So I was the recipient of a random act of kindness today. The lady in front of me at Burger King paid for my meal. I didn’t really know how to react. I usually think of myself as being the person to perform acts of kindness, and I guess I feel like I don’t really need those performed on me. I’m not poor, I’m not underpriveleged, I’m not hurt, I’m not unhealthy. I wasn’t even having a bad day. I considered waving, but didn’t. I remember hearing a story about someone who got out of their car and ran up to the other car to thank them. But I didn’t really feel like that was appropriate either. I thought after driving away that perhaps I should have paid for the person behind me, but would it be so wrong for me to simply accept the charity? I find it interesting that I don’t feel like I need charity, and therefore it’s difficult for me to accept, and also difficult for me to react to.
So she drove off without ever interacting with me, and maybe that’s how it should have been. If
we’re just looking for thanks when doing good deeds, then we’re not doing those deeds for the right reasons. And so I suppose my reaction of doing nothing was probably best, but I wonder how many Christians run into the same problems of not knowing how to accept charity.
Looks like you were the ‘victim’ of 98.1 (or insert correct station call numbers) promotion to ‘minister’ through random acts of kindness. I forget what they called this, but that’s what it was. It happed to a guy here at work too…
Anyway, I would say that even though the promotion is over, why not pay it forward and pay for someone next time you’re in line somewhere. I heard on the radio many people calling in to thank the radio station – people like college students and single mothers… so you never know morgan, you just never know.
No one called in to complain though, that’s for sure. :o)