getting stuck...twice

This week has been a full week for me. Monday was a regular work day, plus having all the senior girls over to our house for supper. Then Tuesday was 1/2 work day (with Sr. Bible Study) and then travel to Cincinnati. Wed. was spent in Cincy, visiting friends and family. Yesterday was travel home and 1/2 work day. Today is regular work day and then dinner with a couple from church.

Back to getting stuck. Tuesday was the Bible study with the seniors. It was my 3rd one and I have one more time. Well, this time around I parked in a different spot than usual. A funny thing happened when I was getting ready to leave - I was parked in. I had no way out. My car was stuck, so I decided to try to drive over the edge of the grass to get out. BAD mistake. Apparently I didn't know that this section of grass (which I thought had a fair amount of rock mixed in) was pulled up last year to lay some new piping. So, let's just say it was not the sturdiest, esp. since it was full of water from the snow melting. So there I am trying to "sneak" out and getting stuck in the grass. I mean my wheels are spinning and I'm not getting any traction. So I have to face the facts and humbly walk in to the Sr. Center hoping to find someone to help me get out. (Not a place you want to get stuck, outside a senior center)

Thankfully there were two people from a Catholic group that works with seniors and getting them jobs. I asked them to help me, which they did. The other guy and myself were able to push the car out and get it back on the gravel. But as you can imagine, our clothes did not go untouched. Let's just say both our shoes (dress shoes) were covered with mud. My pants were pretty muddy and his suit got some mud on it to. I felt so bad and was ready to leave. This was only my second time ever to get stuck in the grass. The first time was in high school with my brother (that time we had to get towed). All of this getting stuck happened right before we were supposed to pack up the car and head off to Cincy.

Then on Wed. morning, we were leaving my sister's house to visit our friend. Let me just say this about my sister's road... every other road in the city was clear from ice, due to the warmer weather, but not my sister's. There was still a sheet of ice (with patches of dry ground) on the road. So I was backing up and putting the car in drive when the wheels started to spin. Great. Stuck on ice. We were close enough to the grass that I could get some traction from the snow and was able to help push the car out as Amy drove.

I have not gotten stuck in over 10 years and then in the matter of 2 days I get stuck 2 times. What a trip :)

Here's the thing though. In both cases I see a connection with what can happen in our spiritual lives.

The first one happened because I tried to sneak out and drive where I wasn't supposed to drive. How many times do we get stuck in sin because we sneak around and allow ourselves to go places we are not supposed to go? When we think we can just do it this once, we get stuck.

The second one occurred because of a build up of snow and ice, without proper removal. No one had plowed the road and therefore all the ice/snow was just adding up. The snow on top gave some traction, but when it was gone and the ice was uncovered it had no where to go. I know that when we allow sin to build up and do nothing to get rid of it or the temptations which draw us back, we find ourselves getting stuck in sin all over again. We must "plow" sin out of our lives on a regular basis and stop it from building up or we'll get hurt down the road.

Try not to get stuck today. :)