Another day in Paradise

Something tonight reminded me of a something I related a couple of years ago concerning entertaining angels unawares.  There was a lady, one of her eyes stuck out from her face and looked like a bluish white marble, her mouth opened to speak and there were no teeth, she was using a cane to hobble along and her clothes were dirty. I was intent on looking for something when I heard a rustle to my right and looked up to see this battered looking old woman coming right toward me, she spoke, “Lady do you have a few dollars you can give me to buy myself a T-shirt and some food? I’ll love you forever if you will.”My first instinct was to sniff the air for alcohol. I answered her “Is what you need in this store?” “Yes’m it is, I’ll love you forever if you can help me.”She was pleading, my heart was touched. “Go and gather what you need and meet me at the cash register, I will pay for whatever you get.”Her face lit up as she went off saying, “I’ll love you forever.” I finished looking around for what I needed and got finished. I looked around but didn’t see her as I went to the front, I heard her call out, “Hey lady, here I come“, she continued her crippled walk toward me, a big smile on her old face. She lay her things on the counter, just a few items; a boxed mac and cheese dinner, a T-shirt and a Gatorade. I said “Are you sure that’s all you need?” “Yes’m it is, I’ll love you forever.”I had the cashier scan her things and bag them before he did mine. She asked him to double bag it so it wouldn’t break. She took her treasures and turned to me, “Can I give you some love?”, herarms reached out and I walked into them. As she hugged me she whispered, “God bless you, I’ll love you forever. I gotta hurry, don’t want to miss my bus.” I wasn’t more than two minutes behind her, I walked out to see if she was at the bus stop, there was no bus stop, no bus, no lady, she had vanished into thin air. I looked up and down, as heavy, old and crippled as she was she couldn’t have gone far, but she was no where to be seen. It gave me a chill. Had I entertained an angel, unaware?

I thought of the lyrics to a Phil Collins song, Another Day In Paradise
She calls out to the man on the street “Sir, can you help me?
It’s cold and I’ve nowhere to sleep, Is there somewhere you can tell me?” He walks on, doesn’t look back He pretends he can’t hear her Starts to whistle as he crosses the street Seems embarrassed to be there Oh think twice, it’s another day for You and me in paradise Oh think twice, it’s just another day for you, You and me in paradise She calls out to the man on the street He can see she’s been crying She’s got blisters on the soles of her feet Can’t walk but she’s trying Oh think twice… Oh lord, is there nothing more anybody can do Oh lord, there must be something you can say You can tell from the lines on her face You can see that she’s been there Probably been moved on from every place ‘Cos she didn’t fit in there Oh think twice  

Hebrews 13:2 Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some people have entertained angels without knowing it. 

Whether this lady was an angel, or someone that needed help from a stranger, I felt I had seen God and strangely, I saw Him in me. How wonderful to feel that you have been the hand of God on earth. Somewhere someone is “loving me forever“, thank you Jesus. Sometimes we just need to be reminded, tonight was my time for that. We should always think twice.