Spiritual Lessons from Michael Scott: Goodbye Toby

Finally, in season 4’s “Goodbye Toby,” Michael gets to rid himself of his least favorite person on earth—Toby Flenderson. Why he hates Toby so much is anybody’s guess. Despite Michael’s view of The Office as one big happy family, Toby is the butt of all of his jokes and is not accepted. Early on in the episode Michael declares with vengeance:

Toby has been cruisin' for a bruisin' for twelve years. And I am now his cruise director. And my name is Captain Bruisin'.

Captain Bruisin. Nice.

Michael awaits with eager anticipation the moment to give Toby his exit interview. Michael is under the opinion that an exit interview is the time that he can grill Toby with all the questions he always wanted to ask. When the HR director (lovely Holly) demands that she sit in on the interview, Michael realizes he can no longer be cruel, but he has no choice but to read off his pre-written questions off his cue cards!

Question 1: *asked nicely* “Who do you think you are?

Question 2: *asked awkwardly* “What gives you the right?”

He has a going away present for Toby which is a rock that says “suck on this,” but because Holly is there, he ends up giving Toby his treasured wristwatch instead.

He now believes Toby to be monstrous.

Thanks to Toby I have a very strong prejudice against Human Resources. I believe that the department is a breeding ground for monsters. What I failed to consider though, is that not all monsters are bad. Like ET.

Ok, now for something slightly spiritual…

Church is a family too. But there is always that one family member you could live without. Truth is, you may not even remember why anymore. Was it a falling out? Was it something he said? Or is it just her personality? It doesn’t matter. God says, that because we are his children, we are also brothers and sisters. And we need to love one another. When you are having trouble getting along with someone, try thinking of them as your literal sibling, and see the difference it starts to make. Pray blessings on them. Pray for God to heal the situation. Go out of your way to do something nice to them. It will make all the difference.

Or you could just give them a rock.

What is one of your favorite quotes from The Office?

Spiritual lessons from Michael Scott - “Scott’s Tots”

Season 6, Episode: “Scott’s Tots”

It’s hard to pick my favorite Office episode, but “Scott’s Tots” has to be right up there. In this episode, the audience is made aware that years earlier Michael has promised scholarships to a whole class of underprivileged youth if they graduate from high school. Well, they do. And the day of reckoning comes, when Michael has to make good on his promise.

I just--I fell in love with these kids. And I didn't want to see them fall victim to the system. So I made 'em a promise. I told them if they graduated from high school, I would pay for their college education. I have made some empty promises in my life but, hands down that was the most generous.

Hmm. It’s easy to be generous when it doesn’t cost us, isn’t it?

Michael’s motivation was good, as he thought he would have the money by then:

I'm not a millionaire. I thought I would be by the time I was thirty, but I wasn't even close. Then I thought maybe by forty, but by forty I had less money than I did when I was thirty.

When Michael finally meets the students he gives them the bad news. He tries to make his catastrophe right by offering them…laptop batteries.

Now, I can't pay for your college. But you don't have to go to class, to be in class. Online classes are a viable option to a traditional college experience. [unzips suitcase] And the best way to access those courses is with your own personal laptop. Which is rendered useless, without batteries. And I have one for each of you.

Ouch!

The Bible says that a godly person “keeps an oath even when it hurts…” (Ps. 15:4).

Have you ever promised something you couldn’t deliver?

Lessons from Michael Scott: Be careful HOW you say it

I really like the TV show The Office. If you’re like me, during the summer, you start to have The Office withdrawal. This summer is even worse since Office fans are reeling with the news that Michael Scott will not be returning next season. (Apparently James Spader will be his replacement.) So, to help you with your summer fix, I’ve decide to write a series of posts on lessons we can learn from Michael Scott.

Lesson #1 Be very careful how you say it
Taken from season 4, episode 1: “Fun Run”

Michael Scott: Ladies and gentleman, I have some bad news. Meredith was hit by a car.
Oscar: Where?
Michael Scott: It happened this morning in the parking lot. I took her to the hospital. And the doctors tried to save her, life, they did the best they could. And she is going to be ok.
Stanley: What is wrong with you? Why would you have to phrase is like that?

Wow! That’s funny. And kind of wrong. Did you ever let something slip out of your mouth that you immediately wish you could take back? I know I have. Or maybe it wasn’t what you said, like Michael, it was how you said it? I’ve done that too.

When I am out of country, I can’t help but notice how many of us Americans do this. We come in with a view that our way is better, and let it out by our expressions. Like, we will find out what the other country doesn’t have, or doesn’t do like us, and add a look of concern. “You don’t have plumbing in your house?" said with sympathetic look. Or, “You don’t own a car?” said with incredulous look. Or what I said last week: “this food is great!” followed by slight gag reflex. The trouble is, the words may be fine, but the way we say them leave a person feeling something else.

Have you ever done this?