Gas Station Blues

It all started when I gased up a couple of Mondays ago. When I put the nozzle in my tank, the pump spit out a receipt at me. It had my debit card number on it, but I had not gotten a drip of gas let alone the $15 that it claimed I had! After filling my tank and getting a receipt for the $20 in gas that had actually gone into my tank, I went to the counter to sort out the mess. Oh and what a mess it was! The girl at the counter decided to call her manager and the manager claimed that the pump does that occassionally, but never charges. The girl who was working signed by receipt and added that if I found anything different, she would refund the money. Surprise, surprise, the $15 in gas (that I didn't get) showed up on my bill along with the gas that I did get (are you following this?). So, after printing my bill, I charged back into the gas station yesterday determined to get my $15 back! Did I get it? NO! The same girl was working, and she told me that her manager does the refunding so I needed to come in before two o'clock today to speak with the manager. Grr.. I just want my $15 back!!

Despite thoughts of using my super strength to punch someone or something, or to find a really mean looking guy to intimidate them into giving me my money back, I am struggling to control myself. I'm not quite angry, just really frustrated that it has to drag out like this.

Thankfully, God's grace is helping me be self controlled.

"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age," Titus 2:11-12

No matter how much I want to demand my money back, I need to exercise this self-control so that I can handle the situation in a Christ-like matter. My flesh would like to do the former; which is why I need God's grace daily, or moment by moment. It is interesting that the whole second chapter of Titus describes how people need to be self-controlled. I've never considered it much, but have encountered so many situations lately (another one waiting three plus hours for another tenant to get their clothes out of the dryer so I could use it) where I have wanted to respond in like, that I definitely need to consider it more.

"Whoever is slow to anger is better than the mighty, and he who rules his spirit than he who takes a city." Proverbs 16:32

This verse seems a little crazy. To say that someone who "rules his spirit" is more awesome than he who takes a city? It takes a lot of guts, stamina, and well, everything to take a city (of course, I've never done it, so I'm not completely certain). On the flip side, Proverbs describes someone without self-control as a city that was broken into and had its walls knocked down. Defenseless, vulnerable. Huh. Food for thought. I guess I'd rather be like someone who is mighty any day.

Digressing, I am going to support some friends in the orchestra concert tonight. Oh to be so talented! There is also some speakers talking about the pain they've experiences through abortion, but it is at the same time and I already promised my friends I would watch the concert. There are so many places I need to be tonight.

> > Update: I got my money back, yay!