A Matter of Faith...

By Carol Round
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.” Ecclesiastes 12:13 (NIV)

It was only $6.30.

It would have put about two gallons of gas in my vehicle—depending on the whim of whomever decides to raise or lower gas prices on any given day. But it wasn’t my money.

Oh, I had it in my possession. It was weighing down my billfold. More precisely, it was weighing on my heart.

I was in a hurry—who isn’t these days? I had paid for some photos at a local store and stuffed the change in my billfold without thinking. I was leaving town for the weekend and I couldn’t wait to get to the lake where I craved solitary time with the Lord.

I was probably five minutes out of town when I realized that I had received too much change. As I recalled the exchange with the young photo clerk, I remembered him counting out my money. It suddenly dawned on me what he had done.

Instead of giving me the correct change out of a $10 bill, he had actually given me the amount I owed for the photos. Neither one of us had caught the mistake. Both of us probably had our minds on weekend plans. I certainly did.

It was five days later before I found the time to return to the store. I asked to speak to the manager. When I told him my story, he checked the records and confirmed that the register had been $6.30 short that day. I opened my billfold and counted out six $1 bills and 30 cents in change.

Two other store employees, who witnessed our conversation, were amazed that I had returned to correct the mistake. One said, “Most people wouldn’t have bothered.”

In the past, I didn’t bother. I figured it was the store’s loss and my gain when I was given too much change at the time of a purchase. I didn’t feel convicted to fix the oversight.

But that was before I knew my savior personally. When you enter into a relationship with the Lord, your whole outlook changes. You come to a place within yourself where you know that you have to please Him. Nothing else matters.

I was listening to one of my favorite TV pastors the other day. One of the things she mentioned was our duty to please the Lord. Duty? I had never thought of it as a duty.

I turned to my dictionary where I looked up the definition of “duty” and its synonyms. Duty means responsibility. Other words that mean the same include assignment, commission, commitment, mission, obligation, service, task and undertaking.

We have a responsibility to God. You may consider it mere pocket change. He sees it as your mission to live your life for Him.

Are you living out your life for Him? It’s your duty, you know.


Carol Round is a retired Jay High School journalism teacher who now resides in Claremore, OK. Readers can reach her at carolaround@yahoo.com.