rude

I recently hit a milestone in age. Stop singing. I’m not happy about it. In fact, I was glad April didn’t feel up to celebrating it due to recovering from surgery two days earlier. (Her recovery is going well.) I’ll confess, I scheduled her surgery knowing she wouldn’t feel up to it. Okay, I’ll tell ya, I turned 60.

Combining my age with my current attitude toward others and their behavior, one could call me Walter. As in “Walter Matthau.” As in, from the movie “Grumpy Old Men.” Especially when it comes to how people drive these days. It seems as if I can’t even go two blocks from my house, and I’m disgruntled. If you are the lead dog at the intersection, please pay attention to the light. When it turns green, GO!

Two days ago, at 4:56 AM: I was heading home after dropping April off at work, and I almost slammed into the back of an older pickup truck. It was parked in the driving lane of an exit ramp with no lights on. The area of that highway is under construction, and the new highway lights aren’t on yet. And there was room for the broken down driver to have pulled in between construction barrels. My grumpiness isn’t just with drivers. It seems to be with anyone exhibiting behavior I don’t like.

April diagnosed the problem accurately. She said I get upset when others don’t treat me the way I treat them. You see, I grew up having learned the “Golden Rule.” You know, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” (Based on; Luke 6:31) The problem is, they do unto me things I wouldn’t do unto them. It seems these days as if they don’t care about others, only themselves. And they know when they have done wrong, but they will make it seem as if you are the one who committed a crime.

I know my grumpiness isn’t of God. I should love like He is to us. I need to show everyone “love,” and here is why. These are some of the qualities of genuine love:

Love is patient – True love can tolerate pain or suffering without complaining or getting angry.

Love is humble – True love is not proud and boastful. It is humble enough to admit its own mistakes and strive to correct them. It also forgives to get rid of hatred and enjoy peacefulness.

Love is respectful.

Love is calm – True love always maintains the mind’s clarity and the heart’s softness. Its heart is deep, and its mind is not narrow.

Love is persistent – True love doesn’t easily give up. True love transforms you into a whole new and better person.

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
1 John 3:18-19 (NIV)

“Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” – Colossians 3:12-14 (NIV)

“But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. If someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also. If someone takes your coat, do not withhold your shirt from them. Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Do to others as you would have them do to you. If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that.” – Luke 6:27-33 (NIV)

“Dear God, please help me, love, as you love us. I certainly don’t want to be known as a ‘grumpy old man’ but as a ‘man of God’. A man of love.”

Today has been downright frustrating! First of all, I didn’t sleep much last night. That’s never a good way to start the day. I took April to the dentist and then I went to the gym. Shortly after picking her up, I got frustrated because she couldn’t tell me why the dentist pulled one of her teeth. That was not in the treatment plan for this visit or any of the four.

Fine. Silence the rest of the way home. A little bit later while I was trying to get some sleep April texted me that she was supposed to pick up a prescription. I don’t like having to get back out after getting home when I’m tired. We talked a little bit and then decided it was best to call the pharmacy to make sure it was ready before driving over there. It hadn’t even been called in.

I called the dentist’s office and informed them. They apologized and said they would call it in, but asked us to give the process an hour. Fine. We gave it two hours. We stopped to get a small lunch and April a shake on the way. We were told the ice cream machine was being cleaned. What? Who does that during the lunch hour? We left. Trying to exit their parking lot we almost got the front of our car taken off by a big truck where, I guess, the driver never saw us. We went to another restaurant next door but decided to go to a different place. While making that decision in the parking lot a lady pulled in next to us and when she opened her door she dinged our car. I honked, but she never looked at me or cared to apologize.

We went on to the pharmacy without eating. When we arrived we learned the prescription had not been called in yet. What? I called the dentist’s office again. More apologies and was assured this time it would be done. It was.

We made our way to another franchise hoping their ice cream machine wasn’t being cleaned. It wasn’t. We ordered our lunch and April’s shake. We wound up getting a free drink of our choice, I got water, and they accidentally made two chocolate shakes and so they gave us the second one free. I felt so guilty!

During all those prior frustrating moments I complained, a lot! I know I expect too much out of people, too often, but I would hope they would be safe and apologize when they wrong somebody. When someone is rude and cuts in front of us April will say, “Their V.I.P.” I guess in their mind they are!

We got back home and I finally now was lying down and almost asleep. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Yep, the kid next door decided to play basketball. I hate the constant pounding of a basketball on concrete. It not only prevents me from sleeping but at times will cause a headache. So I got up to write this blog.

“Yes, there will be frustrating days, but I have come to give you peace,” Jesus said. At least in the MAB Translation. (Mark A. Brady) I had a little taste of peace and heaven while eating lunch and being blessed, but the rest of the day was anything but heaven!

I read a friend’s Facebook post where she talked about surviving a big home remodeling project and the only way she said she got through it was to die to herself. Hum. Perhaps I need to remember to do that on days like this. Help me Jesus to do so while submitting every day to you.

brady, mark a.

Words to inspire you

Me? Grumpy?

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
1 John 3:18-19 (NIV)

Is This Heaven?

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”1 John 3:18-19 (NIV)

“Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
1 John 3:18-19 (NIV)