The Last Drop

The Last Drop

Give to Caesar what belongs to Caesar, and give to God what belongs to God.

Matthew 22:21

The local truck-stop customers were so sure that their cook was the strongest man around that they offered a standing wager of one thousand dollars. The cook would squeeze a lemon until all the juice ran into a glass, then hand the lemon to a contender. Anyone who could squeeze just one more drop of juice out of the lemon would win the money.

Many people (burly truck drivers, weight lifters, longshoremen, and the like) had tried to win the wager, but nobody had been able to do it, which had left the cook the lemon-squeezing champion for several years.

One day a thin, balding little man, wearing thick, black-rimmed glasses and a double-knit polyester leisure suit, came into the truck stop. He ordered a glass of milk and then announced to the cook in a tiny, timid voice, “I’d like to try that wager, if you please.”

After the laughter had died down, the cook said, “Okay, if you’re really serious.”

“I am, sir,” said the challenger.

The cook grabbed a lemon and squeezed away. Then he handed over the wrinkled remains of the lemon. The little man clenched his fist around the lemon, and the crowd’s laughter turned to silence as one drop fell into the glass—then another and another. Six drops in all were squeezed from the lemon.

As the crowd cheered, the cook grudgingly paid the thousand dollars. Then he asked the winner, “Say, what do you do for a living? You’re obviously not a lumberjack or a weight lifter.”

An almost imperceptible smile came across the little man’s lips as he replied in a quiet but satisfied voice, “I work for the IRS.”

O God, you have blessed me so richly, and I am thankful for every good gift you have given me. Help me to honor you with my money and to pay my taxes with honesty. Amen.