I believe he said his name was Don.
It was one of those extremely cold and windy days last Friday when I was headed home from Brookshires in my red Jeep. I needed to hurry home to meet a friend who had agreed to help me with something heavy and I knew they were already there waiting for me. As I headed south on 115, I passed a man with his coat pulled tight, head down avoiding the wind walking north towards town.
As I passed him, I recall hearing these words in my head, "What if that was Me (God), Liz?" I spent the next three miles reasoning that God wouldn't want me picking up a stranger on the side of the road....I knew nothing about him.....I was in a hurry to get home.....he was headed in the opposite direction as me.....this just wouldn't work for me today. But I heard those words yet again, "What if that was Me, Liz?"
I pulled over. And right there....smack dab on the side of 115, I prayed. I reasoned with God that I would turn around, though I didn't want to, but if that was not His voice I heard and if I wasn't suppose to pick this stranger up, then he would be gone when I retraced the last 3-4 miles. But if he was still walking, to please keep me safe as I gave this stranger a warm ride into town. I assure you, I also prayed those 3-4 miles back that he wouldn't be there......but there he was. DANG.
As I pulled over and asked if he needed a ride, he said "YES....Thank You!". He told me his name....he told me he was 47....and he asked me if my teeth were really all mine. He told me he was headed to Brookshires for a loaf of bread and that the bicycle he normally rides had a flat and he couldn't afford to have it fixed. And - He - Stunk - Up - My - Jeep.
We chatted about how he had come from Greenville a few weeks prior and how his teeth weren't his. He just seemed like a guy with some mental challenges and....maybe....because I knew it wasn't my idea to pick him up in the first place and that God was protecting me, I never felt in danger with this stinky guy. As I let him out at Brookshires, he shook my hand and thanked me.
This past weekend, there has been much chatter on Facebook about this same guy. How he had tried to open a car door that didn't belong to him....that he asked people for money....that he just didn't "look" right and should have been shot when his hand hit the car door...or at the very least, taken to the county line and dropped off.
I don't know why God encouraged me to pick this stranger up that cold day. I don't know if he truly is dangerous or just a little mentally challenged. It doesn't matter. I felt the breathe of God whispering into my soul that day and I obeyed....even when I truly, emphatically didn't want to.
And maybe....just maybe....I picked up an angel that day.
It was one of those extremely cold and windy days last Friday when I was headed home from Brookshires in my red Jeep. I needed to hurry home to meet a friend who had agreed to help me with something heavy and I knew they were already there waiting for me. As I headed south on 115, I passed a man with his coat pulled tight, head down avoiding the wind walking north towards town.
As I passed him, I recall hearing these words in my head, "What if that was Me (God), Liz?" I spent the next three miles reasoning that God wouldn't want me picking up a stranger on the side of the road....I knew nothing about him.....I was in a hurry to get home.....he was headed in the opposite direction as me.....this just wouldn't work for me today. But I heard those words yet again, "What if that was Me, Liz?"
I pulled over. And right there....smack dab on the side of 115, I prayed. I reasoned with God that I would turn around, though I didn't want to, but if that was not His voice I heard and if I wasn't suppose to pick this stranger up, then he would be gone when I retraced the last 3-4 miles. But if he was still walking, to please keep me safe as I gave this stranger a warm ride into town. I assure you, I also prayed those 3-4 miles back that he wouldn't be there......but there he was. DANG.
As I pulled over and asked if he needed a ride, he said "YES....Thank You!". He told me his name....he told me he was 47....and he asked me if my teeth were really all mine. He told me he was headed to Brookshires for a loaf of bread and that the bicycle he normally rides had a flat and he couldn't afford to have it fixed. And - He - Stunk - Up - My - Jeep.
We chatted about how he had come from Greenville a few weeks prior and how his teeth weren't his. He just seemed like a guy with some mental challenges and....maybe....because I knew it wasn't my idea to pick him up in the first place and that God was protecting me, I never felt in danger with this stinky guy. As I let him out at Brookshires, he shook my hand and thanked me.
This past weekend, there has been much chatter on Facebook about this same guy. How he had tried to open a car door that didn't belong to him....that he asked people for money....that he just didn't "look" right and should have been shot when his hand hit the car door...or at the very least, taken to the county line and dropped off.
I don't know why God encouraged me to pick this stranger up that cold day. I don't know if he truly is dangerous or just a little mentally challenged. It doesn't matter. I felt the breathe of God whispering into my soul that day and I obeyed....even when I truly, emphatically didn't want to.
And maybe....just maybe....I picked up an angel that day.
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