Date Night TESTimonies

It is few and far between times when Ryan and I actually get ALONE time…. we spend a lot of time together, but it is usually in passing, serving, family, life etc. I know for most of you , that is pretty relatable. So, when we plan a date night, careful consideration goes into the details to maximize the experience. Ryan wanted to go to Dave and Busters for his post-birthday date ( I was in Mexico on his actual birthday) and I was cool with that, but got to thinking, we’ve already been to Dave and Busters lots of times, it’s fun and the food is pretty good but it’s also loud and not romantic..lol. An idea hatched in my mind …. we have lived on this side of Alabama for almost 5 years now, and we had never taken a walk around downtown Mobile (just the 2 of us). We have seen some of the architecture and history in passing, but never close up, nor enjoyed the food or the shops. Well, last night, would finally be the night! Whoo hoo!! We were gonna take a romantic stroll downtown through Mobile, through the Park, eat at a delicious restaurant along the strip, shop some local artisan shops…. like a scene out of a Hallmark movie, I was pretty proud of how awesome this date night was going to be.

Fast Forward…. We arrived at Bienville Square Park around 3:15pm. It was beautiful, sunny, 72* a slight breeze in the air. Just Gorgeous! I need to mention here, that Ryan and I always pray for opportunities for divine appointments before we head out anywhere, even date night! Not to far into the stroll, we ran into a women we had met at the cold-weather homeless shelter the past few years. Her story is absolutely heartbreaking, honestly I didn’t care for her much when we first met, but the Father changed my heart for her, especially after hearing her story and seeing her through his eyes. We talked with her for a minute and loved on her, she opened her backpack and gave Ryan and I a stuffed animal and a little football from Mardi Gras. It was very sweet. Perhaps that was the divine appointment. I gave her one of our mini Jesus figures, hugged her tight, reminded her that she was loved, and we rolled on. We walked about a block and a half, looking for the perfect diner spot. Ryan gets very overwhelmed when there is a lot going on … so it was like a constant game of “squirrel”, we saw some Mardi Gras vendors selling tshirts, some people were out and about eating and drinking, but it seemed pretty chill for the most part. We found a place, like an indoor food court with many different eating options. We ordered some Burgers at the “Hammered Cow”…. it was delicious. Not the romantic setting I had visualized, but it was something new and exciting nonetheless. “Best Burger I’ve had in a while”, Ryan said! Score one for me!! At least the food was good! We finished eating, walked back outside and noticed things had picked up a little… nothing unusual, it’s Friday night after all.

We had passed this little candy shop and I wanted to stop back by to check it out. Ryan was about over it at this point, because the “Squirrel” in him was at its peak. Im thankful he loves me, and endures my whims sometimes. Anyway, the candy shop was so cool… we picked out a few things, and just as we were getting ready to leave, there was a commotion outside. About a dozen police officers on motorcycles started circling outside, lights flashing, sirens blaring… it was so loud. We were like, what the heck is going on… then someone said something about a parade starting.

So, we are obviously not from the South, and know very little if anything about Mardi Gras. Frankly, I thought it was just like any other parade or celebration (like the 4th of July) I was wrong….

We starting walking back to the Park, getting out of dodge before the “parade” starts. We get to the park and start walking toward our car, then another direction where maybe we parked our car, NO CAR. WHAT?????? Dude, Where’s my car? This has never happened before. Panic sets in…. we see a man in a yellow vest setting up a baracade and ask him about our car, he said they towed it because of the parade, he gave us directions to the “impound” yard about 3/4 of a mile up the road and said we could just pick it up and he didn’t think they charged anything. Whew!! ok cool, I guess. This was weird, but all is not lost and seems like a simple task.

