Hebrews 13:2
Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares
Several years ago my husband and I went for training in ‘Stephen Ministry’. The classes were intense, insightful and in Baltimore MD. Since it was a two week seminar, there was a week-end between we had free! We decided to go to Baltimore to Inner Harbor, we had heard so much about it.
Of course we got directions, and instruction from the locals…’do not stay in that area after dusk…be sure to get the bus back before dark’. That was the admonition to us from several people. We determined to obey it, and planned accordingly.
We had a beautiful day. Sun shining, people walking, harbor just full of boats, people and life. We went to the Baltimore Aquarium. So many species of beautiful fish, we were in awe. We ate at Phillips Seafood-right on the Harbor, sublime. As our day began to wind down, we said…time to go. We took our last look, me more than he! I like to linger, he wanted to go-now!
We had to get a bus to go back to Loyola University, where we were staying. We had the information- the bus number we needed to look for, and stood at the bus stop waiting. One by one the buses came, and went. None had our number, or sign in the window with our destination. We were getting concerned as it was beginning to get dusky. We began asking the bus drivers as they would open the door to allow passengers to get in. ‘Is this the bus going to the Loyola University? ‘Nope’, came the quick answer every time, with a quick door closing. Now dusky is turning to dark. A different kind of people began walking by us, we began huddling closer to each other, and hanging on to our possessions.
‘Sir, can you tell us when the #95 bus will be coming by?’ we asked the next bus driver that opened his door. ‘Nope, don’t know’. As the door closed, we felt the door closed on our last chance too.
But, God had a different plan. As we stood there like two lost children on the street corner, we asked the Lord to help us. Soon a woman came and stood nearby. Now, we saw her coming. She had boots on, in summer. A long dress, a coat over that, and a large tote filled to the brim. She topped this designer look with a straw hat and a flower sticking up out of it. She spoke to us first. ‘How are ya?’ ‘Good’, we answered gingerly. Again thinking this was our last hope, I continued. ‘We are not from here and don’t know what bus to take to get back to Loyola University’. I blurted it out, forgetting all the precautions we received about the people you would find ‘after dark’.
She pleasantly answered, ‘Oh, I am goin’ that way myself. I can help you’. Desperation has a way of lowering your inhibitions. We trusted her. One or two more buses came and went, then she said, ‘this is the one’. We entered the bus and sat in front of the ‘flower lady’ as we began referring to her. We talked a lot about our class we were taking and she agreed wholeheartedly that more focus on God was needed in our country today. We had a pleasant conversation with a beautiful stranger.
Finally, at a stop quite a long way from the harbor, she said, ‘well, this is my stop. Now you two just get off at the next stop and you will be right in front of the University’. We thanked her profusely, and had such a warm feeling about her as she disembarked the bus. Then a funny thing happened. We watched her get off the bus, we wanted to wave a last good-bye, but she was gone! Her little straw hat with the flower was nowhere in sight. As the bus pulled away we strained to find her. She was not there! My husband and I both looked at each other. From our innermost being, we realized, we had encountered an angel! A Heavenly messenger to show us the way, when there was no other way. This happened over 30 years ago. There were no cell phones, no GPS, no way of contacting anybody anywhere who could help us. Even the locals were no help, except for our ‘flower lady’ that the Lord sent to us after our prayer.
We learned a tremendous lesson that day. God cares about us. We believed that without the help from the ‘flower lady’ we may have become a heading in our local newspaper; ‘couple robbed in Baltimore at a church conference’.
There are many disasters in our lives that have been averted because an angel intervened. Many more have had the help of an angel, like we did. All of us have the divine protection of our Heavenly Father daily. Praise God for His care and watchful eye, especially as it gets darker and darker out there!
My question for today; can you tell me about your ‘close encounter of the divine kind?’ I love hearing them. Please share them in the reply section.
