An Unlikely Angel

You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. Luke 10:27

 

Exhausted after packing the van and preparing the house for our week-long trip, I finally went to bed. No one slept that night in anticipation of the annual family week at the lake. Ready or not, we needed to start early for the seventeen-hour drive from Maryland to northern Michigan. This year, I made the drive alone with our six- and three-year-olds, as my husband had an unexpected business trip and would fly in later to meet us.

 

With plenty of snacks, drinks, games, and clothes packed tight,  I buckled my sleepy, pajama-clad kids into their seats, and I pulled out of the dark driveway. As the sun rose in the sky, so did the heat inside the car. We had just stopped for a break on the Pennsylvania turnpike and slowly merged back into traffic. Semi-trucks, vehicles with trailers, and vacation-bound families sped past us.

 

We filled the time with songs and alphabet games until the kids finally fell asleep in the car. Looking forward to a stretch of quiet, everything changed. The van suddenly lurched to the left. I gripped the steering wheel, fighting to stay in my lane as trucks roared past in the passing lane. With what I can only call divine intervention, I managed to pull safely onto the narrow shoulder.

 

My mind raced as fast as my heart while I tried to figure out what had just happened. The sudden movement of the van woke the kids, and they bombarded me with questions.

“What’s wrong?”

“Are we there yet?”

“What are we doing here?”

 

With cars whipping closely by on my side of the van, I gave the kids a strict order to stay in their seats and carefully climbed over to the passenger side.   As I walked around the truck to assess the situation, I quickly saw that the driver’s side front tire was completely flat. Feeling helpless, because I couldn’t change the tire myself, I prayed for help.

 

I spotted a car pulled over about 500 yards ahead, appearing to have a flat tire as well. Thinking they were my answer to prayer, I greeted them in the sweltering heat. But their exhausted, wizened faces made it immediately apparent that they barely had the energy to change their own tire.

 

Discouraged, I trudged back to the van, watching the traffic speed by. I was unsure of my next step. I was miles from the next exit and pay phone. When I was about 100 yards from the van, I saw the driver’s door swing open. A semi roared closely by as I heard my son calling for me. I screamed with all my strength for him to stay in the van, breaking into a run as I worried the traffic noise would drown my warnings.

 

Thankfully, my son didn’t get out. I held him tightly and scolded him at the same time, while my daughter asked the question we were all thinking, “What are we going to do? If only Daddy were here.”

 

Just then, a beat-up car with no muffler pulled in front of the van. A tall, scruffy-looking man with long hair, a torn T-shirt, cut-offs, and a beaded necklace jumped out. He walked up to the driver’s side. I hesitated before rolling my window down. With a toothless smile and a raspy voice, he  asked, “Hey, lady, need some help?”

 

My immediate thought was, “Is this an answer to prayer, or would he cause us harm?”

I decided to take a chance on the former. After explaining my situation, he willingly offered to change the tire. I unpacked the back of the van to give him full access to the spare and the tools.

In Luke, Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan. I’ve always understood this as an example of how we should respond to someone in need. However, that hot, exhausting day on the Pennsylvania Turnpike taught me another lesson. When we are the recipients of help, sometimes our good Samaritans do not always align with our expectations.

That scruffy stranger with the toothless grin was my unlikely angel. He changed our tire with skill and kindness, refusing any payment, and sent us safely on our way. As I watched his beat-up car noisily take off, I was convicted by an uncomfortable truth: I had almost let his appearance prevent me from accepting the very help I’d been praying for.

It makes me wonder if I am truly loving my neighbor as Christ commands?  Not just serving and caring for my neighbor, but also receiving help with an open heart. Do I limit God’s provision by judging outward appearances?

 

Dear Lord, help me to see others as You see them. You look at the heart of a person, not the external wrappings. I am thankful for the unlikely angel you sent that day. Open my eyes so I can see where I can be that angel for someone else. Amen