Undercover Angels

What if your boss went undercover? Do you think you would recognize him/her in their disguise? Better yet, would you spill juicy details about how you felt about the company and completly be yourself?
Here's the fun part...how do you think you would have influenced the boss concerning the direction of the company? Would they consider you for a promotion? Would they demote you or be displeased with your attitude or work ethic? Would they be challenged to make significant changes?

I was watching Undercover Boss with my mom and explaining to her how this employee was mouthing off on his truck run and really grieving his boss (the undercover CEO of the company) with how he felt about his duties and often treated his customers. When the boss had the chance to unveil who he really was, the employee had no regrets for how he behaved. He actually defended his rude and disrespectful behavior with his own justifications.

It got me to thinking about the scripture that talks about entertaining angels.

"Do not forget or neglect or refuse to extend hospitality to strangers [in the brotherhood—being friendly, cordial, and gracious, sharing the comforts of your home and doing your part generously], for through it some have entertained angels without knowing it." Hebrews 13:2

I've both financed and leased a car before. When I leased, there was a bit of relief when I knew the car wouldn't belong to me once the contract ended. I had to take good care of it, though, because it didn't belong to me and never would. It was simply entrusted to me for an allotted time. 
But the car I financed was mine (in theory) or at least in the process of becoming mine. Granted this car caught fire and was completely totaled a month before I officially owned it, I grieved much over this car because I took great care of it for it to only be taken from me.

Sometimes I think of the people God places in our lives for seasons of time, whether through church families, work environments, school, and even (don't throw stones at me when I say this but) through marriage and/or family. Yes even family members are on loan to us. The leasing contract may be longer than those with whom we work with, but it's a loan nonetheless. 

Just like in Undercover Boss, The Lord expects us to treat those He allows in our paths with compassion, empathy, and love. His command is not to neglect them, not to treat them with a stiff arm nor with unfair and selfish actions.


His motive is that they are on loan (lease) from Him. They may be your professor, supervisor, 
volleyball teammate for a season and a reason. God may be using them to teach you a lesson or send you a message. He may be allowing them to rub you the wrong way to sharpen His character in you.
He may be showing them who He is and how mighty and loving He is, by allowing them to work for you, sit in on your study group or serve in the same ministry as you. 

You are "entertaining angels unaware" or the way a sweet friend of mine put it, 'God has entrusted people to us'. When she said that it made me think of how stoic I can get sometimes when I lose sight of how precious  and fragile the lives of others are. When I get wrapped up in my own agendas, how I treat people often is the first thing to fly out the window. 

What we do to these employees, coworkers, classmates, friends, mentees, mentors, lay people, pastors, family members, spouses, children, parents...(strangers/angels), how we treat them is how we are treating God. Or this is how He will interpret our dealings with others.

"I was hungry and you fed me,...I was a stranger and you took me in." Matthew 25:35

"I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me" Matthew 25:40 Msg

I'm not able to say I can justly stand before Him and say I was the best host to all those who've visited my life. I need forgiveness for how I've interacted in many of my loans (friends, family, etc). I can say, however, it wasn't very hard to "lose" my dad because I had learned during his illness that he was on loan to me. Despite how close we were and how much he means to me, he belonged to God and when our contract was up, I can say I was able to release him (not without much tears, and joyful memories).

My desire is going forth, is that the insensitive and negative way the employee behaved in front of that CEO is a vivid reminder of how angels and strangers are around me daily, will marry into my family (or marry me), will work with or for me one day, or will labor with me in ministry; and I am responsible for how I "entertained" them. Whether they saw Christ in how I spoke to them, treated them, dealt with them and in my attitude towards them or not. And I will think forward to the day I stand before my CEO and give an account for whether I was Christ to them (a sweet aroma) or turned them from ever wanting to trust Christ (a stench) as Savior.