Wednesday, February 5, 2014

going down the alley for a #2











When the directions said “go down the alley,” I figured they were really good, or I was being misled as an out of towner.  Truth be told, you do go down the alley, which after a few tries not using the directions found them to be the most accurate.  And there it was, just where I was told they would be “Primanti Bros.” perhaps one of the best sandwiches I would ever eat.  After seeing their unique sandwich on the Food Network, I knew that Pittsburg would be my next stop going east.  But downtown Pittsburgh is a difficult place to navigate, what with 3 rivers separating it, stadiums every where you look, and old narrow roads, one way in that they never go the way you want, and the challenge was on.  I was going to Primanti Bros. for lunch, even if it took until dinner time to get there.
Finding a parking place right across from the entrance was scary, I was the only motorcycle in sight, but looking back in the alley, again the alley, I saw a Triumph Speed Triple, which I later found out to be the cook’s bike, so I knew I was in good company.  Now being a stranger in a strange land, can be scary.  And at a place where the locals meet, I was definitely not a local.  But I was welcomed, even told about how to duck my head when goin downstairs to the head-low ceiling-and soon I was sitting at the counter, watching the TV with local news, while the patron next to me informed me of all the corrupt politics in Pittsburgh, made me feel right at home.  And surrounded by all the Steeler posters and jerseys, I would never admit I was from San Diego.  Something about a 1994 AFC game the Chargers somehow won, and the Steeler fans never forgot.   So So Cal was my answer.  But he wasn’t listening, only commenting.  But it was time to order-yelling across the counter to the cook, the chubby woman seen on TV, and soon a #2, the all time best seller, a cheese steak with a handful of fries, and a handful of Italian coleslaw piled high between hand cut Italian bread was in front of me.  A real sandwich, not for calorie counters, nor health food addicts-obviously this was before my open heart surgery, and soon I was in Primanti heaven.  Funny how so many distinct flavors can come together to taste so good.  Add a diet Coke, and all was well with the world.  Now how do I get out of Pittsburgh?  Where is another alley when I need one?
I could see the 16th Street bridge from where I was in the strip district, but how to get to it-only a few blocks away?  So using another alley-by now I figured them out, or so I thought, I took a left, and went under the bridge, then another left, and onto the bridge-just like the signs said, maybe Pittsburgh wasn’t so bad after all, then across the bridge.  Safe and secure, and proud of my navigational skills, until I got in the wrong lane, and no one cut me slack-and ended up going west, when I needed to go east, and taking the wrong fork in the road.  Only to end up where I needed to be, going east-going against the signs and traffic.  No woder the Steelers are so tough-just getting around the city had made me a tougher individual.  But still not a Steeler fan...and still not a Chargers fan either.
And off into the country I rode, glad to leave the city behind.  The hustle, the bustle, the traffic, signs that say west that point to roads goin east, and full of #2, I was glad to be relaxing on the backroads of Pennsylvania again.  And no alleys in sight.  All that for a sandwich, seen on the Food network, a detour I would make again, taking the alley route the first time, not as exciting but more rewarding.  Following directions...and not getting lost, all without a GPS. 
As a long distance rider, I am never lost as long as I am not out of gas.  And wrong turns are referred to as exploratory, never knowing where they might lead.  Even an alley can turn into something good, as my Primanti bros. #2 proved, but some directions should be obeyed.  For being lost, separated from God is not a road I choose to travel.  Scripture warns us that obedience is better than sacrifice.  Listening to God can and will keep you out of trouble.  But yet we argue, and even try to negotiate with God, when He shows us something.  Maybe that is why we don’t hear from Him so often, as if we could win any argument with the creator of the universe.  So I have found solace, and good places to eat by following God. 
Psalm 37 tells us to delight in the Lord, and He will give us the desires of our heart.  Not our lusts, our ego trip filled desires, but His desires.  He plants them in your heart, then He fulfills them just like He says He will.  Think about Jesus for a minute.  Did you just wake up one morning and decide to find God?  All by yourself?  If you did, it explains the drugs, cults, and failures you had to endure.  But it was and is the Holy Spirit telling you “you need Jesus” and drawing you close to Him.  That knocking on your heart is Him asking to come into your life.  And when you let Him in, love will not demand its own way, God fulfills the desire through salvation.  He gives us the desire for Himself, and then fulfills it through Jesus Christ.  And just like not all roads lead to Primanti Bros., not all roads lead to God.  It is only through Jesus we are saved, He is the way to God-He is God! So why wonder aimlessly when you don’t have to?
My lunch was good, but still only meat, fries, and coleslaw between two pieces of bread.  Jesus is the bread of life-stay tucked in between Him, and never go hungry.  Another promise, Psalms also tells us He has never seen the righteous begging, or their children going without food.  Hungry, turn to Jesus.  Lost, follow Him.  And watch as your desires turn to Him, for as He gives the desire, He fulfills it.  And someday you will find that Jesus is the desire of your heart...and the scripture has come alive in your life.  Sure beats a burger under a heat lamp.  For both fast food and fast religion leave you hungry for he real thing, you never be filled until Jesus fulfills you.
If only I had listened to the directions I would have been eating instead of learning the back roads of the strip district.  I saw the bridge too, but how to get there.  Jesus is the destination, the spirit the direction.  Follow Him and eat and be full rather than looking for an alternative route.  Some roads take you down an alley...not out of gas, but still lost.  Where you end up is based on the desire of your heart.  I know what my desire is, do you know where you will end up eating?
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com