Judging others in the drive thru line

4/20/2021

How many times have you been let down by others? Many, I’m quite sure.  Today I found myself so annoyed by someone. I was so quick to judge. We do that don’t we? We judge others by their outward appearance, by their political views, by their religious views, by their life choices, and what we perceive to be different from ourselves.

Today I was in the Chick-Fil-A line. It was early in the morning, and I was in such a great mood. I had already taught my swim class and was boppin’ to Christian music with the windows down. I heard a car horn behind me and looked to see who was honking in the drive thru line. I thought the noise was further back in the line, so I kept on boppin’ and singing. Again, with the loud beep, but this time more intentional. I looked again, now this time the man behind me was hanging his head out the window yelling profanities at me because he thought I should move up closer to the car in front of me. I looked, had I missed the fact that it was my turn? Had I gotten caught up in my singing to the point where there was a huge distance between myself and the person in front of me? Nope! I was about 3 feet away from the cars bumper, and he had a small trailer on the back with a cooler on top. I didn’t feel I could move up anymore, the guy kept screaming. What had happened in his life that early in the morning to make him so angry? As he continued to spew his profanities, I cranked up my songs and rolled up my window. I figured he couldn’t see the car had a trailer on it, so there was no reason to get into a confrontation with someone over a three-foot gap.

I kept my eye on this man, who had moved into lunacy. His voice was getting louder trying to get my attention. His face was red, he literally looked as though he had been running a mile. This was not about me, or the fact that I was three feet away from the car in front of me.

My human mind was so judgmental, in fact, he had moved into the realm of being scary and I had already locked my doors just in case he decided to step out of his car.

The car in front of me finally moved forward and I was next in line. I got close to the car ahead of me thinking this would stop the man behind me from continuing his tirade. Finally, I moved up to the window. The girl in the window handed me my food and drink and I could tell she was worried about the man in the next car. She smiled an awkward smile, and I wished her a great day!

Later, I was on a work zoom call where a member of the group was saying negative things about a particular political party. I was annoyed again. Why do people assume all people affiliated with a party are a certain way? I let it go.

I took a step back. We live in a broken world. I’m not always nice. I don’t always present myself in the best light either, I’m sure of that.

 In Psalm 34:18, the Bible says, “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted.” Could this man in the chick-fil-a line be brokenhearted about something? Is he hurting? Angry? I believe it is very possible.

Could it be that my co-worker has been hurt by someone in that political party or views issues differently because of past experiences that I am not aware of. I believe that is also very possible.

What does God call me to do? Love my neighbors, even when it’s hard. Love my neighbors even when I don’t understand. Love my neighbors although we are different in our thoughts and actions. Yes!

Today I pray that God reminds me to continue to Love Others!

Blessings Sweet Friends,

Stacy