A Fellow Traveller

The night was black and I was struggling to steer my car. I had spent three hours visiting my cousin with ALS and was heading towards home. As I pulled over to the side of the road, there was not a house in sight. The tire was flat and I wondered, "What do I do now?"   Not having a cell phone was suddenly a problem. Not even seeing a house nearby to walk towards made that idea seem foolish as well. As I struggled to find the hazard lights, a pick up truck slowed down and a young man asked what was wrong.  "I have a flat tire and I don't have a cell phone." "No problem," he said and promptly pulled up behind me to help.  I watched in amazement as he worked to solve problem after problem. Because the wheels were bigger than the originals, nothing I had fit. Without his own tools, the wheel could not have been removed.   When he put on the spare tire, he noticed that it didn't have enough air to get me home. He decided to take it to his...

Not all umbrellas are the same, as are many different kinds of rainfall. Yesterday I experienced walking outside during a heavy rainfall but I held a new umbrella, the kind golfers use. It was so heavy and sturdy that my arm was soon aching as I tried to find new ways to hold and balance it. I was kept dry as it gave complete protection from the elements but now my fold-up one seems quite inferior. I'm also thinking of what else gives protection and my list is growing. Shoes give protection to feet as does clothing to the body. Homes give protection from the elements of all kinds, especially during bad weather. Immunization gives protection from illness and insurance gives protection from fire and accidents. Families give protection to children as they love and instill enduring values. God's love is a kind of protection as well from whatever life deals us. We can't really insulate ourselves fully from the bad in life, but if God's love covers us, we can walk thro...