When I was in college I needed a job that had flexible hours, decent pay, and allowed me to work on my own.
When I was in college I needed a job that had flexible hours, decent pay, and allowed me to work on my own. I loved to drive so I thought it would be pretty fun to be a Pizza Hut delivery driver. Clearly, I was not thinking straight. Nothing against pizza delivery, but it was not the job for me. It was actually very stressful.
I have a pretty good sense of direction, but what is on the map is not what is on the road. The map does not show that there are certain streets that are blocked off, or that there is only one way in and one way out of certain developments. I can’t tell you how many curbs I drove over, how many near accidents I had and who knows how many illegal driving maneuvers I engaged in with hopes of getting a $2 tip! To this day it blows my mind that I never got a ticket while delivering pizzas, especially with my truck sticking out like a sore thumb with that huge illuminated triangle sign on the top of my roof.
After a while, I finally got to know all the little quirks about the areas I delivered to. I knew all the shortcuts and the fastest ways to get to where I needed to. But every so often you could expect that you would come across something that threw off your routine.
The pizza was already late, so I was driving a little fast. I mean not too fast, but … OK, OK, I was speeding. I was not being wreckless or anything I was just in a hurry. The funny thing was, I knew the street so well. I would drive it multiple times a day even when I was not working. It was near my college and I even lived off the street. Did I mention it was a one-way street? Well, it was. I am driving down the street looking for the address, it is starting to get dark and that particular part of the street was not well lit up. I realize I had passed it somehow. I knew it was somewhere between a couple of streets. Of course, because it was a one-way I needed to make the series or right turns to get back on the street.
I am driving down the street, and I passed it again! I think I passed it a total of 3 or 4 times. Are you kidding me, I knew this street. So, by this time if anyone was watching me they must of thought I was crazy, because I grabbed my steering wheel with both hands and literally tried to yank it off the column multiple times all the while letting out a loud yell at the top of my lungs it utter frustration. I pull over, take a deep breath and give it one more try. I make my series of right turns and I am heading back down the street driving very, very slow. I am so determined to not let this address have victory over me. I think I was driving like 10mph on a 45mph street. I finally see the address and realize were the place is just as I am about to pass it. Out of sheer genius on my part I decide I could make the turn. Well, I barely made it, but in the process I cut someone off. I honestly did not see them. The only way I found out was because the guy followed me in. He actually lived in the complex. He rolls down his windows and shares his thoughts with some choice words and a gesture or two. I kindly acknowledged him and proceeded about my job.
I pull in and find the person who placed the order. First thing the guy says to me is, “Hey why did you cut off my friend?” I instantly started to feel extremely uncomfortable because this guy is a lot bigger than me and he looked really mad! It was not the nicest of complexes in the neighborhood. The guy had a beer in his hand and it seemed he already had a few. And from the tone of the guy’s voice I cut off and the way he was walking when he got out of his car it appeared he had a few too. So, I immediately explained to him the whole thing and said how sorry I was and that I did not do it on purpose. The entire time this was happening there was this song that was playing. It was by Audio Adrenalin, called “My World View.” Here are just a few of the lyrics:
I want to see the world through Jesus eyes
See through Jesus tears
I want to see the world through Jesus eyes
My vision’s not as clear
I want to feel the world with the hands that made it
Know the pain and appreciate it
Hear their cries and hope to understand
My worldview
It’s how I see the world
It’s how I look at you
My worldview
It’s how I see the world
Would you like to see it to?
My worldview
So the guy with the beer in his hand, getting ready to pay for his pizza over heard the song playing. I am not sure how because I had even consciously turned it down because of my genius driving tactics. It was the strangest thing. His demeanor instantly changed and he asked me, “Are you a Christian?” My first thought was, “OH CRAP! I have really screwed this one up.” I quietly and hesitantly said, “Yes.” Then he said to me, “Hey man, I’m sorry. Don’t you worry about us drunks. We’re just a bunch of losers.” I did not even know what to say. I think I blurted out something to the effect that it wasn’t true and apologized again for my driving. He insisted that I not pay any attention to anything he said.
As I got in my truck and drove off I had to pull over because I began to weep uncontrollably. I started the song over and realized that God just made that song a reality for me. I saw the world the way He sees it. I saw the pain in that mans life. It was as if God was giving me just a glimpse… a glimpse of the hopelessness and pain that is in this world and the weight of it hit me so hard all I could do was weep. And it may have been because he thinks Christians feel that way about him. Worse, maybe he thinks God feels that way about him, because of the way we can look at others.
Yeah, there can be a lot of reasons why he was where he was at in his life, but the more painful part is why is he still there? He has no idea how much his heavenly Father loves him. For God took the wait of the world on His shoulders. For the first time I heard the cries of the broken and only hoped to understand.
