The Costco Paradigm

 

For God did not destine us for wrath but for gaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that whether we are alert or asleep we will come to life together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build up each other, just as you are in fact doing.                 1 Thessalonians 5:9-11

The world is often a dark and negative place. The sun might be out and the birds might be chirping, but people are watching for others to step out of line, do the wrong thing, step on that one, last, nerve. And it shows! Sit back and watch the face of the people at Costco. How many of them seem to be filled with joy? When they reach the end of the aisle and find someone coming the other direction, how do they react? When the aisle is clogged and they want to get through, what is their body language like? Now be honest, are you just like them? Why is that?

Maybe it’s the messages we are fed through the media about how life is supposed to be all about us. How the world is supposed to bend to our needs, wants and desires. And then when it doesn’t appear, we feel the need to make it appear. Buy more. Extend our credit a little further. Next thing you know we’re in way over our heads and now we’re really stressed. Now there’s a clear reason for why we’re focusing on getting what we think we need, or deserve, and not letting anyone or anything get in the way. Especially if we feel like there’s a likelihood of something getting in the way of it. It makes it hard to rest, and not resting makes it hard to live at peace.

Let’s turn this whole paradigm on its ear. What if its not all supposed to be about us and instead its supposed to be about others. What if we walked into Costco with the express intention of trying to be a blessing. Giving someone a smile. Telling someone, “Good Morning!” Helping someone in an electric cart reach something they couldn’t easily otherwise. Thanking the sample lady. Letting someone with fewer items go ahead of us in line. There’s so many opportunities if we just set our intentions differently!

Here's the Thing: God has called us to be encouragers and to build one another up. That requires having a positive mindset. You just can’t encourage well when you’re being an Eeyore! Don’t get me wrong, I love Eeyore, and I relate with him often, but you can’t live there and be an encourager both.

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