Above and Beyond

Everyone appreciates a favor here and there. In actuality, we are getting favors all the time, large and great. There are people giving above the expectation in work, in friendships, and with the complete stranger. It can be as small as holding the door, saving you three minutes of waiting for the next elevator. It can be as great as taking extra time to train you to do for yourself a task that is new to you.

Let me interject a “favor story” from my past, one which offered the gift of amusement. Have you ever had a person in your life that was an “imp,” pure and simple? That was Marjorie. At a parish dinner, she pulled one of her signature moves on me. I was very new to the parish, and this good-hearted, mischievous matriarch of the faithful caught my eye from across the parish hall and signaled me over. Once I got there she said, “Since you are up, would you do me a favor and get me a glass of tea?” I got her tea, but the real favor was the fun she created.

The opposite, stinginess, is also in evidence, of course. There are those who show generosity of favor neither in the context of work nor in the economy of common courtesy. It is tempting to build our lives around complaining, reaping irritation against those stingy with personal favor. The alternative is to harvest gratitude rather than irritation. Here’s a recommendation: avoid comparing people. Concentrate instead on rejoicing whenever you spot the good showing up.

Back to the simple truth, we benefit from favors known and unknown all our lives. We spot it here and there in the human community, and when we see favor-generous people, we see God as the source. It is the nature of God to show favor, unmerited. Where God is concerned, we get what we do not earn. We call it grace. It is when you used to saunter into the breakfast diner and order the two eggs over easy, two slices of bacon, crisp, and buttered toast. You get all that and in addition, you get that little bowl of grits, with butter melting in the center. You ask, “Is this mine? I did not order it.” and the server says, “Oh, Darlin’, you don’t order grits; they just come.”

Sunday, we will hear a gentle sprinkling of the message of God’s generosity: the gift of unmerited favor. One of the verses of the psalm is a prayer we should always have on our lips in every situation. It conveys confidence that God can be trusted for divine favor.  We ask to be remembered in the favor of the gracious and merciful One:  “Remember me, O Lord, with the favor you have for your people, and visit me with your saving help.”  —Psalm 106:4

This verse is in complete resonance with matching verses, Psalm 70:1 and Psalm 40:14, to convey this petition. “Show me favor, O God and save me, Lord, come quickly to my help.”  This is the prayer John Cassian in his from the desert spiritual tradition, early fifth century, urged his monks to make perpetually, on all occasions. It was so powerful an appeal, Benedict, the father of Western Monasticism, determined this verse to be the opening of the evening office. So, it is for us in Evening Prayer: “O God, make speed to save us; O Lord, make haste to help us.”

Yes, God shows us his favor, and people learn from God to show favor to others. This Sunday, when you listen to scripture, listen to these elements of the generosity of God. From the parable of Jesus:

Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

                                                                                                        —Matthew 22:8-10

And from Paul’s teaching:

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let your gentleness be known to everyone. The Lord is near. Do not worry about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.                                                                                      —Philippians 4:4-7

I am sure we all see the generosity implicit in these passages. What really counts is we see the generosity that comes our way every day in the varied happenings of our lives; we strive for graciousness ourselves, and we cultivate gratitude for all we receive unearned, blessings beyond our expectations.