Carded

Last Saturday I was at the grocery store buying some groceries. I was moving along the refrigerated aisle, minding my own business, when Henry Weinhard’s cream soda decided to call out to me. Lacking an adequate amount of grocery shopping control, I opted to purchase a case. I rationalized it with the heavy workload I’m facing this week, and decided would make a nice motivator for me. I continued wandering through the store until I had enough food in my cart to sustain me throughout this week, and I moved to the check-out lane. As the woman ringing up my groceries scanned the case of cream soda, she stopped. Her face became puzzled, she pushed her “rescan” key, and scanned the case a second time. She then shook her head and explained to her bagger her disbelief that the system wanted my drivers license. I had a feeling of lightness come over me as I realized the absurdity of the situation: I was being carded for cream soda. I checked the ingredients for alcohol, and naturally finding none, I shrugged and offered my license. The employee was still in disbelief, and continued to ring me up.

After a few more seconds the employee had an idea of why the system wanted my license. Anyone familiar with Henry Weinhard’s fine sodas will notice the similarity between the soda bottles and beer bottles. Both are packaged similarly. The employee suggested that often times underage drinkers will come into the store, pick up a case of Henry Weinhard’s soda, but replace the original product with beer. When they are paying for their groceries, the person ringing up the soda doesn’t recognize that the bottles and the packaging do not match. Thus, in order to prevent this dishonesty and underage drinking, the store automatically requires a drivers license for the purchase of Henry Weinhard’s sodas.

As I’ve had time to reflect on this experience, I’ve noticed some interesting parallels between the system of the store and the system of God, our Father in Heaven. Just as the country has various laws for the safety of its citizens, so, too, does God have laws that will ensure us safety and peace as we follow them. The store had implemented a system to uphold those laws, and also implemented a system to prevent people from finding loopholes whereby they could break those laws without others knowing. Similarly, we are unable to receive the blessings with which God would bless us if we follow some other way. There is no way to cheat the system of heaven. The Savior described this principle in the gospel of Matthew, chapter seven, verses thirteen and fourteen: “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” If we are to enter into the Kingdom of our God–both on earth as we receive innumerable blessings from Him, and in the eternal world as we enter and reside in His presence–we must follow the way He set forth. There is only one gate that leads to that kingdom, and that is by following His laws. Fortunately for us, each of His laws are both possible and in our best interest. While it does require the disciple to humble himself or herself, we can have the assurance that if we rely on Him, He will prepare a way. And when we falter, we can be forgiven. It is a way of grace and of peace. And just as a sly, underage drinker would get caught at the last minute, we are unable to cheat our way into it.