Split-second decisions
WARNING: This story involves vomit! Please do not read if you have a strong reaction to this bodily function.
Last summer, my wife and I headed to King’s Dominion early morning one random Thursday with her sister, Emily, and a friend, Mirae. We planned the day to get there right when the park opened and enjoy the newest rides first with minimal to no wait. We jumped on the Dominator first after all of a 30 second wait. We enjoyed the ride and walked briskly to the Intimidator 305 aptly named after Dale Earnhardt, Sr for which he earned the nickname following the 1987 Winston. Note: Without exception, everyone I know who has gone on this ride blacks out (momentary loss of vision) due to the high level of G force from the banked turns.
Following this ride, we popped over next door to the Flight of Fear, an indoor coaster which jump starts from 0 to 60 in under four seconds. True to plan we continued to walk on this ride with no wait. Probably a third of the way through this ride, I came to the revelation that I indeed, without fail was going to vomit. The nausea had reached a breaking point and I knew the “Abort/Self Destruct” button had been activated irreversibly in my head. There I sat with Emily by my side and directly behind me my wife of less than 6 months with a split second decision to make: lean over the side of the car and vomit (inevitably hitting my wife) OR sacrifice my own well being and re-direct the vomit onto my lap using an appropriately angled hand.
I chose the later and vomitted profusely onto my chest, lap, and legs. The floor of the car was slick’ned nicely with a thin layer of vomit, meanwhile the coaster was still zooming through twists and turns while Emily yelled, “Oh my gosh, Spencer is puking on me!” What I haven’t mentioned was that before we got to the theme park, we had stopped at a McDonald’s for breakfast. Not wanting to spend lots of money in the park for lunch, I “wisely” downed TWO value meals with orange juices and tater tots included.
Back in the coaster, we pull up to the end of the ride to find pieces of McGriddle stuck in my leg and arm hair. They promptly shut the ride down, but not before I receive several looks of disdain from the attendee after I alert her, “Ma’am, I just vomited ALL over myself.” I proceed to the exit and strip down to my birthday suit while my wife holds a towel in front of me, enabling me to change into a new set of clothes I had brought for the water park.
Its surprising to think how much of an impact our split-second decisions can make. The consequences can at times be lasting and vary greatly with what we decide to do in “the heat of the moment.” In a similar fashion, these types of decisions come along everyday and can impact our spiritual life and walk with God. An easy example is our thought life. When a temptation comes our way, the split-second decision we make immediately can move us closer to God or cause us to step away from what He desires for us. 2 Corinthians 10:5 reads as follows: We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (NIV)
