Entertaining Angels

"Do not forget to be hospitable to strangers, for some who have done this have entertained angels without knowing it." 

Hebrews 13:2

In early February of this year, I was traveling home from a day of meetings in Gadsden when I got stuck in an ice storm on I-65 North just south of Cullman.  In hindsight, some of my choices that day were really bad.  For example, just before lunch, I saw the radar and heard the predictions of icy weather, but I thought, "Oh, these weathermen always exaggerate.  I will be fine."  Then, when I got to Birmingham to pick up my car where I had left it earlier in the day, I called my husband who advised me to get a hotel room and wait until the next day to drive the rest of the way home.  "Oh, Honey," I said, "I can make it."

Bad choices lead to bad consequences for me.  The darker it got, the harder the ice fell.  Finally, traffic came to a complete stop in the middle of nowhere.  There were no exits, no hotels, no way out.  I felt totally helpless.  I called my company's emergency travel line and begged for a hotel room in Cullman.  My husband searched every travel website for me to no avail.  There were no rooms in any inns. 

After literally crawling for hours on I-65, I finally made it to the Cullman exit shortly after 10 pm after about 8 hours in the car.  I made my way to the Waffle House, laid my head down in the booth, cried my eyes out and did what any good Southern lady would do under the circumstances.....I called my Mama.

As a part of the Mission Athens team, we have the opportunity to meet lots of people who have made bad choices that have lead to bad consequences.  In some cases, people never thought through those choices and never anticipated those possible bad consequences.  In other cases, people acted hastily or on impulse.  Sometimes, people just make bad choices for no really good reason.  In any case, bad things ultimately happen and people are then stuck between a rock and a hard place, and that is when they call us.

We have met people who were broken down, beat up, or just plain broke.  We have met mothers with hungry children, fathers with no gas in the car trying to make it a few more miles down the road, and grandparents who are taking in their children's kids, trying to right a wrong.  A few weeks ago, we helped a man who had just gotten out of prison.  He couldn't read or write, and he had no real plan for his future.  He thought if he could just make it to Florida, he might could get a job on a shrimp boat or help some fisherman down there.  He had no family, no friends, and it turns out the crimes he had committed that had landed him in prison were great examples of really bad choices.  He told us he had recommitted his life to Christ in prison, and he just needed someone to help him on his way.  Sounded good to us, so we helped him get a bus ticket to Florida.

This week, we met a mom and her 14-year-old son.  They are homeless, down on their luck, no income, no real friends, and very few prospects.  She has a grandmother who lives in Evergreen who is willing to take them in and help them get back on their feet.  I am quite certain this mom has made some bad choices that have lead to these bad consequences, but I am also certain she needs someone to show her Jesus.  Jesus surrounded himself with people who had checkered pasts and who had made plenty of bad choices.  Jesus didn't care--he loved them anyway and encouraged them to walk in a new life.

So often, we as Christians are so quick to judge people who are not like us.  In many cases, we think to ourselves, "I would never be in that situation, because I make good choices.  People who fall on these hard times need to make better choices and then they won't get themselves into these messes."  It is so easy for us, who are not homeless, to point our fingers and point blame.  We haven't walked in those shoes.....unless we have been stuck on the side of the road in Cullman in an ice storm.

There I was in my business suit with a purse full of money, an iPhone, a laptop, a nice car full of gas, and no place to lay my head.  To say I was humbled is an understatement.  For all purposes, I was homeless that night.  And that's where my Mama came to my rescue.  She called my big brother, who would never have let his little sister spend the night at a Waffle House.  He remembered an old friend of my father's who lived 3 blocks away from the Waffle House where I was crying in my coffee.  He called him, and in about 30 minutes, I was embraced by Leonard and Patrina, who graciously let me, a person they hadn't seen since my father's funeral 11 years ago, into their home for the night.  They gave me their guest room, warm blankets, and even a new toothbrush.  Thank God for their goodness, and thank God for my wonderful family who can see me through any tough time I seem to get myself into!

You see, God has blessed me with this loving family.  But for His grace go I!  What a valuable lesson I learned that night!  I walk around with the delusion that I am invincible--I am competent, I am capable, I am IN CONTROL.  How wrong and how arrogant of me!  GOD is in control, and sometimes he uses ice storms and Waffle Houses to remind us to open our eyes and help those other wayward travelers who need a second chance, a helping hand, and maybe a bus ticket so that they can have a prayer for their future.

Today, I was traveling north on I-65 again, and as I approached Cullman, I saw a Greyhound bus headed south.  On that bus was a Mom, just like me, with a son she loves, just like me.  She was on her way to her Grandmama's house, and I pray she is embraced and loved there and that her future is bright.  We will probably never see her again, but it is great to know we helped her get a few more miles down the road. 

She is leaving Athens with the knowledge that there are people here who believe in God and who believe in His goodness.  She is leaving perhaps with a little more spring in her step that there really are people who don't just talk the talk in the pews on Sunday, but who will actually walk the walk and help you out on a Tuesday.

Who knows?  Perhaps she is an angel like the one referenced in Hebrews, and we have entertained her on her journey to get her new wings.