I was truly humbled the other night by the grace shown to me by a lady at a local pharmacy. I went into the store and headed to the pharmacy section to pick up medicine for Thomas. As I stood in line at the counter, I couldn't help but see what was happening with the lady in line ahead of me. She was there to pick up a prescription as well. However, the pharmacist told her that it was filled two weeks earlier and had been put back. The lady was fine with that and then proceeded to verify that the prescription was still on file for when she needed it. According to the clerk at the store it wasn't.
Now I want to pause right here just to give you an insight into what I was thinking at this point. First, for me, I'm thinking oh crap this is going to take a while, it's already late, and I'm just ready to get home; this sucks. And I'm thinking to myself, that if I was this lady I would be ticked. Not only do you not have my medicine ready, but you can't even find my prescription on file. I'm almost getting mad for her at this point.
But then God showed up. And I didn't let myself see it at the time but the more I think about it, the more I know He was there. She calmly told the clerk, "Okay, since this may take a while to sort out, let this gentlemen go ahead." I was caught off guard as she reacted in a way totally contrary to how many of us in the world today, myself included, would have reacted. In the midst of dealing with her problem, she was willing to put someone else ahead of herself. I hadn't said a word since entering the store. She had no idea I was there to pick up medicine for my two year old son. That didn't matter to her. She saw an opportunity to show grace and be a light in a world full of darkness. I smiled at her and politely thanked her and truly meant it because that was something she absolutely did not have to do.
I regret not taking a picture with her to share and spread good news of grace and compassion in good ole Union, South Carolina. But I hope that she knows how much her actions meant to me and that I can try to follow her example and offer grace to those who have done nothing to deserve it either, I was just standing in line but she gave me a blessing by allowing me to go ahead truly putting others ahead of herself. So ma'am thank you again from the father of a son you didn't know you were helping.
P.S. - I do not feel it is relevant to the story or to grace but given the recent racial issues in this country I would like people to know that this was a black lady showing that while the media pushes for a racial divide there are wonderful, kind, and caring people of all colors in the world today. She showed love and compassion for a white dude standing there in shorts a t-shirt and sandals. I was nobody important to her, I was another human being.
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