Being boxed in a corner is never easy. One’s natural fight or flee response kicks in and with the emotion, all other options seemingly disappear. There are several predictable responses which I, along with many others, adopt. When I consider my actions, I find myself falling into recurring patterns which ignore the lessons Life continues to share with me. These lessons include the following.
When desperation overwhelms us, the dilemma of the moments forces our hand, and I turn to God. I, along with many others past and present, cry out, “Save me from my enemies, God – you’re my only hope!” (Psalm 143.9). The limited or no option situation a moment before, now has an additional option with our prayer. There is an irony I try to ignore – I could have enlisted God’s support before being cornered.
Rarely does being cornered occur without any warning indicators. When I deconstruct situations where I have been trapped, I rediscover how many warning flags were on the path which I ignored. Metaphorically, it feels as if I was wearing horse blinders. My eyes were so totally focused on the goal that I failed to notice anything going around me. Life continues to ask me to go slow and be present in the moment. When I do this, I am fast.
Life is never about binary choices. Binary choices are more dilemmas than they are decision points. When one is cornered with only two choices, the lesson given to me in a divine-inspired encounter with a stranger is to find the third choice. There are always three choices or more to every decision. This is a tough lesson to hold onto, especially when everything seems to be on a precarious edge. My tendency is to respond to the need to act. My best responses come when I pause and look for the 3rd option. In doing so, I often discover many more.
The three lessons take me back to the first. God, as a companion and guide, is available. There was no need to wait to engage this option.
