This story confirms for me once again the truth of Hebrews 4:12-13:
For the word of God is alive and powerful. It is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost thoughts and desires. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.
This is just how life goes for me. Let me show you how the Word of God is alive:
I went out today to look for some boxing weeks sales on batteries. Having a stash of batteries around the house can be very handy and I always find that the week after Christmas is a good time to go hunting for deals.
I went to Walmart and I found packs of 8 AA batteries for 5 dollars. That seemed like a decent deal and so I picked up 3 packs and a few other things. I checked out and made my usual cheesy jokes with the cashier. When I got to the car, I checked my receipt and found that they charged me $8.47 each. I wasn't happy. If I wanted to pay full price I wouldn't have made the trip. I went back in to get my money back. They told me that the sale price just hadn't been updated in their system and that they would be happy to refund the difference. Wonderful. They corrected their error.
They told me that they were refunding me $23.06. "That doesn't sound right", I said. But they insisted that it was right. I'm not a math-wizard, but it just didn't sound right to me. I was sure something was wrong. But it was December 27th and the customer service line behind me was long and so I took their refund and left.
I sat in the car and looked over the receipt. I couldn't figure out what was wrong. But I knew something wasn't right. I drove home still not sure. When I arrived home, I finally figured it out. They refunded me the full amount for all the batteries. Then they charged me $5.00 once, then refunded me $5.00, and then charged me 5.00 again. When all was settled, I ended up paying five dollars for three packs of batteries. I now owe Walmart roughly 10 dollars.
So now I'm at home and I don't feel like going back to correct the error. Many many thoughts go through my mind: "It's Walmart. They aren't going to miss 10 dollars as much as I am. They aren't even going to notice it. If I go back, they'll probably just tell me to forget about it anyway". All of these things go through my head.
After supper, I sit down to look at proverbs. I'm behind a little because of the Christmas festivities, but no big deal. In very short order I come to this verse: Proverbs 15:11:
The Lord demands accurate scales and balances;
he sets the standards for fairness.
So now I have a choice. I can continue to justify the error in my favor, or I can listen to the words of the Bible which I claim to be the Word of God. I am cut deeply to the soul as if it were the "sharpest two-edged sword". I know that I have to go back and correct the error. I know that Walmart will not care about 10 dollars, but it's not about that. I believe that Jesus will establish his Kingdom here and that he has a purpose for me to be here before it comes. The world does not need more people who seek their own selfish gain. The world needs light-bringers. I'm not here to take 10 dollars from Walmart. I'm here to be an ambassador of heaven. Going back to correct the error will perhaps be a chance for a small pinhole of the light of the kingdom of God to break through and change the eternity of even one soul.
I have to go back, not for the sake of 10 dollars, but for the sake of the Kingdom of God. "Thy Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven". I'll let you know how it goes.
The Word of God is alive. It cuts right to the soul. God is alive and he does speak. Has this been your experience? Does my story sound familiar to an experience you have had about how the Word of God has come alive for you in your life? Tell me about it.
I shared this story in church today and a couple of people pointed out to me that many stores like Walmart adhere to the "scanning code of practice" which means that they are supposed to provide part of my purchase for free since their was an inaccurate scan. Look up "Scanning Code of Practice" if you are at all interested. The bottom line here is that I thought Walmart made a mistake, but in reality they were standing by their policy. As others have pointed out to me, I don't need to feel bad. The "scales and balances" are, in fact, accurate in this case.
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