Joy at the Sunoco Gas Station
Just Another Day at a Sunoco Gas Station…
I simply pulled in to get some gas. It was the Sunoco gas station on Wisconsin Avenue in Bethesda, Maryland. Yes, I needed some gas, but I was more interested in getting a muffin and some juice. Our workday was just starting and I needed the extra energy.
I pulled up to the pump, got out, and walked inside the station. That’s when I heard their conversation.
A couple of guys were not happy with religion. They were talking about how people are hypocrites. They were also talking about how you should get religion for free, not have to pay for it. They specifically mentioned the Catholics, Baptists, and the Jews who requested donations.
They left about a Southern Baptist to recently was on television publicly proclaim mean that he had send. They were mocking how easy it is to be forgiven. I didn’t say anything, I just went up to the counter and asked for $20 of regular on pump number seven.
With that I went outside and started to pump the gas. That’s when the Spirit got involved.
Inspiration Sets In…
I recognized that I had the answers to those guys questions inside the station. I also remembered that I had Articles of Faith cards and my public affairs cards in the truck.
I didn’t think about it long; I just grabbed two sets of each cards and headed back into the station.
One of the guys in the conversation worked at the station; the other was a customer. They apparently knew each other pretty well. I walked up to the employee and said, “I couldn’t help but hear your conversation. I don’t really have time to be a part of it, but I did want you to have these. They might be able to help.”
I said it with a little bit of humor in the employee started to laugh and liked what was going on. Both guys took my cards as I announced that I was a Mormon bishop.
Now I’m In the Middle of It…
With that the customer started firing questions at me. The first one was if I voted for Trump or Clinton. When I told him Trump he asked why. I told him if I’d had my choice I would’ve voted for Mitt Romney.
He quickly asked me what I thought of Barack Obama. I told him I voted for John McCain but kind of realized at the time that there was no way he was going to be the young, charisma attic Barack Obama.
The customer was big on hypocrisy. He was quick to point out where everyone else’s was. But he didn’t realize that if you practice the teaching of “Judge not that you be not judged,” then you label someone else as a hypocrite, you’re being a hypocrite yourself because you’re not practicing what you preach.
He went on to make a statement, energetically, that there’s never been a time in our nations history when the hypocrisy in the White House has been so blatant.
When I handed him the Articles of Faith card with a picture of Jesus on the front of it, surrounded by lots of children, he complained on why Jesus wasn’t “black.”
I Did My Best!
There wasn’t much more that I could say at the time, given that I was headed to work and an employee was waiting in the truck. But at least I gave them some information that allows them to contact me if they want to discuss it further. And I have two new friends that hang out in the Sunoco station on Wisconsin Avenue.
It’s a wonderful thing to have the restored truth. It calms you down and helps you go through life more smoothly.
You never know when the Lord is going to use you to help some of his other children become more exposed to the truth. The critical thing is to have some information with you that you can quickly and easily give out to those who cross your pathway.
The time that they’ll actually be in your pathway is very short. That’s why the information is so critical to have on hand!
I just may have to stop at that Sunoco gas station again!
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