Early one Saturday morning I found myself in a position where an important decision needed to be made. I was in a drive-thru line at Chick-fil-A. It was my last chance to redeem the free Cow Calendar selection of the month!
Have you ever been in a double drive through lane? If so, then you know the crucial time when you must choose between lanes. The time a commitment must be made. If you’re like me, you don’t want to choose the wrong lane.
There was a car at each ordering station when I pulled into the drive-thru line, and there was one car just ahead of me. The car ahead was inching its way into Lane A, making the best decision with the limited information of who is ordering what in each of the cars in front, and how long it would take to place the order. As I was waiting my turn, pondering which way I should go, the decision was made for me and for that I was grateful. I really wasn’t prepared for such a weighty matter so early in the morning. The car in Lane B had just pulled away, leaving a wide-open slot for someone to pull up and order. I sat there for a few seconds giving the car ahead of me the chance to somehow maneuver into the open lane. It just wasn’t meant to be.
After I had placed my order, I pulled away, feeling sorry for the car that was once ahead of me who was now sadly behind me, still waiting to place her order.
She chose the wrong lane! And there was nothing she could do to redeem the situation.
She may have been okay with whatever lane she was in. It may not have mattered one bit. After all, it was a Saturday morning. Maybe she had some time to spare as she was running her morning errands. Or, maybe it was a really big deal. Perhaps she was in a bit of a time-crunch, rushing madly to grab her kid a quick bite to eat before the big game began.
I don’t know the circumstances of her life, or her day for that matter. I just know that I have been where she was. I have chosen the wrong lane myself.
And then it hit me! Sometimes we choose the wrong lane in life. Sometimes, we settle for what looks like the most logical choice, the most convenient; the lane that will bring about the fastest, easiest results that we eagerly long for.
Does it ever feel like you’ve chosen the wrong lane? Have you ever found yourself in a place where you know you chose the wrong lane, but it was years ago and now there is simply nothing to be done about it? The problem is, you can’t unchange the choice you opted for so long ago.
Sometimes life is like a drive-thru lane. The clock is ticking, or so it seems, and a decision needs to be made. Sometimes the consequences of that decision will not manifest until years down the road. There are times when it is too late to rethink a matter. The path you have chosen is the one you are on.
There are no do-overs in life, or at times, in a drive-thru lane. You stay the course and hope for the best. In life, unlike the drive-thru lane, there is a redemptive option. Jesus gave His life so we can live above the circumstances, even thrive in spite of the lane we have chosen. Jesus can take the messed-up things and give them purpose and meaning. Only God can turn something wrong into something very good.
And just in case you’re wondering, I paid for the woman behind me, who would have been in front of me, except she chose the wrong lane.
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