Can you pinpoint the exact moment in time when the Lord laid a burden on your heart?  This is my story of that exact moment.  This actually happened in April 2011 and was written the same night after a whirlwind day.   Be alert and watchful for unexpected distractions in your day, as you just might be entertaining angels unaware.  

April 20, 2011

So today was definitely one of those Francesca Battistelli kind of days. You know, This Is The Stuff You Use kind of days. (Google the lyrics if you don’t know the song.)

It more or less started with a terrible night’s sleep. I’m working in San Antonio for the week and normally sleep quite well. But for whatever reason, I tossed and turned all night.

I drug myself out of bed around 6:00 am and looked forward to a nice, hot shower to get me going. Well, that didn’t happen.  Water was ICE COLD. Have you ever tried to shave your legs when they are covered in chill bumps? Have you ever washed your hair with ice?

Made it through that, ate breakfast, got ready and rushed to get some work wrapped up before heading out for the day.

Just before walking out the door, I stopped by the hotel business center to print a doc I needed for a customer meeting; doc wouldn’t print. I created the doc in Word 2007, the hotel computer had Word 2003, the codec wasn’t installed, yadda, yadda. No go on printing the doc. I decided to just stop in a FedEx Office before my meeting and print it out.

Off I go to my first round of appts. They went well! Things are looking up!

I stop for lunch at Chili’s in San Marcos. Had to take a longer than normal lunch in order to finish up a price quote for a meeting tomorrow. Talked to a colleague several times to make sure I was inputting items correctly. Adding numbers, adding product, bite of soup, take a call, return an email, eat a chip, email myself another doc I need to print, drink water and out the door I go.

Well, about 10 minutes onward to my next appointment, it suddenly dawned on me that I LEFT my company credit card at Chili’s. Yes, I did. Never even signed my ticket. I was so consumed with the activities at hand, it never dawned on me I should sign for my bill. (Side note: This is the same Chili’s at which I had lunch with a colleague a few weeks back, and we got our credit cards mixed up when paying. It was only about 5 days later, after I had charged up lots of expenses on her card, when I looked down at the slip I was signing and noticed that my name was not Amanda Raine.)

So, I call Chili’s. Yes, they have my credit card and yes they will hold it AND the slip I failed to sign, until I could swing back by.

Prior to my next meeting, I needed to stop in a FedEx Office to print those docs.  Unfortunately there was no FedEx Office anywhere near, so I had to settle for a UPS Store.  Stopped in and emailed them the files. Main file I needed printed beautifully. Second file was created in Excel 2007, and yep, you guessed it. They have Excel 2003, no codec installed, and I didn’t have time to wait. *sigh*

Onward to my next meeting. It went well! Thank goodness. I’ll end up emailing the customer the Excel file I needed to print which will make a nice follow up touch.

Stopped back by Chili’s, signed the slip, got my card, and off to the next meeting I go.

As I wrapped up the next meeting, one of our consultants called as I was walking out the door. She was assisting me with a customer need and had news to report. The customer needed something overnighted. I actually had the item in my car and available to be shipped. This is highly unusual. The item is not something I typically carry.

Next task. Find another FedEx Office. It is now getting late in the day and there is actually one on the way back to the hotel with the dreadful, ice cold shower.

As I pull in the parking lot, I notice a sad, frail homeless woman curled up on the sidewalk near the road. Oh my goodness! I realize this is the SAME homeless woman I saw yesterday, in a totally different part of San Antonio. I recognized her tattered garb, do-rag and ponytail. Yesterday, my heart crumbled as I pulled up to a red light near an overpass. The lady was obviously in pain, holding her belly, and dragging herself to wherever she was going.

I ran in, shipped my package and went straight to the Taco Cabana next door. I missed an opportunity yesterday and since she mysteriously entered my life again, I was not going to let this one slide. I pulled through the drive through, ordered a meal, and drove over to her. I motioned for her to come to the window. She did. I asked if she was hungry. “YES!” she exclaimed.

Her next statement floored me. I expected her to ask for money, a ride, anything but what she asked me for. She asked me if I had any panties! My heart sank! I have a bazillion panties! How can she just want panties?!?! My suitcase was at the cold water hotel, so the only panties I had were the ones I was wearing. I told her to wait there and I would go get some.

Off I go to the nearest Walmart to buy panties. I was nearly in tears as I drove. I just kept going over and over in my mind how it must feel to not have a clean pair of panties. How it must feel to be dirty. How it must feel to be unloved, unwanted, shamed and homeless. I couldn’t bear the thought…

I bought her a 6 pack of panties along with some jeans and shirts, toiletries, baby wipes, an 8 pk. of trail mix, a Walmart gift card and a Subway gift card.

When I arrived back to her locale, she was in tears. She thought I wasn’t coming back. (It took me forever as the Walmart wasn’t close and 5 o’clock traffic had set in.)

I sat down beside her right there near the road, traffic whizzing by. I asked her to tell me her story. Her name is Denise. Her body is frail and narrow. She has oily brown hair, pulled back in a low ponytail. Her face is covered with deep set wrinkles. She has the most honest, sincere blue eyes I think I’ve ever seen. She is an Air Force brat. Graduated from A&M with a degree in Archaeology and had been a data entry clerk up until 8 months ago. She feels her Archaeology degree is worthless and hasn’t been able to find work since being laid off 8 months prior. She couldn’t care for her 16 year old daughter so she sent her “up north” to live with her godmother where she hears she is thriving. She has a camp somewhere in the city. Lost her home when she lost her job. She sometimes spends nights in shelters, but recently was robbed at 2 am in the morning. This is the Reader’s Digest version. I can only imagine the rest of her story and the holes she left out.

My heart broke. I wanted to bring her home with me, but knew that wasn’t feasible. I asked her if I could pray with her. She grabbed her spindly, yarn woven cross necklace, crossed her heart and we prayed.

This was one of the most precious moments of my life. I was so sad to leave her knowing I would likely never see her again. However, given she had entered my life TWICE, it seems possible a third time would not be out of the question.

So my Francesca Battistelli day turned into an unexpected blessing. My terrible night’s sleep (reflecting, can I honestly say it was terrible?), ice cold shower, and seemingly constant mishaps, all pale in comparison with what Denise is currently experiencing. I have clean panties. I had barbeque for dinner. I will HOPEFULLY have a hot shower in the morning. She has nothing.

All of this because I was in “the right place, at the right time.” My docs that wouldn’t print (twice), leaving my credit card behind and having to return to pick it up, having to overnight a package unexpectedly set the stage for the sweetest, divine appointment.

This is the stuff YOU use………

Have you experienced a similar, divine appointment?  If so, please share in the comments below.  Angels DO walk among us.