Being Willing to Go the Extra Mile

One of the nose pads on my glasses fell off and went missing on Wednesday. I wore those glasses all day long while being uncomfortably poked by the empty wire with no pad on it. Since I’m in Austin, I had to find a vision center asap. So, Thursday morning I found the closest nearby eyeglasses center and expressed my dilemma.

Now, mind you, I didn’t get my glasses there so they could have just turned me away, especially when they didn’t carry my brand of eyeglasses. But, you would have thought I was a VIP to them. Not only did Gayle find a pad and put it on, but when I asked if I could purchase a backup pad, she gave me two. I was going into my purse to pay and she said, “Oh, that’s not necessary!” Then she tightened the wires on my glasses so the pads wouldn’t fall off so easily. Then, she sprayed them and cleaned them with an impressive cloth. I asked if they sold those cloths and she said, “No, not this size, but I’ll give you two smaller ones!” Oh. My. Goodness. I was taken back by this kind lady’s thoughtfulness, kindness, and generosity. I quickly texted my children and said: “If you need glasses, go here!"

That is what I call going the extra mile – above and beyond what I asked for – an all too unfamiliar experience these days. How often do business representatives appear to be bothered when we ask them a question? How often are we made to feel that we are taking advantage of them if they have to get up out of their seat to get something for us? Don’t they know I’m a valuable customer that helps pay their salary?

I heard the Benham Brothers ( benhambrothers.com ) talk about the way they started in real estate. They would go help banks manage their bank-owned properties, but they didn’t stop there, they mowed the lawns and fixed up the houses. They went the extra mile and their real estate business exploded. They said they teach their children to always go the extra mile. “If your teacher asks for a 10-page report, give her 11 pages.” If you’re mowing a neighbor’s lawn, go the second mile!”

That “go the extra mile” quote is found in Matthew 5:41 when Jesus was giving His Sermon on the Mount. He said, “If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles.” It was during that time that there was a law that if a Roman soldier came up to a Jew and asked him to carry his pack, the Jew, by law, had to carry it for one mile. Jesus was saying “When you are forced by law to carry that pack one mile, I want you to carry it two. The first mile fulfills an obligation. The second mile fulfills the Law of Love.” Customer service is in the Bible!

Customer service and satisfaction are BIG on my list. Being a people person having been in sales and marketing for many years, I notice genuine care and concern for customers. This experience with this optical business gave me hope for other companies and businesses becoming "customer-friendly and customer-focused", too. The greatest part of this experience was, once again, to take life in stride. Yes, I was bugged with those eye-glasses poking me and having to go out of my way to find a vision center. But, little and big stuff happens and when it does.....SHIFT the focus off of the stress, concern, and worry by picking up a penny, and reading IN GOD WE TRUST.

Oh, that’s what happened right after that eyeglasses repair. I went to another store and parked and when I got out of my car, there on the ground beside my car were seven pennies. Pennies from heaven! I could just hear God saying “There you go! Trust me in each and everything! Nothing is a surprise to Me. I noticed that you said 'God bless you' to the clerk! You gave Me to her. Great way to say “THANKS!'"

"All things work together for good to those who love God and are the called according to His purposes." Romans 8:28.

I Walked Today Where Jesus Walked and Felt His Presence There

I was up at 4:30 am to watch the sun rise over the Sea of Galilee. It didn't disappoint. When the breakfast buffet opened, I got my plate and took it outside to hover in God's presence. I shut my eyes to think about Jesus calming the winds & waves & walking on the waters. Is this for real that I'm in this place I've only read and heard others talk about?

I read my morning Gospel reading that brings together all the reasons for this faith journey: John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him might not perish but might have eternal life."

Soon, one my fellow travelers came and sat by me with a chair between us. Our conversation included who I knew on this pilgrimage, and why now? I told him this was my sweetheart and my "bucket list" trip and because he gave this to me at his passing, and I'm here with our dearest friends. He said, "I'm so sorry about your husband", and I said, "Oh, don't be. He earned his trip to heaven and besides that, we celebrated 44 years of marriage before he left, in addition to being together since we were 12 & 13 years old. He replied in the sweetest and tenderest way, "I'm going to go now and let you and your husband enjoy yourselves together. He's sitting right here beside you (in the empty seat between us). Then he gave me the biggest "daddy hug I could possibly take. Of course, my heart was tugged and my eyes were filled with tears at this "heaven-to-earth" moment.

Just a little later when we were on our large boat, riding the waves on the Sea of Galilee (I can hardly believe I just put those words in a sentence), and after we had heard scriptures that spoke of the miracles and works Christ did in this region, the sailors of the boat mentioned they were selling laminated maps of the region as well as stones necklaces with momentos of this experience.

A short while later, my friend from this morning, came over to me and said, "My wife and I looked for one of those stones that was the closest resemblance to a heart for you and this is it. It's from your husband." Oh my. This precious couple tugged at my heart strings that created "transcends earth" moments.

Nothing could be said that can compare to this day. Riding in a boat on the Sea of Galilee, hearing God's words to us from scripture that resonated in our hearts as we witnessed the sights and sounds. Our guide brings all this to life for us as he covers it all and explains it all with such wisdom and finesse. I sure didn't realize that the Sea of Galilee is so small. You can be in the boat in the middle of it and see land all around: It's only 8 miles wide and 13 miles long.

