When I was in the world I didn't care if you heard me cuss. Now that I'm saved, I don't care if you hear me praise. Pride is out the window when it comes to that. My pride comes from knowing God! It's only in God that I can boast. He gives me something to shout about!
That is why I'm not embarrassed to let people know that Jesus Christ rules and reigns in my life. I love to pray over my food. I don't mind doing it loud. I love it when waitresses come to the table and I say, "Would you like to pray over the food?" I love to see their faces. Sometimes I'll say, "You'll get a good tip." They get nervous and fumble over their words.
Honestly, I've hardly ever had a waiter or waitress take me up on it. Mostly they just laugh nervously and thank me kindly. I end up teasing them to make the situation more comfortable. Still, I like to make them think a little. Come to think of it, the only time I can remember a waitress taking me up on my offer was in a greasy-spoon diner years ago. I'll never forget it.
'Bow Your Heads!'
It was one of those joints where they serve cholesterol by the pound. And the place was packed. This crazy waitress came walking up to the table where a pastor friend and I had just sat down. She was chomping on a mouthful of bubble gum, smacking with her mouth wide open and smiling at us as she approached the table. The woman looked like she was chewing tobacco! Her cheek was all bulged out and in my mind I could see her spewing a big black spitball on the floor. It was kind of funny.
"Ya'll know what ya'll want?" she asked as she threw down a table's worth of forks and knives. I looked down at the flatware and she said, "Pass 'em out!" "Yes, ma'am," I said. Bless God, I never set a table before! Guess this was my night.
So boy, I laid those forks and knives out as neat and orderly as I could, looked up at her when I finished and asked, "Whatcha got?" "Everything," she said, smacking. That's everything greasy, I thought. But I'm gonna die with a smile on my face!
Back then, I ate just about everything fried and with extra cheese. (I hadn't got a revelation about the connections between lard and sickness yet. Neither had the rest of the world.) So when the waitress asked what we wanted to eat I ordered a cheeseburger, fries, and a plastic cup of Tab, the most bitter-tasting diet cola on the market at the time. When our order was up, she slid those white platters of fat right on the table in front of us, hunkered down on the wad in her mouth and hollered, "Anything else?"
"Would you like to say the blessing?" I asked smiling, knowing that most of them freak out. But this woman looked right at me, slurped up her gum juice, and brazenly hollered, "Bow your heads!"
I was the one freaking out. I couldn't believe it! Between the gum-smacking and the breath-sucking, the "Thank ya, Jesus!" and the "Amen!" our food was blessed! And when she was finished, she just smiled at us and walked off. The pastor looked at me and he said, "She blew you away, didn't she?" "She did," I agreed.
Now, I'd call that waitress a woman with attitude and action! She smiled all over that joint and obviously didn't care if you knew she was saved. She didn't hesitate a minute to pray, and wasn't looking over her shoulder to see if anyone was listening. She prayed to her God both in her heart and in the restaurant.
I learned something from that incident that I hope will help you too. For me, it was inspiration to see that woman totally uninhibited, being herself, and boldly serving the Lord. She was instant in season and out! She had attitude and she was walking in action! Not a minute of hesitation. Yet, her personality was as alive as ever.
That is how we should live, being true to ourselves, and our God. Not acting like someone else, but letting God use our own individual personalities, and gifts to serve Him. Walking in an attitude and action, with our personalities alive and our faith in full display.
Excerpt permission granted by Harrison House Publishers