The Grocery Store Test
The older I get, the more I think character reveals itself in ordinary places.
Everyone notices character on stages.
In boardrooms.
In the highly visible moments where people know they’re being watched.
But it usually shows up first somewhere else.
In grocery stores.
Parking lots.
Drive-thrus.
Customer service calls.
The little moments where there’s nothing to gain.
I’ve watched people be charming in public settings and cruel to waiters ten minutes later.
I’ve watched leaders command rooms while showing no patience for the people serving them.
And honestly, I’ve caught myself doing smaller versions of the same thing.
Being short.
Distracted.
Impatient.
Acting like my schedule mattered more than someone else’s humanity.
That made me think…
Maybe integrity is less about who we are under pressure and more about who we are in ordinary moments.
How we treat people who can’t advance our career.
People who move slower than we want.
People who inconvenience us.
People who never get to tell our side of the story.
Scripture says:
“Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility value others above yourselves.”
Philippians 2:3
That verse feels a lot more practical in a grocery store than it does in a theology class.
Because love isn’t proven through grand gestures nearly as often as we think.
Most of the time it shows up in tone.
Patience.
Eye contact.
Kindness.
The willingness to remember that every person standing in front of us is carrying something we cannot see.
I’m realizing more and more that spiritual maturity is not just how we worship when the music is playing.
It’s how we treat people when life becomes inconvenient.
And honestly, the grocery store might reveal more about our hearts than we’d like to admit.
That made me think...
What would change if we treated ordinary moments like they mattered spiritually too?
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