Don’t Box Me In
“Hey Megan, how are you? I haven’t seen you in forever,” Nicole said as the pair hugged. “I’m doing good. I’m just getting some coffee before heading to church. I didn’t know you like Mystical Joes,” she said. “Oh yes, I’ve been coming here for years,” Nicole said. “Me too! The Barista called out, “Megan.” “We should meet up sometime and catch up. It’ll be like old times,” Megan said. “For sure. Let me give you my number and maybe we can meet up for coffee. Megan pulled out her phone. What’s your number?” “It’s 717-554-9897.” “I’ll text you so you can have mine,” Megan said. “Order for Megan,” the barista said once again. “Ok girl I’ll talk to you later,” she said as she walked to the counter to get her coffee. Megan got her coffee and left Mystical Joes.
A few days passed and Megan texted Nicole. “Hey girl, It’s Megan. Are you free tomorrow around ten?” Nicole replied, “Hey girl, yes do you want to meet at Mystical Joes for coffee?” Megan texted back, “Sounds good. See you then. The next day Megan and Nicole met up for coffee at Mystical Joes. The pair ordered and sat down at a table. “So, what’s new with you? We haven’t seen each other since college” Nicole said. “I know. It’s been awhile. The barista brought their order to their table. “We had some fun times at SMU. Did you ever get that job at the news station?” Nicole asked. Yes, I did I’ve been there for several years now. “What about you? Did you ever take that coaching job?” “I worked there for a little bit, but I didn’t like it. The administration was terrible, and they cut the funding for the athletic department.” “Oh no. That’s terrible. I’m sorry to hear that. “It’s ok. I’ve been looking for another coaching position,” Nicole said as she sipped her coffee. “That’s good. God can provide. He definitely got me this position at the news station.” “That’s good.”
“Hey, I have an idea. Why don’t you come with me to church on Sunday? It’ll be good for you,” Megan said as she sipped her coffee. “Please don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t do church. I went a few times, but I feel like religion is too controlled and the bible is a list of don’ts.” “What do you mean?” Megan asked as she took a bite of her cinnamon raisin bagel. “Don’t give into your flesh, don’t have sex before marriage, watch the people you hang with, pay the money to the church, pray all the time, read your bible, and the list goes on. It’s so controlled. I’m like don’t box me in. I want to be free to do what I want. I don’t want to be bound by a set of religious rules.” “Yeah I understand what you mean. I was like that too at first, but as I got closer to God and kept reading the Bible I started to understand why God tells us to do these things.”
“For instance, we should abstain from sex before marriage because it causes so many problems. Remember Robbie from college?” Megan asked as she took another bite of her bagel. “Yes, I got trashed that night and ended up sleeping with him,” Nicole said as she sipped her coffee. And what happened? Did he call you back?” “No, he didn’t, and I really liked him.” “We had some much ice cream that weekend because you were trying to deal with that heartbreak,” Megan said as she sipped her coffee. Nicole sighed. “I remember. I cried my eyes out that entire weekend.”
“And remember what Amber went through?” “Yes, Josh gave her “the clap,” Nicole said as she took a bite of her lemon pound cake. And the list goes on. God’s not being mean because he wants us to abstain from sex while being single. He’s trying to save us from heartbreak and other issues that come along with it.” Nicole shook her head. And what about praying all the time?” Praying is how we can communicate with God. Spending time with God also allows God to communicate with us.
Let’s take relationships for instance. It’s important to pray and ask God who we should spend our time with. The Robbie heartbreak could have been avoided. God could have showed you that he wasn’t the one for you.” Nicole sighed. “Ok, maybe you’re right.” And what about the company we keep?” Nicole asked. “1 Corinthians 15 says, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character. At some point, if you continue to hang out with the wrong people you will start to develop their bad habits and your godly morals may slowly diminish. Proverbs 13:20 says, “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm,” Megan said. “I never knew the Bible was filled with so much great information. That makes sense that we become like who we are always around. If I want to be wise. I should hang out with wise people.” “That’s right,” Megan said as she took another sip of her coffee. Maybe I will give this church thing another try.” Megan smiled, and the pair continued their conversation.
The End