Let’s set the scene, shall we…

Imagine one of your hardest days (maybe it was today) and as you are almost at your whits end, thinking, “if one more thing goes wrong……” and suddenly you are approached by a stranger saying hello. You most likely have two options here; give the friendly (and sometimes fake) hello back, or ignore the person and keep walking. What if the choice you made was one that could also change the outcome of your most awful, most take me back to bed for a re-do day. I recently had a day like this and what I chose this day was the friendly (and being honest fake) hello with a half-smile. My day was so crazy bad that I was on my third cup of coffee and I stopped at a Starbucks during my travels (I don’t even remember the name of the town I was in 🥴). Anyway, after going through the drive-thru to get my tall hot coffee with one pump of pumpkin, I stopped in the parking lot to grab road snacks from the trunk area of my van, when the stranger hello proceeded. As I’m fumbling through luggage, the stranger (let’s call him Fred) continues talking to me saying, “you know, I just love it when I see scripture in people’s vehicles.” My honest first thought was whhhhhy is Fred still talking to me, then I thought…. What in the world is Fred even saying right now? I had to process and piece together his statement, and I said “ohhhhh, you’re talking about my hat in the dash?” Fred said “yes!” *insert sarcasm here —> So as any God-fearing Christian does once the Bible has been introduced into a conversation…. I changed my annoyed face into one that glows radiantly as I said, “that’s my favorite verse!” Fred suddenly reminded me that my bad day was small in the grand scheme of things because the verse that is airbrushed on the hat is Romans 8:28. Fred told me it brightens his day to know that there are other believers in the world and when he sees scripture or Bibles in people’s vehicles it reminds him that he isn’t alone. Fred then asked me to remind him what Romans 8:28 says. Therefore, I was given an opportunity to remember God’s promise because I spoke the verse out loud, “we know that all things work together for the good of those who love God: those that are called according to His purpose.” (HCSB). I told Fred, not too many people like that verse because it may not help the current situation feel better, but I like it because it reminds me that God is going to work out what I call bad and make it good for His purpose. Fred then said, “well, I’m with you, because this (points to the ground) is a temporary home with temporary problems!” Our conversation got interrupted but I was able to tell Fred thank you for saying something to me, because I was having a bad day and by him reminding me of the scripture I look at daily, the conversation helped me get back on track and remember that even though it feels bad right now, God is good and wants good for us! After we had another small conversation, it was time for us to both be on our way, so I told Fred, “I may not see you again on this side of eternity, but I will see you again soon.” he agreed and implied he couldn’t wait for that day!

This situation truly changed the outcome of the rest of my day, had God not intervened by using Fred as a way to remind me that He IS a good good good Father, I may not have been able to walk away with a smile on my face again. Moreover, had I not been willing to push aside my fleshly feelings at the time and had I ignored Fred instead of saying hello, I also still wouldn’t have been able to walk away with a smile on my face. As the community of God, we all play a special role in His (God) plan and when we are willing to step outside of ourselves and our situations, we can be active/proactive in our roles. I am truly thankful for Freds willingness to encourage me, (not even knowing how much I truly needed it that very moment) and I am thankful that we serve a God that knows what we need when we need it and He allows the Holy Spirit to nudge us/others to show us He cares! What would the world look like, if we were all a little more like Fred?

Prayer:

God, thank you for your goodness to us. Thank you for reminding us that you do in fact care and you want to work our bad out for your good. This situation proves that because when I felt bad, you made it good, even though the reason(s) I was having a bad day didn’t go away. Thank you for using the stranger you did at that exact moment. God we all desire to be used the way you used Fred, please guide us daily to someone that needs the encouragement you have for them, and even if they walk away not knowing our name(s), they know you are a good God! In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.