Today I had the displeasure of drving an hour to fight an underserved parking ticket. It was underserved because we actually paid for parking. We received the ticket because the officer did not see the receipt properly displayed in the window. The officer did not see the receipt because we did not display it properly. Despite the headache of the trip, I am thankful for what I hope will helpful thoughts and conversations for all of us to have.
Thought 1: People are mean when they are right. I watched today as 120 people yelled, swore, huffed, snipped at the one man who dared say they were wrong - the prosecuter. It made me think of how often Christians are right. We state how right we are in spiritual terms like "God told me," "I feel," or even "the Bible says." While what is said is often right, the attitude is very wrong. Litterally we are so right, we are wrong.
Thought 2: Time needs to be redeemed. As I sat waiting for my turn to plead my case I was racked with thoughts of what needed to be accomplished today and thoughts of how court was the last place I wanted to be. I was convinced that, given an oppotunity to be heard I could be aquitted of the crime my resting Civic had committed. However that opportunity would not be afforded to me until the after noon. I chose to pay the fine rather than the time. Time is something we can never get back. How many of us stress more about wasted dollars than wasted moments? I pray that my family and I come to value our minutes over money, and experiences over possesions. I can always make more money. I can't always make more memories.
Thought 3: Proof must be displayed. The crime which I stood accused of was not that I did not pay the parking fee. Rather, it was that I did not properly display the proof that the fee was paid. I wonder how often that is the case our day to day lives. How often do we carry the name, love, and grace on our hearts but never display him in our lives. Proof is meaningless if it is not public. When we fail to display the proof of what Christ has done in our lives to the world, we fail to display the reality of Christ's lifechanging power.
Excellent observations. So many of us will spend 6 hours to save $50 without realizing the value of their time.
ReplyDeleteThe last officer interaction I had, some 10 years ago thankfully, I went to court. I watched those in front of me tell the officer and prosecutor they were wrong, they were lying and that they didn't "deserve" their violation - in most of those circumstances, a video tape was played for all to see, making the situation quite humorous to those with intelligence.
When it was my turn, I pleaded to the Judge for simple mercy, explaining my clean driving record, my lapse in judgment, admitting that "if the officers radar says I was speeding, I must have been speeding" Of all the cases in those 2 hours, mine was the only one dismissed. I still believe it was my attitude and humility rather than anything else that got me off the hook.
Thankfully a parking ticket doesn't carry points. My plea was along the lines, "I do not want this one lapse of judgment to follow me as increased insurance premiums for the next 5-7 years." Otherwise I probably would not have taken the time from my schedule.
PittCaleb