Hey!! Why Don’t You Watch Where You’re Walking!!

Posted on February 12, 2020 by Catey Stover in Freedom Fighters

“For the LORD God is a sun and shield; The LORD gives grace and glory; No good thing does He withhold from those who walk uprightly.” Psalm 84:11 (NASB)

 

I’m the guy at Walmart who watches the purchases add up. I hover over the credit card swiper as the cashier ensures the “beep” happens before they pack those cheesy plastic bags with my day’s purchase. On one particular morning, I was doing my usual hovering when I heard, “Oh never mind, I’ll just get a new bag” and then I peered over the top of my glasses to watch a clearly aggravated woman storming off to the produce area of Walmart. At the same time, I observed a father with his special need’s son making their way along the checking out area.

 

The father had his son’s hand as the woman made her hasted way towards produce. She crashes right into the son and then shouted out, “Hey! Why don’t you watch where you’re walking!” She huffed and puffed as she retrieved a bag of “Halo” brand oranges and made her way back to the check-out line. All the while mumbling stuff like “the nerve”, “I guess this’ll do” and “Could you bag this separately?” I really felt bad for the father/son after their encounter with this person. I listened as the father took the blame for something that could have been avoided if she would have a least looked up as she did her stormin’ off…. C’est la vie!

 

I’ve had similar experiences during my Walmart visits where people were just poppin’ outta aisles without at least looking both ways but still having gaze enough to give me the stink eye. The nerve indeed!! But isn’t that what is happening these days? No one looks both ways when crossing the street, turn signals are becoming extinct, cars just pull out right in front of you before making the next immediate turn, people cut the lines at movies and don’t get me started with what happens at football games. The nerve indeed!!

 

“Therefore, be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:15-16)

 

The apostle Paul wrote the aforementioned passage to folks who needed to be encouraged in staying unified as followers of Jesus Christ and not to fall back into their old habits. But I also think he wanted folks to pay attention to their walks, which would mean keeping their heads up, to stay vertically minded. As we journey through our Christian lives, its our behavior that the world around us sees. So, when you tie that in with “not as unwise men but wise” we’ll understand that as we take a spiritual walk around life, folks need to see us a God’s children and not as hasty people looking for Halo brand oranges…just sayin’.

 

Now we have the second part of this Biblical passage to contend with, “making the most of your time, because the days are evil.” In the same vein that not every Dudley Do-Right wears a well fitted Canadian Mounties uniform is that not every Snidely Whiplash has a twirly mustache (or does the Devil have a pointed tail and pitchfork). Au Contraire! We always seem to equate evil with someone who commits some horrid atrocity but that is not always the case. Be that lady, in the check-out, losing her patience with just about every one EXCEPT that bag of Halo oranges. Not to really pick on her but it was becoming apparent to me that her time needed to be rather hurried, so there was no room for anything else.

 

May that not be any of us this day. Making the most, or redeeming, the time means we need to buy up the opportunities to be that someone who shines the light of Jesus when other folks just go through life crashing into things like a bull in china shop. Now granted, being in a Walmart, on any given day, in any given city is a great opportunity to see what I mean when it comes to just crashing around. I recently visited the one near Vero Beach Florida, it’s no different than the one here in Mays Landing NJ.

 

So, the thing to glean today from all this is “Hey!! Why don’t you watch where you’re walking?” Warren Wiersbe once said, “How foolish to stumble along through life and never seek to know the will of the Lord!”  I think what Wiersbe is conveying is that it’s the will of the Lord that needs to be done and not our own, even if that includes a bag of Halo brand oranges. Our time here on this ball is short and what we do with and for Jesus Christ will be what gets looked at when all is said and done. Amen?

Written by Chris Hughes: Chris, a graduate of The Colony of Mercy (11-2003) has been married for 25+ years (Kathy), has a married son (Kevin) and a daughter in college (Karen). He has been a Freedom Fighter contributor since 2008.

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Think About This: “To walk circumspectly is to live in the light of our position as God’s children. To walk as fools means to descend from this high plane to the conduct of worldly men.” -William MacDonald

The Daily Bible Reading: Numbers 34-36 | Deuteronomy 1-2| You can download our 2020 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here. 

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the Lord Most High. –Psalm 7:17

Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the doctrinal and theological views held by America’s Keswick.