“Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.” Colossians 3:23 NLT
Twice in one week, I walked away from ordinary customer-service encounters asking myself the same question: What is happening to the way we treat one another?
I had ordered takeout from a well-known restaurant chain and paid for it online. When I arrived, employees repeatedly walked past me without making eye contact or asking if I needed help. Five minutes passed. I could see a bag sitting on a shelf that I suspected was mine, but like everyone else, it wasn’t talking.
Finally, I peeked toward the kitchen and asked if someone could help me. The response made me feel as though I had become an inconvenience simply by asking for the food I had ordered. When the employee told me what I owed, I explained that I had already paid online. Instead of simply saying, “I’m sorry, I didn’t realize that” they lectured me about not telling them that in the beginning.
I left carrying my food and a question much heavier than the bag: When did serving another person become such an inconvenience?
A few days later, I purchased several items at a well-known retail store. The young woman behind the counter didn’t look at me or speak. Thinking perhaps she was having a difficult day, I smiled and asked how her day was going. Still, there was no response.
She rang up my purchases, left them on the counter and began ringing up the next customer. When I politely asked about a product, she abruptly told me the store was out. The missing item wasn’t the problem. Businesses run out of supplies. Orders get mixed up. People make mistakes. What concerned me was something deeper: the absence of acknowledgment, kindness and basic respect.
Isn’t it amazing how one or two personal interactions can disrupt our day. Even though we may have hundreds of encounters in a week, just one or two good or bad experiences can change our whole perspective. In other words, we can be a blessing or a curse.
Scripture gives us a simple standard: “Do to others as you would have them do to you” (Luke 6:31).
That applies whether we’re behind the counter or standing in front of it. Before I become too comfortable pointing a finger at employees, I need to examine myself. How do I respond when my order is wrong? Am I patient with the new cashier? Do I thank the person who serves my meal? Do I look someone in the eye when they’re speaking? Respect goes both ways.
I also realize we rarely know what someone else is carrying. The employee may be exhausted, short-staffed, poorly trained or facing something painful at home. Grace matters. But grace doesn’t mean our work doesn’t matter.
For those of us who follow Christ, our work should look different because ultimately we’re working for Someone different. Colossians 3:23 doesn’t say to work wholeheartedly only when the boss is watching, the customer is pleasant or we’re having a good day. It tells us to work with all our hearts as though we’re working for the Lord.
That changes everything. How we greet someone matters. How we answer the telephone matters. Whether we keep our word matters. And when we make a mistake, how we respond matters.
Two simple words seem increasingly difficult to say: “I’m sorry,” and actually meaning it. Admitting a mistake isn’t weakness. It demonstrates humility. Proverbs 15:1 reminds us that a gentle answer can turn away wrath. Imagine how many difficult encounters could change with a simple response: “I’m sorry about that. Let me see what I can do.”
I wonder what our communities will look like twenty years from now if we stop teaching that work has dignity, character matters and people deserve respect. But perhaps complaining about what we’re losing isn’t the answer. Maybe we start restoring it ourselves.
Look people in the eye. Say hello. Say please and thank you. Put down the phone when someone is speaking. Do what you said you would do. Take pride in doing your job well. When you’re wrong, own it and apologize. And whether you’re serving or being served, remember that the person standing in front of you matters to God.
Scripture gives us a higher calling: “Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people.”
Perhaps the question we should ask at the end of every workday isn’t simply, “Did I do my job?”
Maybe it’s this: “Did the way I treated others today honor the Lord?”
So, you have an opportunity in every encounter to make a difference in someone else’s life. Take a page out of Dolly Parton’s book and make other people feel special.