Answer the Call

It was one of those days. I had spent hours looking for my phone, which I didn’t know had fallen out of my pocket into that black hole that exists between the driver’s and passenger’s front seat of all cars. Running late for to lead a funeral vigil service, I finally stopped searching for it and drove to the funeral home not realising how close it was.

Despite the pleas of the funeral director and my booming voice, hardly anyone listened to my prayers. I felt I had wasted my time. As I walked past another service in the adjoining building, I was stopped by someone giving me a big hug and telling me that even though he didn’t know how to reach me, he never lost hope that I would somehow make it to the service for his mother to console him and his family. Fortunately, the family name was posted since I didn’t recognise the person at all. I looked at him and said that no way I would have missed being there for them and proceeded to pray with a much more responsive group of mourners.

It wasn’t a wasted trip after all. I got back into my car. Thinking about all the hassle of having to get a new phone, I heard the familiar ring tone emanating from under the car seat. It has become a good day. Advent scripture encourages us not to lose hope, because we must be the source of hope fulfilled for others.