{"id":2140,"date":"2013-02-01T18:20:45","date_gmt":"2013-02-01T18:20:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irreverin.com\/?p=2140"},"modified":"2013-02-10T13:33:12","modified_gmt":"2013-02-10T20:33:12","slug":"those-guys-are-awesome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/irreverin\/2013\/02\/those-guys-are-awesome\/","title":{"rendered":"Those Guys are Awesome"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

\"\"<\/a>Like many Americans, I spent a small slice of my life in the service industry. Several summers waiting tables, and nearly a year\u00a0at hotel. I could spend days telling stories\u2013good, bad and ugly\u2013of the people i encountered in that time of my life. But in the interest of the broader message here, I\u2019m going to share just two:<\/p>\n

The Bad Tip:\u00a0<\/strong> <\/em>It was a Sunday lunch shift. The \u2018after church\u2019 crowd who, in southeastern Kentucky and elsewhere in the Bible belt, are also known as the worst tippers ever. <\/em>Seriously. So this one family\u2013huge family\u2013has asked for 84 refills (of sodas already served in mason jars\u2013this was that kind of place), and left an epic mess of peanut shells on the floor (also that kind of place) and generally ordered one of everything on the menu. They paid and left, and with my receipt\u2013on which they left no tip\u2013was this note.<\/p>\n

\u201cHere\u2019s<\/span> a tip. Service!<\/span> Don\u2019t bring the check out before asking if the customer wants dessert (\u2013side note; when you\u2019re used to working the\u00a0 lunch shift, this is what you are trained to do. If someone wants dessert, you can always print another ticket, but it\u2019s more likely they\u2019re in a hurry). <\/em>Server seems out of it<\/span>. (um, the guy i was dating at the time was turning out to be a drug dealer? so yeah, i had some stuff on my mind). <\/em>Not fully awake!<\/span> (it could be that my eyes were red and puffy because this *%&$# has been blowing cigarette smoke in my face for two hours. Also that kind of place.)\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

No, he did not\u00a0try to have me fired. But seriously, what a rotten day.\u00a0So let\u2019s not dwell there. I\u2019ll tell you instead about:<\/p>\n

The good tip<\/strong>: <\/em>Two guys passing through town for business came in for a late lunch. They were literally my only table for about an hour. They didn\u2019t order anything complicated. I brought them refills, made small talk, etc. Took them their bill which was about $20. They handed me a $50-dollar bill and told me to keep the change. I laughed because i thought they were joking. I went to ring them up. Came back with their change. They were gone.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m no math wiz, but that\u2019s like, 150% tip! And i remembered thinking that one of several things must be true. 1\u2013they were super rich and it made them feel powerful to throw that kind of money around. 2\u2013i must be looking super hot today. and\/or 3\u2013those were some really, really nice guys who genuinely wanted to make my day, even though i was a stranger and they\u2019d probably never see me again.<\/p>\n

I lean toward some combination of i was looking hot <\/em>and those guys are just awesome. <\/em>But I\u2019ll tell you what did NOT occur to me, not even for a second, when wondering what would prompt such generosity. It never crossed my mind that \u201chey, those guys must be Christians.\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n

Because really\u2013how often do you think those guys are awesome, <\/em>and follow it up with, they must be Christians!<\/em><\/p>\n

I\u2019m guessing almost never. In fact, I think many of us who are Christians spend a great deal of our time articulating the finer points\u00a0of \u201c\u2013but I\u2019m not THAT kind of Christian.\u201d I\u2019d venture to say that we spend more time trying to defend our \u2018brand\u2019 of Christianity from bad rap, than we do actually living our Christian faith. And therein\u00a0lies the problem.<\/p>\n

One server\u2019s\u00a0\u2018bad tip\u2019 story <\/a>went viral in the media this week.\u00a0\u00a0Because in her case, the rotten customer was not just a Christian\u2013she was clergy.\u00a0 The situation has escalated to the point that the server lost her job. And i have a feeling we have not heard the end of it.<\/p>\n

Notice that\u00a0when something specifically \u201cChristian\u201d makes the news, it is never in the context of those guys are awesome. <\/em>It is always something like this business, or some Mark Driscoll brand of ugliness, or some other episode of sanctimonious nonsense, where Christians are hollering about something the rest of the world doesn\u2019t care about, and demanding it be made into law. Like the Tennessee politician who (i\u2019m assuming) is all about free speech, but wants the word \u2018gay\u2019 banned from the public schools. You know? That guy. He is our ambassador to the world.<\/p>\n

So when the bad tip story hit my newsfeed, my initial reaction was the same as that of my colleagues\u2013not this again<\/em>. Not another bad Christian story that we have to fight to overcome; another embarassing, public display of unChristlike behavior, from one who should be an example of love and grace in the world. No wonder people hate the church. No wonder nobody takes us seriously.<\/p>\n

And then i thought\u2013i\u2019m sure glad the worst thing I ever did has not become a media superstorm.<\/p>\n

Because really, much as we try to reflect the image of Christ in our actions, and distinguish ourselves from \u2018those kinds\u2019 of hypocrytical, narrow-minded Christians\u2013don\u2019t we all have our moments? Just saying. I\u2019m not, in any way,\u00a0defending what that pastor did. However, I sincerely hope she has some good friends or colleagues to take her aside and say, \u201csister\u2013take a vacation. Get a massage, do some yoga, call your mama, go on a spiritual retreat\u2026and try to come back refreshed for the work of the Lord. Because this ain\u2019t it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Thanks be to God, it isn\u2019t all on me to make or break the work of Christ in the world. But let this story remind each of us, who claim faith in Jesus and service to God, that much is riding on our behavior. Every word we speak, every move we make, every check that we sign, someone is watching for us to prove or disprove their assumptions about us. It might not be fair, but it is absolutely what we signed up for.<\/p>\n

I\u2019m declaring this to be 150% day. Go have lunch at a place where they know you.\u00a0 Be gracious. Say please and thank you, enjoy your meal, greet your neighbors, express gratitude, engage the staff. And then leave a big, fat tip that nobody is expecting. You don\u2019t have to write a note that says \u201d Jesus loves you! And i do too! {insert smiley face here, and dot that i<\/em> with a heart.} There\u2019s no need for that. But act like the person you want people to meet when they come to church. Leave everybody in the place thinking, hey, that guy\/girl is awesome! <\/em>And maybe next time, they will want to find out why\u2026<\/p>\n

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