Caring. Enough.

There are good things to consider when you are my age but still at least somewhat able to meet yourself coming back. That's the way it has gone this week and I suppose I am glad to still be in the game, so to speak. One thing I have never been able to turn off and that is my passion for getting things done, you know, doing the right things, right. (At least as I see it.) I often confess that I shouldn't be all up tight and wound up in the stuff I'm trying to get done, but, perhaps that is why I'm still in the game. But, it is good to be wrapping it up for this work week, and I bid you a friendly welcome on this Friday, May 18, 2012. I'm not saying I am very important to the business I work in, but, I do take the parts of it I am involved in very seriously. I care. I really do. The other day I heard a young man who was being interviewed for a job say that the agency that sent him out told him not to worry if it didn't work out here because they would find him somewhere else to work. The way he said it went all over me. It sounded to me like he was saying he wanted to work but he also wanted us to know that if it didn't pan out he already had other options. Back in the day I would have made sure he had a chance to exercise those 'other' options. In this situation I was just an observer. I'm certainly not knocking younger workers but I will tell you that nearly everywhere I go I hear the white hairs lamenting over their younger comrades and often hear this refrain: "They just don't care."

Maybe I grew up in an environment where not caring was not an option. That doesn't mean I didn't go through those lazy phases but in general, people were taught to invest themselves into whatever projects, work, or endeavors they find themselves pursuing. There's no doubt that unscrupulous employers have traditionally taken advantage of people and maybe the backlash to this excess has brought about this attitude where some folks do only what is necessary to get by. Our youngest son used to sing a Gospel song that had this message, "What if I give all?" The theme of that song was about self sacrifice contrasted to the sacrifice that Christ made for us all. What if you seek to do your best every day and seemingly it doesn't get recognized? What if you keep a good attitude and stay focused even during difficult times where the business is not doing well? What if? My way of seeing it says that having that commitment and caring based on who you are, not based on your circumstances, is one of the keys to having fulfillment in whatever you happen to be involved in. Have I always been that shining example in every situation, good, bad, or indifferent? Not hardly. However, I will tell you that I am thankful to God, and to those He put in my life that poured into me this sense of responsibility because given a choice between it and the sleepwalking through life approach, I know which one is best because it has been at least some of the testimony of my life.

 I know it's easy to write this off as the older generation looking down on the younger folks. I don't think so. This malaise of lacking excellence permeates our society today. I suppose one of the things that stirs me up most is when folks demand excellence from others but never get around to producing any of it themselves. That's another topic for another day but I do rub up against it often and I don't like it, one bit. Jesus gave an example about the fellow who was forgiven a huge amount of debt as he was also set free from prison. That fellow then went and found someone who owed him a very small amount and demanded payment immediately, in full. The person owing the small amount begged for mercy but got none. (Matthew Chapter 18)  When I was helping to run a business I used to tell the folks we bought from that my goal was to be their number one customer in the way I conducted my affairs, therefore, I expected the same in return. Okay. Maybe not a connect for you, but it is food for thought and a reminder that we all can work on the 'how' we go about the daily conduct of our life, regardless of what we might find ourselves engaged in. Another week, another large number of words mangled and tangled on the electronic page. I do hope and pray that you will have a wonderful Saturday and Lord's Day Sunday. Until next time, may God bless us all is my prayer. Amen.         ....More later.