I pressed each number deliberately into the telephone and felt my stomach flip over nervously. I hadn't even heard a voice yet. There hadn't even been a connection and I was already so uncomfortable that I had decided to hate the next 5 min to an hour it would take to finish my business on the phone.
That poor person. I listened to the menu options, pressed "1", listened, pressed "4", listened, then pressed "0"....operator please! Now I was frustrated, uncomfortable, impatient, and still nervous. So, when a tired voice trying to sound perky and helpful came on the line I had to reign in my negative thoughts.
The operator listened to my problems and then re-directed my call to another helpful person who also redirected the call. And I think, everyone reading this knows the song and dance. Eventually I just hung up, tired of hearing them tell me they couldn't help. I put my head in my hands and prayed. "God, what's going on! I need to fix this. Please, help me." Then an image popped into my head. Suddenly those unhelpful voices had faces. Tired faces. Resolute faces. They had hearts constantly pricked by the selfish insistence of others. And, suddenly, my little Internet connection problem looked so tiny in comparison to the need for kindness.
I picked up the phone again, asked God to help me communicate His love, and tried again. This time when the tired-trying-to-sound-perky-and-helpful voice came online I talked to the operator with two thoughts reigning in my head: 1) This person is not responsible for my problems and is only here to help and 2) this person could use some kindness and love.
I communicated my problem and asked respectfully for their help. Even when they admitted to being the wrong person for the job, I thanked them sincerely for trying and also thanked them for reconnecting me. Because I was patient and kind and most of all THANKFUL to these nameless people, one kind young man stopped and really listened to what I was saying. He admitted that the problem with my Satellite Internet was unusual and that they didn't often deal with Satellite Internet users at all. But he buckled down, worked through the system, and fixed it. I could tell there was a smile in his voice by the end of the call. He'd really helped someone. Someone who hadn't yelled or been impatient and had been thankful.
We talk to these nameless, voiceless strangers so often that sometimes we forget that there are always God's children on the other end of the line. It is unfairly easy to be rude or uncaring towards them and yet it is so important that they know their worth. That they know God's love even if it is only shown through our ability to have patience and to be thankful. That was a true lesson learned for me and I hope I always remember to show the person on the other end how much they are appreciated and cared for.
That poor person. I listened to the menu options, pressed "1", listened, pressed "4", listened, then pressed "0"....operator please! Now I was frustrated, uncomfortable, impatient, and still nervous. So, when a tired voice trying to sound perky and helpful came on the line I had to reign in my negative thoughts.
The operator listened to my problems and then re-directed my call to another helpful person who also redirected the call. And I think, everyone reading this knows the song and dance. Eventually I just hung up, tired of hearing them tell me they couldn't help. I put my head in my hands and prayed. "God, what's going on! I need to fix this. Please, help me." Then an image popped into my head. Suddenly those unhelpful voices had faces. Tired faces. Resolute faces. They had hearts constantly pricked by the selfish insistence of others. And, suddenly, my little Internet connection problem looked so tiny in comparison to the need for kindness.
I picked up the phone again, asked God to help me communicate His love, and tried again. This time when the tired-trying-to-sound-perky-and-helpful voice came online I talked to the operator with two thoughts reigning in my head: 1) This person is not responsible for my problems and is only here to help and 2) this person could use some kindness and love.
I communicated my problem and asked respectfully for their help. Even when they admitted to being the wrong person for the job, I thanked them sincerely for trying and also thanked them for reconnecting me. Because I was patient and kind and most of all THANKFUL to these nameless people, one kind young man stopped and really listened to what I was saying. He admitted that the problem with my Satellite Internet was unusual and that they didn't often deal with Satellite Internet users at all. But he buckled down, worked through the system, and fixed it. I could tell there was a smile in his voice by the end of the call. He'd really helped someone. Someone who hadn't yelled or been impatient and had been thankful.
We talk to these nameless, voiceless strangers so often that sometimes we forget that there are always God's children on the other end of the line. It is unfairly easy to be rude or uncaring towards them and yet it is so important that they know their worth. That they know God's love even if it is only shown through our ability to have patience and to be thankful. That was a true lesson learned for me and I hope I always remember to show the person on the other end how much they are appreciated and cared for.
RSS Feed
