Taking Notice

A few weeks ago a new television show called “Undercover Boss” began to air. The show is a reality spin where CEOs of large corporations go undercover in their own corporations by working in various jobs, at all levels in their companies. On the CBS webpage for the show, there is a picture of one such CEO holding a mop as he talks to an employee at the bottom echelon of his organization. At the end of the show the boss is revealed to the employees and he talks about how the experience changed the way he viewed the workers and workings of the corporation.

After viewing the first few programs two notions began to strike my mind. 

The first thought had to do with particular comments and attitudes that some employees exhibited. My thoughts centered around the surprise that someone cared. Whether it was for the show itself or truly their character, the CEOs seemed interested in who the people were in their companies and the conditions of their work environments. The workers were taken back by the fact that someone would take the time to meet them at their level and express interest in their needs.

The second thing that I connected with, as CBS readily played up, was the impact that was made on the CEO himself and the workers he connected with. So far, in each show, there seemed to be a genuine epiphany that happened when there was a connection between the common worker and the top dog. That connection caused a total change of perspective of CEO, and the subordinate of the company, in how they perceived each other.

God designed not only people but community. There is something wonderful that goes down when people connect with people. Perhaps that is why fellowship is mentioned so many times in the Bible and often as one of the goals of the church. Even beyond that, there is something almost miraculous that happens when people help people. 

I don’t know if our brain releases a chemical or it is purely a God design but something, almost, magical happens when we reach out to people. Call it “warm fuzzies” (there is probably a technical name) but something turns on inside us when we touch someone’s life. There is a fulfillment that is experienced in that scenario that cannot be found in any other way.

Response to the plight of others is God’s design. When we sit and watch a commercial about starving children, we are somewhat moved but it is so easy to dismiss the issue. But when we make contact with someone in need and we begin to understand their humanness, their likeness to us, the world they live in, suddenly there is a new factor in the equation. There is an old Native American saying that says “walk a  mile in my moccasins.” The concept being that you never understand someone else’s journey in life until you actually walk the same path they do. We can really never identify with others when our world is all we know.

Perhaps one of the best known passages in scripture is found in the twelfth chapter of Matthew. We know it as the “golden rule.” The Message Bible puts it this way. 

Matthew 6:12 (The Message)
"Here is a simple, rule-of-thumb guide for behavior: Ask yourself what you want people to do for you, then grab the initiative and do it for them. Add up God's Law and Prophets and this is what you get.

We have heard christians question God’s will or plan for their lives. They sit idly on the sidelines of life (and christianity) and wait for some great light to shine out of heaven to reveal specifics of a plan designed just for them. This scripture and the second greatest commandment (see Matthew 22:39-40) really boil down to revelation that God’s law is wrapped up in our connection with people. “Add up” all that God proclaimed about His will for us and this is the target of His will.

Did you notice? Did you notice the sadness of the person in the cubicle next to you.  Did you notice the tattered clothing of the child that plays in front of your house? Did you notice the loneliness of the man at the bus stop? Did you hear the crying of the baby at the doctors office? Did you notice the tear of the young woman you sat beside in church Sunday? Connecting with people is about being aware.

Is time to blame? Are the days really getting shorter, as we get older. Is there really too much to do? Yes, if we choose to believe that. Or is there time for people in our lives? Should there be? Do we believe that? Do we fail to hear the plight of those around us because of the noise of our personal world? 

I think God’s plan for us is to identify with our world. To notice and to go into their world at the risk of our personal loss. We have to ask the spirit to quicken us to notice people around us. 

There is a story of a young lady named Kitty Jenovese that was attacked in New York while people noticed. In fact, she was attacked 3 times with in 35 minutes, while 37 people noticed. The issue was not that people in that neighborhood did not notice but those who looked on supposed that someone else was coming to her aid; someone else was calling 911. Kitty died that day, while people noticed.

Taking notice is more than seeing. God took notice to our dilemma but He did not sit back. He was not happy to do nothing but observe. He took action. And isn’t that the real gospel? A God who becomes involved with the people He loves. The demonstration of God’s love was found in the sacrifice of His Son. Taking notice of our eternal doom drove God to act on our behalf. 

Could it be that at those times when we do notice, it is God steering us and others into a collision path? Perhaps He pilots our lives so that we are thrust into someone’s world so that we are shocked into noticing; noticing their need, noticing their condition, noticing their helplessness.

Why is it so amazing to people when someone steps out of their life to intervene? Why is it foreign when someone gives themselves for a cause that brings them no benefit? Because it is not the way of the world.  But shouldn’t it be so common among Christians that it comes as no surprise to the world around us? When a christian helps, should the response from our world be, “that is what we expected!”

Noticing is not hard. It can come like a brisk wind, but it can leave just the same. Those of us with the heart of God should notice, but cannot just notice. We are compelled to reaction. We are driven to affect. Why? Because our heart is the heart of a Father who is ordained to act on the behalf of others.

Listen. Look. Feel. Contemplate. Process. Take in the world around you. Shut out the noise of who you are and notice. Notice that prompting of God’s spirit. And in that noticing, you manifest the character of a Father who certainly took notice of you.