We walk, we stop and ask another officer for directions again because we really have no idea where we are going, and at this time, there are people EVERYWHERE! It’s about 4:45pm. They had just towed our vehicle, according to the first guy, about 10 minutes ago. The next officer pointed us in the direction of the impound, and added: “you’ll have to pay the ticket, around $120 bucks”. Now, my anger has been kindled…. WHAT??? He made a point to tell us that He wasn’t the one who towed our car… lol. A nice, “Sorry about your luck” Pfft

We get to the impound, finally…. desperately hoping that someone is reasonable. After all, we don’t know a thing about Mardi Gras, its customs, traditions, parades, celebrations… NOTHING. Like I said before, I thought it was just a one time Parade thing, ya know. We were instructed to go into a portable trailer thing, and dare I say, “greeted” by a women who simply said…. “what’s your car”. I am stunned, shocked, panicked, Im waiting for some type of explanation as to why this happened, I’m stating my case, like, I genuinely had no idea that there was a parade and that we could not park at the public park without being towed away … there was no sign posted at the park, no times given, no warning, heck, we even put money in the meter and still had time left!! She didn’t even make eye contact, through the entire ordeal… she did say that 2/3 of the people who end up there say the same thing. That’s sad. Then she said “how do you want to pay”…. that is when my anger rose from a 5 to a 10+. Pay?? I was still taking that first guy at his word, that it wouldn’t cost anything and that the other officer must have been mistaken….. nope, $150 cash or $154.45 card ( you know, fees and such) you have got to be kidding me!! When I looked at the “Parking Violation” ticket they wrote me, there was no dollar amount associated with this particular violation…. Like, it cost $130 for parking in a Handicapped spot, I can see that…. but you're telling me it cost MORE money for parking in a “parade route” (and towed 3/4 of a mile down the road) that we weren’t even aware of, then it does to INTENTIONALLY take a disabled persons parking spot?? This can’t be reality right now, clearly I am dreaming or delusional. Neither….. I reluctantly handed her my credit card, cause let’s face it, despite my internal anger and egregious complaints, we were not getting out of there without paying the piper.

My dear sweet husband, remained eerily calm and in perfect peace the entire time. Who is this man? Usually I am the one who is filled with Gods Peace, calm and rational through situations beyond our control. But this time was different. We got in the car and left the parking lot, he THANKED the officers and told them to have a nice night. (WHAT?? how could he thank them? after what just happened) He then directed me through all the traffic and on the route to home, all the while I was frustrated and yelling, he stayed calm and never skipped a beat. Folks, that’s my amazing, God given husband! I saw him in a new light last night, the light of Christ. He knew I needed his peace and his calm because I was going through this trial…. My mind went to a place that was like, why was I being punished for something I genuinely didn’t even know about…. I just wanted to take my husband on a date night, fulfill one of our bucket list items and enjoy our time together. It was quiet for a bit on the car ride home, I listened as the Father spoke these things to me…. He said: You know I have separated you from the world, to myself. ( John 15:19) If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own, As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you. Last night, the world punished me for not being aware of its customs and traditions… and I CAN rejoice in that!! The Fact that I don’t know much about “Mardi Gras” is a good thing, considering the things we witnessed last night, and I am sure all of the unseen things that take place in that environment. I am not judging, by any means… because not so long ago I did actively participate in all the world had to offer, trust me, I was no saint. But this experience opened my eyes to see that I really am a new creation in Christ. I am changed, and set apart in more ways than I even realized. Our Father granted our prayer for the divine appointment, not just one, but even the impound lady, we were able to bless on the way out. My heart began to break for her, the verbal abuse she probably endures by people who don’t have the Holy Spirit, who’s anger and frustration are just unleashed on her. (I pray that she seeks a more fulfilling and rewarding job). I also pray that the $150 we reluctantly donated to the City of Mobile, WILL be used for the greater good, perhaps that new Mobile Homeless task force we recently read about. Either way, God’s word promises that in all things, He works for the good of those who love him and are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28) and What the enemy means for evil, God works for our good!! AMEN!! I began to think about the apostle Paul (and others) their suffering at the hands of a fallen world, just trying to preach the GOOD NEWS and save people from death. Albeit, we were not boiled in oil or physically beaten the principle remains the same… you will be persecuted by the world for not following ridiculous customs and traditions. I wonder if they would have towed our car if Jesus himself was riding through?? That’s a thought for another day.

The Holy Spirit reminded me that I have the ability to “Choose” my reactions to these unforeseen situations that inevitably will arise in this life. I can choose to see the good, the GOD in all this, and not remain salty and bitter. After all is said and done, we are grateful for the day the LORD has made, and we will REJOICE and BE GLAD in it!!