This post is longer because I have a good wifi connection and I could add more thoughts and photos!! YAY! The photos will best explain but cannot possibly provide adequate explanation of this experience. Highlights are:

1) On the Sea of Galilee (in John 6) we know that Jesus was above the waves as He walked on water. Seems remarkable as you look at the size of this sea, however our guide told us the waves have gone as high as 8 stories. No wonder the disciples were afraid when they were about to be overtaken by them. Our guide emphasized, "Since our Lord is higher than the waves, He can sure take care of any problems we may have. Peter, in his quest to walk on water with our Lord, took his eyes off the Lord, panicked and began to sink, but as he cried out to the Lord, "Save me!", the Lord did save him.. And that same Lord responds to our call when we cry out "Save me!" How beautiful it was when the boat stopped and we were told "Now, take in the peace of God that Peter must have felt when he gave up his will for Christ's will".

2) After this wonderful boat ride around the Sea of Galilee, the motorcoach took us to the Mountain of the Beatitudes where Christ gave His Sermon on the Mount. Our guide said the hills were the perfect spot for the sermon.

The mountain is so beautiful with lush plants, trees and birds chirping as the backdrop for our morning celebration of mass and communion.

4) We had lunch at a lovely restaurant at Magdala (the home of Mary Magdalene) and were served pita bread, hummus and so many veggies, PLUS a whole fish -- head and all (talapia). So delicious!

Of course that's what we ate. How could you just go see the mountain where Jesus gave His famous sermon and feed over 5,000 men, plus women and children with just 2 loaves of bread and 5 fish? At Magdala is where the Church of the Multiplication of Loaves and Fishes is located.

5) Then we went to Tabgha where we saw a primitive olive press (of course you need an olive press because of all these olive trees that grow here). Here is the Church of St. Peter's Call to Ministry. Remember after Peter completely "blew it" when he denied even knowing our Lord? We can only imagine the regret Peter had after that. How could he have rejected Christ so easily after he had a front row seat to every miracle and every outreach to others that Christ performed? So he was living in anquish, I'm sure, BUT, Christ forgave him -- so much so that He asked him "Do you love me" over and over and Peter's response was "Yes, Lord, you know I do!" And Christ's reply was "Feed my lambs. Feed my sheep." Once again, the beloved St. Peter went on to build God's church. The rock that Peter was standing on when Christ called him is here at this shrine.

6) Capernaum was our next stop -- Jesus' home town. Jesus' fame spread everywhere when He cast out the unclean spirits from the man. Mark 1:21-34 "Jesus and His companions went to the town of Capernaum. When the Sabbath day came, He went into the synagogue and began to teach. The people were amazed at His teaching, for He taught with real authority—quite unlike the teachers of religious law. Suddenly, a man in the synagogue who was possessed by an evil spirit cried out, “Why are you interfering with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!” But Jesus reprimanded him. “Be quiet! Come out of the man,” He ordered. At that, the evil spirit screamed, threw the man into a convulsion, and then came out of him.a Amazement gripped the audience, and they began to discuss what had happened. “What sort of new teaching is this?” they asked excitedly. “It has such authority! Even evil spirits obey His orders!” The news about Jesus spread quickly throughout the entire region of Galilee." Capernaum is where the remains of Peter's house, are located. The remains of the oldest synagogue that Jesus taught in is in Capernaum. Capernaum, at the Sea of Galilee, is the place Jesus called Peter, James and John to follow Him.

That was a power-packed day that leaves me overwhelmed at the end of this day. The finale of this day was stepping into the Sea of Galilee -- those waters aren't the same waters, but that place and that sea were once Jesus' place of ministry. In the coolness of the breeze at times, the sea and waters, the hillside, the restaurant, the motorcoach and the holy places......taking in the wonder..... this same Jesus lives in ME and YOU. I didn't need to come here to know that, but coming here has increased my faith in the Son of God, the saints and martyrs, Blessed Mary, Joseph, the apostles and my brothers and sisters on this pilgrimage -- everything and everyone has had a profound effect on my life. Yes, Il'll never be the same!

This morning we leave Tiberius for JERUSALEM! Shalom!

Let's Be Salt Sprinklers -- NOT Salt Dousers

While at my Austin family's home, twice, I intended to use this salt shaker to just sprinkle a little salt on the food, but twice the side which pours salt out, was open and twice -- the food was doused with salt!

We've heard the expression "That Rick is the "salt of the earth". What they were saying is Rick is reliable, dependable, trustworthy, honest and caring. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told His followers, who were mainly fishermen and other simple people, “You are the salt of the earth." Matthew 5:13. And God tells us that, too! Paul the Apostle described it like this: "Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person." - Colossians 4:6

What this scripture is saying -- when we share our faith with others, it's like seasoning with salt. If we sprinkle a little salt on our food, it adds to the flavor of the food and it makes the food taste good. We really appreciate that. But if we pour salt on our food, it's hard to swallow, difficult to digest, and most certainly not good for the heart.

So, what does the world think when we season our conversation with too much talk about church and God, and we never talk about things we might have in common with them? They just don't get us, and we don't relate to them. But what if we talked a little about sports, and a little about the weather, and a little about our family, and their family, and a little about the every day concerns that we all have......and, then when the right opportunity comes, we can sprinkle in a word about God's goodness, and how He answered a prayer or a special blessing we received and that He was the giver of the gift, or we mention an insight we gained from a sermon we heard? Or better yet, what if we went out of our way to share God's love with them in a tangible way, like taking them for dinner or offering to take care of their kids for them while that sweet couple gets to enjoy a date night? Their curiosity just may be aroused, and, then, just maybe the flavor of OUR salt sprinkles may cause a thirst for what we have? We can be the salt they need for zest and flavor in their life.

Let's be salt shakers that consistently sprinkle God's love wherever we go. Our flavoring just might be the difference maker in what and WHO they need!