Marci Lederman is operations manager at Buddy's Small Lots in Patterson,
New Jersey.
It was Lederman's duty to review the shocking
security footage taken from inside her store after the doors had been
locked. She observed the four young people who entered the store; she
watched as they made their way up and down the aisles, and she saw them
leave the store, after they had taken the things they wanted.
Please note that what I have shared so far is not the shocking part of
the security film.
What shocked Lederman was this: even though
the store was thought to be closed, a broken lock on the front door made
it possible for the four young men to enter. When they called out and
found no teller was on duty, the four didn't steal a thing. On the
contrary, the four went to the counter and paid for the items they had
picked up. Indeed, they even counted out the tax for those items ... to
the penny.
Eventually, the four honest "thieves" were identified,
located and thanked for what they had done. A grateful Marci Lederman
gave each of them a $50 gift card to the store. I'm glad she rewarded
those four fellows who play on the football team of William Paterson
University.
As for me, I'm proud to share their story. But that
story also leads me to ask what would you have done if you had been one
of these young men?
Understand, I'm not asking what you would do
now, at this point in your life. No, I'm asking what would you have done
if you were a college student and money was in short supply?
Are
you like me in thinking I'd like to believe I would have done the right
thing? I'd like to believe I would have paid for my purchases. Yes, I'd
like to believe that, but I'm not sure. If I'm being honest, I'm pretty
certain I might have paid for what I had selected, but I don't think I
would have thought of, or left money to cover, the taxes on those items.
Maybe that's why the Lord felt He should remind His people to let
their good works shine.
We are supposed to do so for a number of
reasons. First, we let our good works shine because it is the right
thing to do, and we should let them shine because the Savior asked His
grateful people to thank Him with the way in which they lived their
lives.
But there is a third reason we should let our light shine.
No, it's not so we might get a $50 gift certificate to Buddy's Small
Lots in Patterson, New Jersey.
We need to let our reflected shine
because you just never know when someone like Marci Lederman is going to
be watching you on the store's security camera. When that happens, we
want to make sure we have given glory to our Father who has sent His
Son.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, may my life reflect the light I have
received from my crucified and ever-living Savior. Grant that the Holy
Spirit use that light to point lost and wandering souls to Jesus, who
alone illuminates the path to heaven. In the Savior's Name I ask it.
Amen.
Pastor Ken Klaus
Lutheran Hour Ministries All rights reserved;
not to be duplicated without permission.
