Why Did You Run?

Today started out as a normal Monday. I hit the office and entered my normal routine consisting of email, some audio editing of yesterday's sermon, scheduling for this week, and prep work for staff meeting. Then, there was staff meeting, which is always a joy. There were some good laughs, some reflection on the book, Making Room for Life, for Randy Frazee. There was discussion of the good and bad from yesterday's service, and some looking forward to this week. After that came TBWJ. TBWJ is short for Taco Bell With James. It's a consistent Monday activity for Frank and James.

I had planned to stay in the office and work over lunch so I could be off tomorrow for my wife's birthday. But, because of peer pressure, I went along. And, I'm glad I did.

As we were driving up Cedar Street, I noticed a guy run across the street right in front of Taco Bell. I would have thought he was just crossing the street, but he didn't stop running when he got across the road. My mind thought, "that's a little odd" and continued on with pulling into the parking lot at Taco Bell. Shortly thereafter, we were inside Taco Bell ordering some food. As I stepped up in line to order a number 5 (I think), we were all startled with a guy screaming at the top of his lungs, "Why did you run?". Startled by the shouting and the commotion, I turned and saw a big white guy with a gun strapped to his leg pulling the guy--who I had just seen minutes before running across the road, backwards over the cattle herding bars by the counter. He was quickly joined by a couple more brutes with guns. Quickly, the ruckus escalated with the jawalker pleading with the rest of us who were just staring in awe that we were getting a live version of Dog the Bounty Hunter in front of us to see the injustice that he was suffering--being arrested by some thugs with guns.

All of this happened in a few moments. Everyone in the place stopped what they were doing to watch. The taco chefs in the back even made it to the front counter to watch for a moment. Then, as quickly as it began, it was over. The arrest had been made. The Jaywalkers was on his way to a car waiting outside. As he headed to jail, we returned to our normal lives, eating our tacos and slurping our sodas.

It was fun to watch something that exciting happen in front of us. Yet, not in that moment did we wonder what the jaywalker had done to get him in the spot he was in. We laughed about his inability to run into th allotment behind Taco Bell to hide from the bail bonds boys, but we had no sympathy for him. I doubt that any of us in that place thought anything more of the incident. Not until now, as I've thought through it, have I realized how cold my reactions were today.

Why are we so cold?