Unexpected Blessings

Yesterday, while I was having lunch with a few of my girlfriends and our kiddos at Panera, I received a call on my phone from a number I didn't recognize.  These days, I can't afford to ignore a single call (just in case it's "the call"!) so I answered it quickly.  The voice on the other line was the voice of one of our pastors at Englewood.  Immediately my heart sank and I imagined all kind of horrible things---someone I loved had died and Mr. Priddy was calling me to give me bad news was the first thought in my head.  Thankfully, that wasn't it at all.  In fact, he was calling with some wonderful, happy news.

He explained that a family who wishes to remain anonymous had contacted him about a very generous monetary donation to help cover the cost of my medical expenses.  Tears welled up in my eyes as I listened to him talk and I actually said to him "I don't even know what to say".  He told me that things like this happen all the time within the Englewood family and that I should graciously accept the gift.  I could barely wrap my head around what he was telling me and all the while I kept wondering who in the world would do something like this for us??  But, as he promised he kept a tight lip and didn't give me any hints as to the identity of the anonymous donor.  I asked him how I could contact this family to thank them for their generosity and he said I could write a letter and he would deliver it to them.  Somehow, the words "thank you" just don't seem like enough.  I have no idea who you are or if you are reading this but if you are, please know that words cannot begin to express our family's deepest and most heartfelt thanks for your selfless act.  Maybe you are someone I don't even know or perhaps you're a close friend of ours....I will probably never know.  But that really doesn't matter I guess.  What matters is that you know what a blessing you are....Not simply because of the money but because you reached out beyond yourself to do something nice for someone else.  You've shown the love of Jesus and never expected any recognition for it.  You did it out of the goodness of your heart and not for the praises of man.  Whoever you are, I pray that the Lord blesses you ten fold for your generosity and your love!  I know that He will, and here's why.........

I hesitate to even share this next story because I don't want anyone to misunderstand the purpose behind me telling it.  It is not for praise or to pat myself on the back, but rather to show a perfect example of how awesome our God is and how He truly does work ALL things for the good.  I have only shared this story with one person, and that's my Mom.  As weird as it sounds, Matthew doesn't even know about it and he'll be learning of it for the first time when he reads this blog post.  

Exactly one week ago yesterday at almost the exact same time that I received the phone call from my pastor, I was pulling into the parking lot of a restaurant for lunch when I was approached by a middle aged lady with tears in her eyes.  I had just pulled my cranky and hungry toddler from the car seat when she stopped me.  I'll spare you all of the details, but she gave me a very heart wrenching story of misfortune and despair.  Through her sobs and pleas for help, I learned that she was traveling through Jackson on her way home from Texas.  She was still over 500 miles away from her destination and she had no money for gas.  Her cell phone had been stolen, along with her credit cards and some other things.  The police were helping her somewhat, but she needed money.  For some reason, she really tugged at my heart strings and I felt a deep compassion for her.  She told me she would give me anything I wanted if I would just help her get home.  She offered me her diamond earrings and several other things which of course I turned down.  With no cash in my wallet, I told her to follow me.  I loaded my cranky and hungry toddler back into the hot car and I drove several miles to an ATM and withdrew a large amount of cash.  She sobbed and hugged me as I handed over the money and she just kept saying "why in the world are you helping me??  What makes you want to help me??  Nobody has helped me until you and I just want to know why you're so willing?"  Again she begged for me to take her earrings and she promised that she would pay me back.  She asked for my phone number and I gave it to her.  (I know, I know.....some of you are cringing right about now but I never felt threatened or unsafe)  I told her that I was a Christian and that I was just doing what I felt was right in my heart.  I saw a sister in need and I had the means to help her out so I did.  Again, she was just baffled by this expression of generosity and told me she would make absolutely sure I got my money back somehow, someway.  I told her not to worry about the money and to just promise me she would pay it forward someday by helping someone else in their time of need.  As she hugged me goodbye, she looked into my eyes and noticed (as everyone does) that they were yellow.  She stepped back and took a look at me and said "do you know that you have a very serious medical condition?"  I laughed and told her that I was very aware of my condition and gave her a very brief run down of my situation and explained that I was on a liver transplant list.  She was even more baffled at this news and told me she would most definitely keep me in her prayers.  She asked how she could keep up with my progress and I told her about this blog and wrote down the web address for it.  Perhaps she's out there reading this right now, even...??  I told her if she wanted to "pay me back", to please take the bracelet I was wearing and to promise me she would wear it daily and help spread awareness about the importance of organ donation.  She gladly took the bracelet and told me she would pray for me every time she looked at it.  We hugged and parted ways and I walked away with her name and phone number and a smile in my heart.  I figured I would probably never hear from her again and I was ok with that.  If she was scamming me, it would be on her conscience, not mine.  I did what I felt was right for that particular situation and what she ultimately chose to do with the money and her intentions are between Ms. Bonnie and the Lord.  I simply did what I would want anyone to do for me if I was in her shoes.  Who am I to judge her or make assumptions regarding her motive?  

I drove back to the restaurant where Kyndall and I enjoyed our lunch while having a nice conversation about what had just happened.  I explained to her that Jesus teaches us to be kind and compassionate to those in need.  We helped someone and that made Jesus happy.  I figured even if I had just been "scammed", at least it was a teachable moment for my child.  

I told my Mom about it later that afternoon and she had a few concerns about the sincerity of the lady's story (as I'm sure most of you do too!) but I just kept telling her I didn't care what she really did with the money.  I did what I felt was right and that's all I'm responsible for.  I never even told Matthew because sometimes he's not as sensitive and compassionate in these situations as I am---sorry babe!  =)  Besides, the money will never be missed so there really wasn't any need to have to defend myself if he disagreed with my decision.  

I thought about Ms. Bonnie a few times and even tried to call her just a couple days after our encounter.  So far I haven't heard from her and that's ok.  

Today, when I was so generously blessed, my Mom reminded me of this story that happened exactly one week ago.  Perhaps my good deed didn't go unnoticed after all?

Again, I am not sharing this story to say that you should give in order to get or that you will always receive a  tangible blessing in return.  In fact, most of the time when we do something nice for someone else the true blessing is just the goodness we feel in our heart knowing we helped someone in their time of need.  I don't believe in prosperity preaching and I certainly don't believe in "karma".  I believe that only the Lord knows the intentions of a person's heart and if we live our lives never expecting anything in return for our good deeds, we are much happier people.

What happened yesterday reminded me of one of my favorite verses which says......

"Give and it will be given to you.  A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over will be poured into your lap.  For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you." ~Luke 6:38