I wonder if this is how You felt...

I couldn't sleep well last night. I was angry, frustrated and felt very unforgiving. The cause? A customer I had to serve a few hours before. So the story goes like this: customer dropped off a dress to be altered in the morning, she was to pick up the dress in the afternoon at around 4. My shift was from 3-9, so I didn't know about the said dress to be altered. Anyway, so she came at 4, turns out the dress hasn't been altered yet, because it was left in a plastic bag and under piles of clothing - fine, our fault, I totally agree. She started rambling on about how she dropped it off in the morning and demanded to know why it wasn't done etc, saying how she had work at 5 and stuff. It was totally our fault so I apologized profusely and asked for the customer to come back in 30mins. She snatched away her docket and left with an extremely sour face - "I am NOT happy about this!"

This part was okay, I mean, I understand why she'd be so pissed - I would be too. It as AFTER when she came back to pick her dress up @4:45 that what she said really got me. So yes, she came back 45mins later (cmon, you're supposed to come back in 30 mins!) Anyway, we gave her the dress and as an apology we gave her a discount voucher. She was unsatisfied. She demanded we give her back some money for "the inconveniences we'd caused (eg. being late for work)", SO we did another 10% off (on top of the discount voucher) - still unhappy. So I told her, that sorry, this is the best we can do etc etc etc and the boss isn't here so I'm not allowed to give anymore. I asked her to come back the next morning to talk to the boss - instead of an "okay", I got: "NO, I want my money now. I'm not going to leave until you give me money and there are customers waiting so deal with it" - OMG, THE NERVE OF THAT WOMAN. She trying to threaten the business?! I mean seriously! She's the one complaining that she's late for work and here she is, deciding to stand there until we give her more money!

I kept trying to tell her my hands are tied and I cannot do anything TODAY, but if she came back TOMORROW, we could sort something out. But nooooooo, she wanted us to call the boss and talk to him. I did, she got back $20 + discount voucher and left.

Heck, that time, I was glad she was gone. I didn't really feel any anger then, probably cos I had to focus on other customers and had to serve them. But yeah, it's when I got back home and was in bed that I started to playback what had happened earlier...I worked myself up and got myself really angry at her. I was shouting profanities in my head, thinking of what I could've said back. Basically I was plotting revenge. haha. I know. So unChrist-like. It got to the point where I was feeling so much hate I couldn't sleep...and then it dawned on me that I cannot be like this, I had to forgive her (plus, the following evening I had to lead a prayer night! Talking about FORGIVING PEOPLE!) But I did not have the strength to forgive. Only God has. So I asked God to give me the strength that I don't have to forgive this person. It took a while, I was reluctant, but eventually I did...

And it was then I realized if I felt this angry towards someone I didn't even know, how must God have felt when his own CHILDREN disobeyed Him, slandered Him, belittled Him, did all sorts of things God HATES?? How must He have felt? As angry as I felt? If anyone had the right to be angry, it was Him, right?? Yet He still had so much love for us. It continues to amaze me how GREAT our Father in heaven is! I praise Him for showing us the love we do not deserve, even though countless time we saddened and angered Him, He still loved. Praise God! You are awesome! PTL!

Micah 7:18-20

¹⁸ Who is a God like you,
who pardons sin and forgives the transgression
of the remnant of his inheritance?
You do not stay angry forever
but delight to show mercy.

¹⁹ You will again have compassion on us;
you will tread our sins underfoot
and hurl all our iniquities into the depths of the sea.

²⁰ You will be faithful to Jacob,
and show love to Abraham,
as you pledged on oath to our ancestors
in days long ago.