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In a world where people are determined that no one will ever take advantage of them, we are told to turn the other cheek and go the extra mile. Not many of us do that very well. But I also believe there are limits on how many extra miles we go.
Let me relate a real experience that one woman shared with me. She works in an office with several other women. She works very hard, consistently giving her employer an honest day’s work. However, the other women in her office don’t share that work ethic. And she ends up doing her work and much as theirs as well.
They make long personal telephone calls, chat with each other, find excuses to leave their desk, and in general don’t really care about getting their work done. They don’t even admire this woman’s efforts, but rather, they think she’s foolish to give more than is expected of her.
True, she goes many extra miles, but she has grown to resent it. She’s built up bitterness and resentment toward those who are sloughing off. In fact, it’s to the point now that she doesn’t even speak to these women who are taking advantage of her unless it’s absolutely necessary.
It’s easy to see that her extra mile efforts have now become anything but Christ-like, anything but a good testimony for Jesus. When doing more than you have to leads you into this kind of attitude problem, you know that you’re not pleasing the Lord with your extra mile efforts.
When you go the extra mile with a willing spirit, with the right servant attitude, then God is pleased. But if you’re going so many extra miles that you’re allowing people to take undue advantage of you simply because you don’t know what to do or you’re afraid to take any action, then the motivation is wrong and the attitude becomes harmful.