On Obedience

From chapter V on obedience:

This obedience, however, will be acceptable to God and agreeable to men then only, if what is commanded is done without hesitation, delay, lukewarmness, grumbling or complaint, because the obedience which is rendered to Superiors is rendered to God.

I continue to struggle with the idea of obedience. There are times when I really look forward to retirement – not just so I don’t have to work but so I no longer have to answer to any kind of superior. Fortunately modern business environments don’t function with the same kind of command and control mentality as they did when I first started in business and our management culture is more steeped in problem solving and empowerment than a strict adherence to rules. Even so the thought of following orders can give me heartburn. For me, there is even worse news. Not only are we challenged to not only do what is commanded but to also be compliant, according Norvene Vest. I feel like I am being told to eat dirt and be glad I have it to eat. This is nothing new for me. Even when I owned my own business, I was still not my own boss. Our clients were the real bosses. Why is obedience such an issue? I was not raised in an authoritative home where rules were strictly enforced but at times I sure act like I was. The real issue is that to obey means that we have to convince our egos to yield. In my case, your response to me should be, “Good luck with that.”