I recently visited one of the anchor stores in our local mall.  My hubby said it would be impolite to name the store, so I won’t.

From the time I walked in to the time I left, it was frustration upon frustration.  First there was NO sales help.  I take that back.  In a store the size of this one, I saw 2 sales people.  I had a pair of shoes to return.  I went first to the shoe section…no one there.  Then to the make up…on to women’s…then to girls…then to jewelry…back to shoes.  No one was working!  Finally I saw a line of about 8 people snaking out of the handbag section.  One young lady was kindly ringing people up as fast as she could.  Of course, several of the folks had questions and so she had to leave to show them something.  But those of us in line stayed in line because where else would we go? After a good 30 minutes in line, I finally returned my shoes.

As I walked through the store, I spotted a pair of jeans that I wanted to try on.  I really debated about doing this, but they were just what I was looking for.  So, I take the jeans, and go to the nearest dressing room.  OH! MY!  I can not tell you what each of the 3 stalls looked like…so let me show you.  Is this atrocious or what?  Who would leave a dressing room like this?  What kind of person leaves new clothes not even purchased on the floor?

**********Now this harkens back to my last post about the buggy.  Friends…it is just rude to leave all those clothes in that condition.  You don’t even own those clothes.  They should be returned to their proper place.  Now the dressing rooms in this store happen to have a rack by the door for you to hang your clothes that did not fit.  But if not…at least return them..folded or hung…to the cashier’s area.  Here they may put them back in the correct place.  Just as with the buggy, there is a place to put the clothes after you try them on.**********

And, the dressing rooms were nasty.  Dirty carpet…trash on the floor…slats knocked out of the doors.  It was awful.  I chose the least messy of the 3 and was very careful as I tried on my jeans.  Didn’t want to touch anything.  Nope..don’t like the jeans.  OK…I had enough of this place and I am ready to go.

But, NO!  I am not going anywhere!  The door is stuck!  Not where the latch I can reach to lock it…but up at the top.  There is a screw halfway out of the wall, and when the door shut, a metal piece got stuck behind that and was not willing to budge to let me out.  I am 5’1”…I could not even reach the top of the door.

I pushed it as hard as I could.  I jiggled the door.  I pushed it again.  Then I thought about crawling under the door.  No way…the opening at the bottom was only about 8 inches wide.  Wasn’t gonna happen.  So, I called out, “Is there anyone who can hear me?”  No answer.  I called again.  “Is there anyone who can hear me…I am in need of help in the dressing room.”  No answer.  Well, of course there was no answer…no one was working!

So, ‘I had a little talk with Jesus.  And, I told Him all about my  troubles
He will hear my faintest cry and He will answer by and by…’

Do Ya’ll remember that song?  Well, those words came flooding into my heart as I was standing in that nasty dressing room…locked into one of the smaller stalls…and getting unhappier by the moment!  When I was a kid, I remember thinking it would be so fun to get locked inside a department store at night and just roam the store and and try on anything you wanted!  That was then.  Now I am sure they have motion detectors and and the whole DPD would bust through the doors and have me in jail before I could explain!

But, back to the song.  I told Jesus, “I need His strength.”  He says,   And, I was surely in a very weak situation.  So, I took Him at His word.  I asked Him to give me the strength to get out of that door…and get on my way.  I stood back and braced myself with my hand on one wall.  And took my foot and one hand and hit that door as hard as me and Jesus could manage.  Friends, that piece of metal popped right in half!  The door swung open and hit me in the head!  But, I was free!  I gathered up my jeans and hung them back in the right place and I headed for the door.  I have never been so glad to smell fresh air in my life!

Did I tell anyone that I broke their door?  No.  I didn’t see anyone to tell.  Remember?  No one was working   And, obviously, no one heard my body slam through the dressing room door ..cause no one came to investigate, either!

But, last night, I did write a complaint to the Dothan store and told them about my horrendous experience in their store.  I received a generic note this morning saying “Thank you for your comment on our store.  Please let us know how we can make your shopping experience more enjoyable.”  Really?  Really?

I better just stop right here before I say something that’s not nice.  Anyway, the lesson here is this.  God knows where you are all the time.  He knows what you are doing.  He see you when you get in trouble…and He promises to help you out!  Take him at His word!  You might not be stuck in a filthy dressing room and need His help to escape.  But, tapping into His strength is for any situation you find yourself in.  And,He delights in sharing it with you!  He wants every day to be a day of joy and happiness and He’s there to make that happen…if we just ask!