The Dark Side

If you really want to explore the dark side of your personality, I recommend traveling on a commercial airplane. Some unexpected circumstances have caused me to travel by plane twice recently. I must admit, I was reminded of my sin nature during both experiences!If you’re familiar with Southwest Airlines, you know they’ve dropped the traditional seat assignment protocol and opted to assign everyone a boarding letter and number. The lower your letter and number, the earlier you get on the plane. Once on board, it’s up to you to select your seat. All unoccupied seats are fair game.Parts of it are refreshing. They have no First Class seating, so you don’t walk past the first 15 rows wondering what all those people do, or maybe longing for some extra legroom. Of course, like most things, if they can find a way to make some extra money, they will. So, while there’s no First Class section, you can choose to pay a little extra and they’ll supposedly bump you up to a lower letter and number so you can get on the plane ahead of more people.Having previously gone through an unusual, claustrophobic plane experience a few years back, I’d handed over $15 to scoot ahead a little in the line. So, here I was… hoping for a spot early enough to get any aisle seat on the plane. Something about the whole thing speaks to our selfishness. We’re willing to pay money to get ahead. We want to be comfortable. We want to be first on the plane, so we can be first off the plane. Oh yes, I think we’re also told the first shall be last and the last shall be first. Glad I paid extra.[bctt tweet="What if as believers our higher priority was being a light, not being right?"]Before the gate agent even gave the cue for everyone to assemble, familiar travelers had already begun lining up in the assigned area. It was crowded and I was met with my first dilemma: Do I push, shove, jostle, and excuse myself to get to my number in line? I paid for it, right? I “needed” an aisle seat, but somehow, as I found myself cornered in by a larger woman, a man in a wheelchair, and an elderly couple, it seemed ridiculous to care if four or five people got on the plane ahead of me. I had every right to weave through the clogged line and take my place… but what if as believers our higher priority was being a light, not being right? … not demanding what we “deserve”?As I boarded the plane, I was so relieved to know that my decision to resist being insistent on my correct place in line hadn’t cost me an aisle seat. Quickly, however, I was confronted with another ugly moment. A mother with two small children boarded. She had a double stroller. Need I say more? Flashbacks whirled through my head. Empathy should’ve poured forth. I’ve been that woman. Someone assisting her asked if I could move to free up three seats. I subtly moved not one row back to free up a seat, but way back to avoid being near two small children.[bctt tweet="How many times do we choose to live just like the world in our everyday actions?"]I hate to admit it, but as I reflected on my choices, I realized that they were the same choices someone without Christ would make. Many times we want God to use us and we want to make a differences in our world. Yet how many times do we choose to live just like the world in our everyday actions?To me and to you… Do you realize that how you treat a stranger does actually matter to the Lord? Where are you giving yourself a pass? Where are you demanding what you deserve at the cost of being a light to others?I challenge you to take 24 hours where you choose to put others first… and write down what you observe.