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Not too long ago, a colleague of mine, Ellen, told me a fascinating story. Ellen lives in a big city and like thousands of others her daily commute to and from work is strewn with traffic and tollbooths, off ramps and road rage, and enough stress to turn even the proverbial sweet old lady into the incredible Hulk.
Each evening after a long day of work the first thing Ellen encounters in her eagerness to get home is a one dollar tollbooth. The price seems petty and the wait unreasonably long.
Until…
Until the day Mary got hired. Mary looked like any other poorly paid, overworked tollbooth operator, except for one thing. For each exhausted commuter, she always had a personalized kind word and a genuine smile. In fact, her smile was so contagious that each evening as Ellen waited for change, she could feel her shoulders begin to relax and her lips curl a smile in return.
It wasn’t long before Ellen began scanning each tollbooth before she approached her nightly barrier so that she could spot the one manned by Mary. In what became a regular ritual, Ellen began to look forward to capping off her day with the sweet affirmation received each night. Ellen felt special.
And she wasn’t the only one.
Not too many nights ago, Ellen approached the tollbooths and began her scan for Mary. Strangely, she noticed that three of the tollbooths had absolutely no line but one of them, Mary’s, had FIVE cars waiting to pay. Ellen’s car made it six.
In a fit of frustration, another nearby toll operator got out of his booth and began to vigorously wave the backed up drivers towards one of the open lanes. Not a single car moved. Not one. They would all rather sit and wait so that they could enjoy 15 seconds of Mary’s smile then speed home after their long day.
Wow.
The Power of One Life Lived Well
Mary didn’t have a position of status, prominence, or worldwide influence, but she did bring the very best Mary that she could be into the job she had, and it really did make a difference. She was an incredible blessing to many weary travellers and lived a life of indescribable joy.
You too, were created for joy. You were created to bring the best you into everything you do. You were created for Him.
You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you do not see him now, you trust him;
and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.
I Peter 1:8
For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus,
so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.
Ephesians 2:10
Are you in…
- a job you hate
- a marriage that’s hard
- a house that’s too small
- a church that doesn’t appreciate you
- a relationship that’s more bad than good
It is not a mistake. You are not a mistake. God has put you there so that through Him you can do good things. They may be hidden, hard, and unappreciated things but when you do them through Him and for Him they truly make a difference.
When you live out your life trusting Him, giving your all to everything you do, you too can rejoice with an inexpressible joy making every minute count.
How can you bring your whole heart to where you are now?
