Lessons from the Checkout Line

I have an order in which I prefer my groceries be bagged at the checkout line. I put like items together, fresh veggies with fresh veggies, refrigerated with refrigerated, cans with cans, etc. I always put taxable items last for two reasons – 1) I want to make sure I am able to cover the cost of the food items for my family first. If I find myself short, baggies or paper towels can wait. 2) When you’re loading grocery bags into the trunk, the bags of taxables is last in the basket, therefore first in the trunk placed further from the opening. I can work my way thru the bags placing the refrigerated things (going in last because they were first in the basket) in the place closest to the opening making them the first to come out and be addressed. It may sound complex but it isn’t and it makes putting them away easier. I prioritize what I buy to meet my family’s needs first. Items of convenience last. My system makes my husband nuts.

Last shopping trip, the checker put a 5 pound bag of potatoes in with a small produce bag of mushrooms. As I picked it up to place in the basket, I spotted it and asked if the delicate mushrooms could go with something else less likely to bruise and break them. Both the checker and the next one over looked up with a curious facial expression. My checker said she never thought about how she loaded things before; she just put stuff in bags.

Tap, tap, tap… Thank you, Lord.

We are a lot like the checker when it comes to dealing with people’s feelings. We just toss stuff out there not paying much attention to how we might affect the other person. A “careless word” in this context is a word spoken rashly or carelessly without thought as to whether it is pleasing to the Lord or not. It may have been spoken in anger, or excitement, or exasperation, or under pressure, or in ignorance. The Scriptures warn, “This you know, my beloved brethren. But everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak and slow to anger; for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” (James 1:19-20). It would be difficult to believe a mushroom could inflict any real damage on a raw potato but in reverse, the mushroom could be ruined. Careless words tossed about can damage relationships and inflict pain. We cannot dismiss our careless words as harmless.

"But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned." (Matthew 12:36-37).

A distressful circumstance can be handled with grace and wisdom (mushrooms), or mishandled by engaging in intemperate or extreme behavior (raw potatoes). And how we handle major crises often depends on how we have handled the little ones. The Lord expects us to build strong characters, and permitting “careless words” or “little faults” to rule our days does not do it.

In other words, we need be mindful of treating people carefully. Picture our words like soft, light mushrooms rather than chucking raw, hard potatoes at them. Even a bag of mushrooms cannot harm like a raw potato. It takes a lot of mushrooms on the scale to balance out even one raw potato.