Luke 16:10 One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much.
An elderly couple entered a hotel in Philadelphia in the late 1880s looking for a room. Unfortunately, the clerk informed them the hotel was full. But it was late and stormy, and the clerk, who lived in the hotel, didn’t have the heart to turn them away, so he offered them his room. The next morning when the man paid his bill, he told the clerk, “You’re the kind of manager who should be the boss of the best hotel in the United States. Maybe someday I’ll build one for you.”
Two years later, the elderly man invited the clerk to New York City. He escorted him to the corner of 5th Avenue and 34th Street where a magnificent building stood before him. The elderly man explained the building was the hotel he had built for him. That elderly man was William Waldorf Astor; the hotel, the world-famous Waldorf-Astoria. The clerk who became its first manager was George C. Bolt.
Some say this story is simply an urban legend. Others call it the origin of the Waldorf principle of “selfless service.” But no matter how you look at it, it demonstrates the importance of being faithful in all we do.
In the parable of the dishonest manager, Jesus said those who prove faithful in little things will also be faithful in much. And those unfaithful in little, will be unfaithful in more. Jesus illustrates that faithfulness, or lack thereof, is a character issue. It runs deep.
I believe it’s faithfulness in the little things of life that trains us to be faithful in every part of life. It’s why I encourage my students not to skip class. Why I try to follow through when I tell someone I’ll pray for them. Why I tithe and pay my bills on time. If I renege on small duties, I won’t be ready to take care of more important ones.
George C. Bolt was rewarded for carrying out his duties. And so will we, if we faithfully attend to the little things. We may not understand the ramifications at the time, but don’t lose heart. Faithfulness carries great reward.