To All The Nancy Nice Girls

Romans 13:1-7Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment.  For rulers are not a terror to good conduct, but to bad. Would you have no fear of the one who is in authority? Then do what is good, (be nice – I added this interpretation) and you will receive his approval, for he is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for he does not bear the sword in vain. For he is the servant of God, an avenger who carries out God’s wrath on the wrongdoer. Therefore one must be in subjection, not only to avoid God’s wrath but also for the sake of conscience.  For because of this you also pay taxes, for the authorities are ministers of God, attending to this very thing.  Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.

Yes, I had to remind myself of this passage just the other day. I was at the “Everything and Groceries Too” store at the self-checkout. The button “Finish and Pay” was flashing with a total of $89 and some cents. Since I hadn’t scanned anything, I had to call over the girl who oversaw the self-checkout stands. At first she wanted me to pay the total flashing but she saw I only had 4 things in my basket and it would have hardly totaled $30. So she had to cancel out the total and get to the start button. I questioned her, “So, do you mean someone scan scammed almost a hundred dollars’ worth of groceries and just walked out?” She said, “Yes, Ma’am.” And we both shook our heads. 

It just bothered me all the way home trying to consider how someone could go to that extreme to get around the system and do it with a clear conscience. Wouldn’t it bother them? How could they sleep? How could they eat food they stole? And, Yes, I had just read Romans 13 (in my quest to read through the Bible in a year) that morning.

I tried to picture myself doing the scan scam and couldn’t. Now before I got self-righteous patting myself on the back for being such a Nancy Nice, I had to realize that the Holy Spirit in me was the conscience warning part that made me have a problem with the scan scam artist. I couldn’t steal like that, not because of me but because of the Holy Spirit in me.

Sometimes we read passages in the Bible like Romans 13 and think of our submission to governmental authority only. But it goes to a more personal level. We are always to be Nancy Nice’s wherever we go. We don’t come back with an angry response, we don’t try to find the loop hole, and we do what is the nice and right thing to do. The Bible becomes our truth standard that we follow even when we see a way get around the system.

That day was a reminder of what the unredeemed heart considers acceptable because it wasn’t caught. That day reminded me of my redeemed heart that would have bothered me just considering doing the stealing. That day made me thank the Holy Spirit for making me a Nancy Nice. Now I’m not sinless. Oh no, I can sin with the best of them BUT I can’t walk away without getting smacked by my conscience. I just know I can’t sin guilt free. And I wouldn’t have it any other way.

To all the Nancy Nice’s out there;

Thank you.

Let’s be nice for conscious sake together.

Psalm 119:1-2 Blessed are those whose way is blameless (the Nancy Nice's,) who walk in the law of the Lord. Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek the Him with their whole heart.