McDONALDS - 6:00 AM

Note: This blog entry appeared yesterday on my devotional blog THRIVING IN CHRIST. Since a lot more of you read LIFE MATTERS, I thought I'd double post it.

Dianne and I took a three day vacation last week to Baltimore and the Inner Harbor. We got a great hotel deal, so we stayed down town--handy to Camden Yards, where the Tigers were playing the Orioles and handy to Inner Harbor, a great gathering of shops, museums and other interesting sights. We parked our car and walked everywhere.

Typically Dianne and I are on two different sleep schedules. I am generally asleep by 10 and up around four. She is asleep by midnight or later and up 4-5 hours after I have risen. I try to stay in hotels that have complimentary breakfasts so I can eat around 5.30 or 6.00 and then have a "second" breakfast around 9.00 or 9.30 when she is ready.

This hotel did not accomodate me. And on Saturday, the restaurant didn't even open until seven. Fortunately, McDonalds is open at 6.00. But as in many major American cities, a tourist will share the streets with the homeless and other street people. When I arrived at McDonalds, a beggar persistently got my attention (I couldn't get in the door without talking to him.) "Sir, can get a hot meal?" I really didn't want to argue, so I said, "I'll bring something out."

Inside, one of the men in line said to me, "He does this every morning. He really can go to work but he prefers to beg for a meal. I have enough savvy to know that's always a possibility, but since I had given my word, took him breakfast as I left to return to the hotel.

Was he taking advantage of me? Maybe. But I really have no way of knowing what his day was going to be like. A friend once said that the only way not to be taken advantage of is to never help. As I gave him the meal, he said, "Sir you have done a good deed for the day." I didn't respond--didn't feel the need to.

Jesus says a good deed, a cup of cold water in his name is always a good thing. We are doing it to Jesus. So even if the street guy was taking advantage of me, Jesus was pleased I am sure because I had simply followed his command and values.