Parking in the Lot

Neat story happened the other day. I was doing my normal Tuesday afternoon deliveries for Threads of Love. I usually check in the church office to see who we have in the Hospital and do a little visiting while I am at the hospital. If I have visits to make, I park in the lot; but if not I park in a delivery space. This day I had forgotten to check the office board and was contemplating, "It would be really easy to just deliver and be gone today. But I would hate to miss someone I know. I'll just park and call when I get in; the 1/2 mile walk would do me good anyway." Lo and behold there was no one in the hospital that day so I began the reverse 1/2 mile back to the lot thinking to myself, "I could have parked up front and been gone right away." as a lady walked briskly toward me and asked,
"Do you have a light?" I looked up to see a rail of a woman looking desperately back at me. She was thin, very thin, her clothes probably children's size hung on her. She had disheveled hair, and only one whole tooth in front, black with decay; the others looked as if they had been filed off slowly by cavities that were still there. In her hand she held in her hand a cigarette.
My mind began to spark with thoughts like "Lady, the last thing you need is a light" and "I'm not going to help you kill yourself" the spirit calmed me enough to rationalize "She is at a Hospital and probably stressed out, now is not the time to tackle her short falls" So I looked back apologetically and answered,
"I'm sorry I don't" I turned, now truly remorseful, that I couldn't help her out; or could I? "Hey, I've got one in my car" I called as I saw a relief sweep across her face "come with me." I began some small talk, "Why are you up here today?"
"My son" she said "he has appendicitis. They said it wasn't and then his Dr in Gatesville, that's where we's from, Gatesville, said he[Dr] thought it was[appendicitis], and we needed to come here[Scott and White], so we got here, and they said it wasn't[appendicitis], it was just bowels you know, like he had to go to the bathroom or somethin' and now they're[S&W] sayin' it is appendicitis and he[son] is gonna have surgery in an hour or so"
"Wow, Well I'm glad they are finally getting things taken care of"
"Yea, me to, I feel like we're at least gettin' somewhere now"
She expressed a few more details while we waited. and I gave my coveted lighter. After she lit I asked, "Do you mind if I pray with you for your son?"
"No, tha'd be great!" she responded. I held out my hand and she went to put her cigarette down
"It's OK God knows you smoke" We had a laugh as I began to pray. I could hear her take long steady drags as I prayed for God's mercy, and for his will. I talked of how we know that He knows the pain of mothers for their children because of his Son, yet, how that doesn't make it easier on this side of things. I finished with a blessing and call for God's will above ours as I squeezed her hand and let go. She thanked me sincerely and I felt a desire to have something else I could do for her, in hind site, a desire to stay with her longer. I gave her my phone number and name and assured her if she needed anything I could hook her up. Then I watched as she began her hike back to the building.
It was fun to tell the story to Tim and to my friends that night. I expressed how I really hoped she'd call with something I could do, how I felt an emptiness inside that all I had done was pray and yet I felt like I didn't let an opportunity go by, that God really used me. I felt like God had encouraged me to park in the parking lot!
A few days later I got a call. It turns out the boys appendix had already ruptured by the time they did the surgery, but he was doing just fine. What's more, God was working with her husband at the very same time he was putting us together. You see she didn't have a lighter because her husband had gone back to Gatesville to shower and get back for the surgery and on his way he helped a man that was broken down on the side of the road. I don't know what went on from there, but she said that when they saw each other the dialogue was something like
"I gotta tell you somethin'"
"No, I gotta tell you somethin'"
"It's just like you said" she told me "He takes care of all of us"

I don't think I will park by the building anymore and I think I will always have a light