Sunday, November 23, 2025
The following story is a “Classic” which means you might have seen it before. It is one of my favorites
because it really happened to me on a blustery early winter day
just before Thanksgiving. I hope you enjoy it and that it prompts you to think
about the strangers you may meet today.
THE BLESSING!
Gal
6:10
10 As we have therefore opportunity, let
us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the
household of faith.
My wife and I had gone to
Wichita Falls on some business and
inevitably we always visit Hobby Lobby and Mardel’s Christian store. The day
was blustery with suddenly cold temperatures and freezing rain. While Irene was
at Hobby Lobby, I took refuge in Mardel’s and poured myself a cup of free
coffee. I was sitting near the front of the store, in a comfortable chair next
to the Christmas tree, when I observed a curious thing.
A man entered the store
wearing a green parka with
the hood pulled up over his head. He was soaked! He carried a black trash bag
with mysterious contents. He asked if there was a bathroom and was directed to
the back of the store. Then he asked if he could leave his parcel with the
clerk near the register. Always accommodating, the clerk told him he could
leave his burden with her while he went to the bathroom.
Now, I’m watching all this and
thinking that this could be a bomb! Then I dismissed that notion because a bomber would
not leave a bomb and then retreat into
the building and not from it. While
I continued to sip my coffee and ponder, the man returned to retrieve his
package.
The clerk offered the man some
coffee and he eagerly and gratefully accepted. He walked over to the coffee pot and
took a seat next to me. I noticed that he did not fit the homeless model. He
was young, clean, and had recently shaved. He had a nice smile and a military
haircut. I asked him if he was in the military because Sheppard Air Force base
is in Wichita Falls. He answered that he was a Marine. Marines never talk of
their service as “former.” I was prompted to speak to him of his salvation, but
he said something that stopped me.
He said: “The Lord has been
blessing me all day long!” He
said this with a smile that nearly glowed. He then told me that he lived in an
apartment near Wal-Mart. I knew that
this apartment was a considerable distance to walk and thought I might offer
him a ride home. He stopped that thought by saying he had a few stops along the
way. There was something about this young man that made you want to help him
even though he asked for little.
Then the blessing happened! Another clerk came from the rear of
the store with an old golf umbrella. While it was a bit dirty, it was solid.
She apologized for its condition and explained that it had been left at the
store by a customer. His face lit up with understanding and thanksgiving. I
remembered what he had said to me: “The Lord has been blessing me all day
long!” Then I thought of a Bible verse …
Heb
13:2
2 Be not forgetful to entertain
strangers: for there by some have entertained angels unawares.
Dear Lord, today may bring
opportunities to do good and be a blessing. Don’t let me overlook these. AMEN
