Last night seemed like any other night. After a long day of work, chores, and heat, we decided to go out. Cooking just seemed like a sweaty mess and with the heat, having the oven or stove on was something I wanted to avoid.
As my husband showered, he mention to me that he wanted me to think of affordable places to go to eat. I kept thinking Chili’s for some reason. This is strange because my go to is usually Asian or Mexican style dishes. He agreed to something different as well. He expressed he was tired of sushi, poki, and the norm.
What was hard about that day was that we have been disagreeing on a few different things, so tensions were high. It could’ve been the heat, it could’ve been a lot of things, but I was dreading being in a loud room with lots of noise even though I made the choice not to cook. I am a flight person in conflict. I was out of my element and fighting my emotions.
After aimlessly driving, we ended up where Chili’s was and finally gave in and decided on that. I don’t know why both of us were so opposed to going, but we were resisting that thought as if it it was breaking a rule. We parked and walked in.
Of course it was everything that I didn’t want to be surrounded by. It was loud and many tables of people were talking all at once and my patience was being tested. If any of you know me well I don’t do well with loud noise. I hear all the sounds all at once and it becomes too overwhelming.
I was sitting there in the booth sad and frustrated from the disagreement with my husband. I was trying to ignore all the sound around me, praying that it would just be a good night. At that moment a family was sat behind us. Little did we know God would be in the midst of all of it. Once again showing me how little my problems are and how selfish we can be in the midst of our problems.
The table that was sat behind me had a member who is an adult with Tourette’s and autism. He sat right behind me and was the loudest person I’ve ever heard. He screamed, he yelled, he made noises, he was just being himself. It was truly beautiful seeing the family take care of him so well. At that moment I realized my problems are so small. I have so much to be thankful for. So much of our problems are in the flesh and it distracts us from seeing reality.
The funniest thing is that Jake and I both ordered Mexican food. I pondered into deep thought and came to when Jake asked me, “what are you thinking about.
I replied, “ it’s kind of strange and I don’t really know why I thought about it, but eating these chicken fajitas reminded me of once in my childhood.”
I then told him how I was staying at a friends and her grandma took us out to lunch. Her grandma was wealthy and had many material things that showed her wealth. She prized her material possessions greatly. I had ordered the chicken fajitas and they weren’t that tasty. I felt really bad because I didn’t want to waste but I just couldn’t eat them. I remember feeling extremely guilty because of the way she made me feel. Not only that but I remember she yelled at me after we used the hot tub for dripping water on her wood floors. I cleaned it up with a napkin and apologized. I just couldn’t understand why she was so angry.
I just do not want to be that type of person. I do not want to come across stingy or caring so much about material possessions. We never know what people are going through at home and sometimes they’re only refuge is away from home in the comfort of someone else place.
Jake replied, “ it’s funny that you said stingy and how you never want to be stingy.” He then went on to say I feel like God is telling us to pay for that person’s meal behind us and it’s going to be around $120. He said I really have been fighting that feeling but I really think We need to. I said, “okay, let’s do it.”
It is amazing that God will give us confirmation from others to encourage us to do what He has told us. He used a memory of a random time that I have not thought of since I was 11 years old. He used a food dish to trigger that memory. He used sounds and compassion to let us see a little piece of Him. He used sadness and frustration to show us joy that only comes from Him. He uses everything beautifully for His glory and good.
We can’t always see right now from the outside why God says to do certain things but that’s the trust of knowing that he does all things for good according to his purpose (Romans 8:28).
Maybe that family is really struggling right now who knows. We may never know why and that’s okay.
The waitress came back and asked if there’s anything we needed and Jake said quietly, “ I know this is a weird question but how much is their bill,” and pointed at the table.
She replied, “ that’s okay” and showed him the total. He said, “ okay, we would like to pay for their dinner but don’t tell them who it is or what it’s for.”
The waitress lit up and smiled. She was delighted to see a random act of kindness. She brought back the checks and we did the total. With the tip our bill and their bill it was $124. A little bit more than what Jake had originally said but we couldn’t have planned it if we tried.
Doing what we felt God was telling us to do brought so much joy to both of us. We went from being frustrated to full belly laughing and smiling. In the small moments of life like this, they make it all worth living. My hope for you today is to listen to those promptings in your heart and in your mind. You never know how much impact you can have on the world around you.
Even if you can’t see the end result, share that light it will lift you up when you’re down. When you share God‘s light it penetrates the darkness. Whatever you’re going through, whatever you’re feeling I promise it won’t be like that forever.
We left before they got the bill but my hope is that they found joy and uplifting through a random act of kindness.
Romans 8:28
And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.
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