Love Includes Integrity

Love Includes Integrity
Author: Ian Young, Middle School Director
Ten - Part 9
—

– Exodus 20:15

My mother-in-law was a criminal.

Now, allow me to provide proper context so you all get the full picture for the sake of my relationship with my in-laws.

My niece and nephew were getting ready to have their birthday party at a pool in southern West Virginia. Anyone who has children and has thrown a birthday party for them knows it can be nice to have an extra hand getting everything together. So, “Nonni,” my mother-in-law’s grandmother name, was being a wonderful grandma to her grandchildren and went to pick up the pizzas that had been pre-ordered at Sam’s Club to bring to the party.

When she went to get the pizzas, she got a cart and loaded up the dozen or so pizzas. The person who gave her the pizzas didn’t mention a payment. As she was walking out of the store, a manager was by the door. Rather than checking for a receipt as Sam’s Club employees normally do as customers make their exit, he instead just made a pleasant comment about the plethora of pizzas she had and let her go on her merry way.

Nonni didn’t know the pizzas hadn’t been paid for yet; she was officially on the run… or headed to the party… but I prefer the first one.

I am not sure who realized a crime had been committed, but I just know that my niece and nephew's dad called the next day and got the pizzas all paid for. Nonni was officially free and clear.

Sam’s Club, a multi-billion dollar company, may not notice that much of a missed profit from some pizzas. These pizzas could have easily not been paid for, and the police would never have come knocking on the door. Isn’t this mistake on the Sam’s Club employees? Isn’t it the responsibility of the person who handed her the pizzas to make sure that a payment was taken? Or even more so on the manager who was by the exit to check for the receipt? This is more of their fault than my mother-in-law’s, right?

Stealing is one of these things we like to adjust in our own eyes how severe the sin is because of the value of what we are stealing or who we are stealing from. We might think lightly of a kid stealing a candy bar because of how small the item is. We might not think much of lying on our taxes because "the government takes enough of our money." Or, we may not think much about taking a longer lunch break than scheduled.

However, I encourage you to take this commandment, along with everything else in God’s Word, with weight and sincerity, because God is God, and we are not. Out of our love for Him, let us listen and obey so that we may honor Him and show who He is to the world the way He has designed us to—with love and integrity.

– John 14:15