Lessons from Working with People:
Several years ago the Lord taught me a lesson about working with people. At that time I worked in the grill area in our local McDonald’s Restaurant. My job was to train new workers, teaching them the proper food handling and storage procedures, how to do the prep work, and how to make all of the food items.
Many of the people I trained were teenagers who thought their own way of doing things was a better way. I repeatedly showed these teenagers the correct way to prepare the sandwiches and other food items, and I knew they could make the food properly. Yet whenever I turned my back on them, they went back to their own sloppy way of making food. Consequently, customers would receive sandwiches with catsup or mayonnaise dripping down the side of the buns, which made a sloppy representation of the restaurant. This frustrated me beyond measure because I knew the teens could do it right, but the just didn’t care.
One day at work, after a day of frustration, this really became a burden on me so I prayed and asked God, “How do I get these teens to make the food properly?” Then I heard the familiar small voice say, “You can’t change them. Why are you trying to do my job?” Then I realized that their rebellion was a heart issue, a product of that sinful nature we all inherited from Adam.
After that day, I would show the teens how to do the food properly until I knew they could do it right. Then I prayed that God would take it from that point on. I received great peace from knowing that changing these teenagers was not my responsibility. They were in the hands of a great big, powerful God!
In addition, I realized that changing me was not my job either! All I could do was my best to please God. God made me exactly the way I am (aside from the sin factor) for a purpose in His great plan. He has special plans for me and He accepts and loves me just the way I am!
As for removing the sinful nature from me, that is also God’s job. I cannot change this area or be ‘perfect’ as the world desires because these things are impossible for any human being to do.
If people can’t accept me and love me for the person I am, they are the ones with the heart problem. Putting on a charade or a mask so that people will accept me is living a lie! Eventually, that lie will be exposed and people will see the truth. Living and sustaining a lie puts a great deal of stress on a person. Why not be real and save yourself frustration, stress, time, and money that living a lie costs someone?
People everywhere try to live up to this “perfect person” lie that the world promotes. Young girls make themselves mentally and physically sick by trying to make their bodies look like that of a Barbie doll. They develop eating disorders, false guilt, and a feeling of failure because they can’t live up to this false image. This “perfect person” is a lie because none of us are perfect, nor can we ever make ourselves perfect. However, aside from the sin factor, God sees us as His beautiful children!
Why can’t we accept people, including ourselves, for who they really are? Why can’t we love them in spite of the few extra pounds and the weaknesses? Do we have a right to expect more out of people than God expects from them?
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