Obedience

Ed McClanahan

I recently visited my daughter in Illinois and flew there on Southwest Airlines. If you’ve ever flown Southwest you know they don’t have assigned seating. You line up based on your preassigned boarding letter and number. And if you’re anything like me, the last thing you want to do is get stuck with late boarding, as this means…..you’re stuck sitting in a dreaded middle seat! Despite my general frugality, I ALWAYS pay the extra fee for the first group boarding so I can ensure an aisle seat. 

But as the last few passengers were walking down the aisle to take those last few crummy middle seats, a woman stopped at my row. She began pleading with me to please move over so she could have the aisle seat. The woman explained that she was claustrophobic and was certain she’d have an episode if she had to sit in the middle seat, as she was already struggling with even being on an airplane. I paused for a brief moment as I pondered what to say. Of course my chief argument was going to be “lady, I feel the same way about that seat! This is why I paid extra for early seating! Apparently you chose not to?” But before I could say anything, the Holy Spirit quickened my mind to Philippians 2:3-4, “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you to the interests of the others.” 

So I obeyed the prompting of the spirit and moved over to the middle seat. Before you honor my obedience, you need to hear the rest of the story. During the nearly four hour flight, I complained to the Lord virtually the entire time about this injustice. Didn’t he realize that I’d paid extra for this privilege? This is really uncomfortable! Why couldn’t I have demanded that she reimburse me for the extra fee I’d paid? Then to top it off, she asked for my help to get her device hooked up to the plane’s WiFi since she couldn’t figure out how to do it! This was totally unfair and I made sure the Lord knew it! 

Is there a requirement that obedience to the Lord should come without complaining? Well, all you have to do is fast forward in the same chapter of Phillipians to verses 14-15, "Do all things without grumbling or questioning, that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God without blemish in the midst of a crooked and twisted generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world."

I’m afraid that I may have lost much (if not all) of the favor God might have wanted to grant for this obedience because of my bad attitude. Are you like me in that you expect obedience to automatically result in God’s favor? Our obedience should really be an overflowing appreciation for what Jesus did for us on the cross. Any favor that comes along with it is a bonus.

Lord, help us to follow your promptings without complaint!