Lesson - Turning Evil to Good

This morning I was on my way to HEB to get some grapes to take to work for an afternoon snack.  I pulled out onto the highway and I noticed a small red car coming at a very fast speed right behind me staying right on my bumper. I must have either pulled out in front of her unintentionally or was driving too slow for her. It was a short distance to the HEB shopping center parking lot so I  pulled onto the medium to let her pass.  Instead, she pulled up right beside me and gave me a hateful glare. 

She then pulled in front of me onto the medium, turned into the same shopping center, and stopped in front of the tanning salon.  'All of that just because she needed to tan', I thought.  She yelled something inaudible to me as I passed by. I was steaming by this time because I felt her actions were totally uncalled for and rude. To be honest, I wanted to yell back at her, "Don't you know those things cause cancer!" Instead, I went on in to HEB with the whole scenario replaying in my mind. 

Then I thought, I am not going to let the devil have this moment.  He is enjoying the anger and the frustration we both have put into this. Change your thoughts, change your life.  So I began thinking, she probably had a rough morning, was running late and wanted to get into the tanning bed before work or something. She is young and those things are important to her.  I was young once too.  The older shall teach the younger women, the Bible tells us.....  

So, I bought a greeting card, wrote a note apologizing for causing her day to start off so badly and that lunch is on me today.  I put $20 inside and sealed the envelope. When I got to the tanning salon her car was gone. The attendant at the tanning salon told me she comes in every morning, so I left the card with the words "Red Car" on the front and asked the attendant to give it to her when she comes back. 

Although I will never know her reaction when she reads my card, I hope that it makes her smile and her anger subsides. I hope that her day got better. And maybe one day down the road she will remember this day as a not so bad day and be able make someone else's day better too.  

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 I am not posting this to bring glory to myself.  I admitted my own malicious thoughts that wanted to come out of my mouth.  I am sharing this because we all have a tendency to react to situations based on our feelings at the moment, instead of considering what the other person may be going through. We all make mistakes. It may have cost me $20.00 but if touches that young lady in the way I hope that it does, it will be worth far more in eternity. 

 Genesis 50:20  "As for you, you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to bring life to many people.