay for his bag looked like she was ready for a fight, and from how tough she appeared, I think she could have taken him. I was ready to drop, roll, and find a good hiding spot. This was going to get ugly! The lady repeated herself, “I said I will pay for the bag!”
For some reason the guy then turned around after making such a fuss and walked out the door, continuing to yell about the bag the whole way.
After he left those of us who were witness to the incident stood there looking at one another not saying a word. Finally the lady in the other line finished her purchases and walked out, still holding her 8 cents.
I was feeling really bad for the cashier who the bag-less man had attacked, so I went up to console her and said, “Are you OK?” Her reply was very calm, “what can you do, this happens all the time?!”
What? This happens all the time? I said to her, “it does?”, to which she replied, “yes.” She was actually unfazed by his rudeness. The cashier seemed desensitized as if her statement was true that this type of altercation happens all the time.
I thought that was really sad. She deals with rude people all the time to the point that she is calloused towards the rudeness?
What are we doing to one another…??
In fact she then just went right on and asked me, “Can I help you with something. “Ok”, I was thinking, “You almost got into a physical fight with a guy almost twice your age over an 8 cent bag and you now can just move on as if nothing happened.” I looked around and the other cashier in the next line was unalarmed as well. Back to business as usual.
So I said, “I forgot my coupon at home, is there a way you can look me up in the system and see that I do have one.” She replied with a stone face, “I can’t do that you will have to go to Customer Service in the back of the store and ask them”. And with that she went back to her routine - unscathed.
So I shrugged my shoulders, guessing that I had been more traumatized by the incident than she was and wondering what had made her so hardened? People like that man, I guess…
So I went about my business and walked to the back of the store to find the Customer Service Department.
I stood in line and when It was my turn the guy behind the Plexiglas said, “Next!”. Without looking up he said, “How can I help you?” I proceeded to tell him I didn’t have my coupon and could he look me up in the system so I could use it for my purchases that day?” He finally looked up and said, “I can’t help you with that. You’ll just have to tell the cashier when you go up there.” I said, well I was just up there and she told me to come back here because she said you would be able help me.”
At that, he picked up his phone, which was a direct line to the cashiers and said, ”Hey, don’t send people back here asking about coupons, I can’t help them”. And with that he hung up and said, “ Next!” While I was still standing there.
I then kind of slithered away from his window, feeling confused and like I had just been kicked, while being ignored.
Wow! Working in retail must really be a tough gig!
I contemplated leaving right then and there. This was not shaping up to be the merry shopping experience I had anticipated. I did however end up staying and doing my shopping, and when I got to the checkout line, there was a new cashier who was pleasant and had a nice customer service way about her. When I told her I didn’t have my coupon, she said, “not a problem, I can help you with that.”
My experience at that store was saved and I will go back. However, there was a lesson in this which reminded me of the story by Charles Dickens, “A Christmas Carol.”
We all know the story of Scrooge and how he is a miser, a cold hearted, thoughtless and abrasive man. He is visit by 3 Spirits on Christmas Eve who show him the error of his ways and his ultimate demise if Scrooge doesn’t start being more benevolent and caring. Scrooge realizes he has been very selfish and is reformed overnight due to witnessing scenes from his life, past, present, and future.
This is such a great story of redemption and 2nd chances.
But what came to mind as I thought about the events of my day at the department store was - Marley. As you remember, Scrooge had a partner earlier in life named Jacob Marley. In fact their business name was Scrooge and Marleys. Marley had died some years earlier, leaving the business to Scrooge.
On that same night, before the 3 spirits come to visit Scrooge, Marley appears first to warn Scrooge of the impending visitations. But more than that, he comes to warn Scrooge that if he doesn’t change from his self-absorbed ways, his fate will be that of his.
There have been 135 remakes over the years of “A Christmas Carol”. In most of them, when Jacob Marley appears he is a ghost, still in human form, but as they cut back to a full shot of Marley you can see that he has balls and chains and locks that he pulls behind him as penance for all eternity representing the sins of his life when he was alive. The chains hang off of Marley in long train behind him that he has to lug around forever.
Marley's statement to Scrooge is, “I wear the chains I bore in life. I made them link by link, yard by yard!” Scrooge replies, “You were always a good man of business, Jacob.” To that, Jacob Marley screams, “MANKIND should have been my business!”
As I reminisced about the first part of my shopping trip, I visualized the angry man who wanted a bag, and the chains he must be carrying. How long is his chain of selfishness right now? How much longer will it get? I was not judging him, he may have just been having a bad day, and so was possibly the customer service guy in the back. But I pictured them both, like Marley, lugging around balls and chains, invisible to the eye now, but maybe in the afterlife… not so invisible.
The Bible says, “Even a child is known by his doings; whether his work be pure and whether it is right.” (Proverbs 20:11) I had to think about that… How are we known? Are we known by the goodwill, peace, and joy we bring into the lives of others. Are we going about the business of mankind? Or do we have chains we are baring in this life consisting of greed and self-centeredness? What do our chains look like? How long are they?
The Bible says, “Unless a man is born again, he will not see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
You remember that once Scrooge is visited by the 3 Spirits he vows to change. He then wakes and it is Christmas morning! Scrooge is so giddy, he is like a young boy. He says he feels light as a feather. He realizes he has not missed Christmas day and is so excited that he jumps and sings as he recognizes that he has been given a 2nd chance. Scrooge, is “born again”, a new creature, and one that puts others before himself and uses the resources he has to make others lives better.
To be born again in this life requires much the same as the types and shadows of the Scrooge character. Realizing our wretched state, and believing that we need to change. And in order to do that, we need an agent of change and that is Jesus Christ.
Christ came into the world to show His love for us, but to also show us our sin and the need for a Savior. Christ shows us that we can remain in our current state and continue to build a long chain of selfishness and pride that weighs us down like Marley. Or we can take the 2nd chance He provides, like Scrooge, to turn from our dead-end ways, and grasp hold of life. We can be “ born again”, a new creature with a new mindset, focusing on serving God and loving our neighbor.
So, my question to you is…confronted with this truth - will you continue to add links to your chain or will you take the 2nd chance? Both are readily available, but with one, the consequences are goodwill, peace, and joy.
“God Rest you merry gentlemen let nothing you dismay. Remember Christ our Savior was born on Christmas Day…”
