Express Lane at Target

I have no classes on Tuesday and have the mornings off, so after cleaning out my car I made a trip to Target to pick up some blank CD-R's, shampoo and for my wife, a 6 pack of root beer and bagel bites, both of which she has been having pregnant cravings for. After I picked up those four items, I proceeded to check out at the "10 Items or Less" aisle. As I was walking, a woman in a cart beat me to the the line, where she proceeded to unload somewhere between 30-40 items out of her cart (I lost count after a while).

Now, just a couple of years ago I would probably have said something to her like, "This lane is for 10 items of less, ma'am." And just a few months ago, I probably would have just mustered a very annoyed and angered look on my face, accompanied by some annoyed grunts.

However, instead of dwelling on this perceived injustice that was happening to me, I started thinking about how silly getting mad about this situation really was and picked up a People Magazine and started flipping through the pages to mainly try to forget about how I would be standing in line for 10 minutes when I was in the express lane and I only had 4 items.

After reading about American Idol contestant Kevin Covais' homecoming and a blurb about Mary Winkler, I put the magazine up as it was finally my turn.

Now, I'm not trying to toot my own horn here on how well I did, but it is wonderful to look back on one's life and see how God has consistently and thoroughly progressively sanctified me through the years. His goal is for us to become more like Christ. How you deal with life situations is evidence that the Spirit is working in your life.

Like I said, just a few years ago I would have been very angry and appalled at the "audacity" of a woman to do what she did. If she just had let me go first, I would have been finished in less then a minute...which I was. However, life is not about me. Life is about glorifying God. And it was evident in his eternal sovereignty and wisdom that God wanted me to go through that irritating situation for a reason. What reason? To glorify Him for how he Has changed my life. I could not have done it on my own, because I am a selfish sinner. God, however, pursues us and stays with us, and all trials, no matter how big or small, are for our benefit because they ultimately have the potential to glorify Him...if we let them.