Lessons From The Ladies' Room

"Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God?  Or am I trying to please people?  If I were trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ."  Galatians 1:10 NIV

Trapped…in a bathroom stall…with a long line waiting…

I couldn’t believe the predicament I found myself in at a Christian women’s conference with thousands of women in attendance.  Thousands of women meant lines and lines of them trying to get a bathroom break in.   I knew I shouldn’t have gone into this stall, after I saw the girl before me struggle to get the door open.  However, not going in meant holding the line up;  meant letting someone else go ahead of me and I had more speakers to get back to.   So there I was, looking at the blue tape that was covering part of the latch to the door.   It was just another indicator that something was wrong with this stall, I turned the knob and started pulling the door from the top and the bottom; nothing was happening.  I kept pulling…then as the women outside began to notice my plight I heard one of them say she was coming to help.  She pulled…nothing.  As my situation continued to deteriorate, I backed up and hovered over the commode, making the suggestion for her to try to kick it open.  So she kicks it, not once, not twice, but three times and it doesn’t open!  It’s still holding steady, at this juncture with no other options in sight they start telling me to crawl on the floor to get out.  I look down, the floor is not looking very appealing, the thoughts of what’s been on the floor flowing through my mind.  I decide to take a moment and re-assess the situation.  I look at the blue tape on the latch, I move it around a little, and there between the tape I see a metal bar going from the turn handle into the latch-hole.  YES, you guessed it; the door was still locked!  Apparently when I turned the knob it didn’t actually unlock the door.  Now that the problem had been diagnosed, I made the split second decision that this was not the time I felt like bearing my soul to the bathroom ladies.  So with my best “trapped girl gets free,” impression I unlock the door and jerk it open with a sigh of relief.  I extend my gratitude to a random group of girls in line with a half wave and a quick “hey thanks for trying to help,” comment and make my way to the sink.  Mumbled my way through a conversation with another girl at the sink about how I’m glad I didn’t have to crawl on the floor and how I saw the girl before me have trouble getting out.   While stifling my own laughter and practically running back to my seat to tell my friends how stupid I was, I left the bathroom still not knowing who may have torn their meniscus while trying to kick me to freedom.   But lady whoever you are “bless your little heart,” people with no common sense in this world need help too. 

Alright, so all joking aside, I found a spiritual lesson from this little jewel of an experience.  Being a people-follower and not a God-follower…just like I went into this bathroom stall thinking there was already something wrong with the door based on watching someone else; I often look at situations from the wrong point of view.  Most of us tend to be followers by nature.   Watching what everyone else is doing and then trying our best to follow what we think is “normal.”  I was reminded by this experience, watching someone else doesn’t always lead me to the correct conclusions about what is truly going on around me.  As a believer in Christ I am told that “when they measure themselves by themselves and compare themselves with themselves, they are not wise.” 2 Corinthians 10:12 NIV.   True, there may have been something deceiving about that door, but I am to focus on what is in front of me and pay attention to details that are confronting me.  When I find myself in any situation I am supposed to look up to Him and not around.  God is in control of the other person’s situation just like He is in control of mine.  And if I lose sight of my own surroundings because I am too busy monitoring everyone else, I open myself up to falsehood.  I may come to a cross-road in life where I have to choose which direction to go and people may actually be encouraging me to go the wrong way.  Circumstances aren’t always how they appear with human behavior but with prayer and holding God’s Word up to it; clarity can be found.