Sayings: Part 2
I mentioned I have a guilty pleasure of watching First Amendment Auditor videos. These people go out and video places to see what reaction they get. Legally, if they are on public property (like a sidewalk), they can video whatever they can see. When they video a bank, for example, the bank employees often get nervous and call the police.
There are some common things you see in these videos. Usually, someone like a business owner or patron gets upset that they are being recorded without their permission and wants to know why. Most of them believe they have a right to privacy, even in a public setting. Of course, the auditor isn’t fully answering their questions and, unfortunately, they get mad to the point of violence, and the auditor must defend themselves in some way.
Inevitably, someone calls the police. The police arrive and ask the same questions regarding why they are recording. The auditors give similar, incomplete answers. Most of the time, the police acknowledge the auditor isn’t breaking the law but ask for their ID. “Ask” is the key word, because without a crime, they can’t legally demand it. A good number of police officers don’t fully understand this, and the auditor requests a supervisor, who usually sees through the ploy and the police leave without getting the ID. Most of the time, the police describe the auditor’s behavior as suspicious.
I finally realized “suspicious behavior” is just another way of saying the person was worried. A customer, for example, is worried about how their video likeness might be used, especially if their license plate number is recorded. The business owner is worried the auditor is videoing them to rob them later. The police officer, trying to respond to the call for service, wants information to share, and when they don’t get it, is worried the person may be wanted for something. In all these examples, the person’s worry is driven by their inability to get the answers they believe they are owed.
I had a similar situation happen to me soon after we moved here. I was a light sleeper and we live in a quiet neighborhood. One night, I was awakened by the lights from a car slowly driving by. I got up and saw a car parked on the street in front of our house. Where we live, there usually are no cars parked on the street. I waited about 15 minutes (with some protective measures at hand) before calling the county sheriff. About 15 minutes later, the squad car arrived and the parked car left. The sheriff didn’t report the outcome to me, but I was okay with the resolution.
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.” - Matthew 6:25-34 ESV
I found out several days later that a neighbor’s kids had taken their parents' car without permission and were nabbed by the sheriff. I never heard (from the parents or the kids) whether they knew I was the one who called the sheriff. I can tell you, had it been my son, there would have been significant consequences, and had it been me as a kid, I would have been standing when I ate for a while. Regardless, my worry about our safety was overblown.
“Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” - Philippians 4:4-7
I’ve found almost every time I’ve been worried, it was overblown in my mind after the fact. Imagine the relief I could have experienced if I had turned my worry over to God.
