Rendezvous on an Old Plane
I had the great pleasure of going to Colorado with my husband to celebrate Christmas with my family there: my parents, my younger son and his girlfriend, my sister and her kids. We all get along great, and the visit was a lot of fun.
On our last full day in Colorado, a group of us drove to the Royal Gorge and took the train along the bottom and gondolas across the top. We finished around dinnertime, so decided to stop in Colorado Springs on the way home. Since none of us was familiar with the area, I got online to do a search for restaurants.
I found one called The Airplane Restaurant. Diners can actually eat inside a fully intact Boeing KC-97 tanker plane, built in 1953. Well, everyone in the group decided that sounded like great fun, so I called and made reservations.
The restaurant was as much a museum as a dining experience, and everyone in our party found it fascinating. The younger ones even got to sit in the cockpit and play with the switches while we waited for our food—which was delicious.
But the best part of the experience was our waitress. She was fun and friendly, made us all laugh and feel great. She teased us all, even tousled my youngest nephew’s hair a couple of times. Made us feel like longtime friends instead of just paying clientele.
At one point, she said something that revealed she was a Christian. Well, I just happened to have brought with me a copy of 21 Days of Christmas: Stories that Celebrate God’s Greatest Gift, book 2 in my Fiction Lover’s Devotional series. I’d been carrying it in my purse all week, wondering and praying about who I should give it to. I knew in my heart it was for this woman.
As we got up to leave, she gave us all hugs and told us how much she loved meeting us. I got up from the table last, and as I did, I handed her my book and said, “This is for you.” Then I pointed to my name on the cover and said, “That’s me.” She clutched it to her chest and said, “I love devotionals!” I said with a wink, “I thought you might.”
Then I asked if there was something I could pray about for her, and she whispered a heartfelt prayer request. I felt kinda bad for making her cry after we’d all been laughing so much! But I knew God had made a very special connection there.
I encouraged her to contact me if she wanted to chat. I don’t know if she will or not. But I do know that God used me to bless that woman. And I believe He will use the stories in that book to bless her too.
I might just have to keep a copy of one of my devotionals in my purse all the time!
I’d love to hear your stories of how God used you to bless a stranger in an unexpected way—especially if it entailed handing someone a book!
January 16, 2017 @ 9:02 am
Great story, Kathy. Years ago my husband and I led a young adult Bible study. One night after group a young man came up to me and said he was considering writing. He asked if I could recommend some good resources. I loaned him a few books on writing and then handed him the fiction book I had just published, Running in Such a Way.
“This will give you an idea of how to write dialogue,” I told him.
Well, two days later I received a message from him of how my book had strengthened his faith. He told me various ways he had been believing God and putting scripture into action, just like the main character, Josh, did. He also related to Josh because he had a parent who was an alcoholic as well. I had no idea of this when I gave him my book.
I love how God makes sure to get His message into the hands of the people who need it the most…and that He chooses to use us as the delivery person. 🙂
January 16, 2017 @ 10:15 am
I love that story, Kathy. I always have some of my books with me or nearby when I travel–in my car, in my carry-on luggage on the plane–because you never know when you’ll meet exactly the kind of person you wrote the book for. It’s one of the joys of being a writer.
January 16, 2017 @ 2:04 pm
I loved this story, Kathy! Thanks so much for sharing. I have so enjoyed giving away my devotional, The Listening Heart, when God gives me that sweet nudge of his. I gave it to two sales clerks in the process of buying a new fridge and to three men in the process of selling and buying a vehicle. It’s been so special to hear back from some of them and how God has used the book in their lives.
One of the sales clerks got teary, threw her arms around me, and told me I had saved her from walking off her job of 18 years–her day had been that awful. Isn’t God amazing? The other one left a message on my home answering machine to thank me again and how he knew it was going to help his wife who had been in a depression since her back injury. I agree with our friend Joseph Bentz: “It’s one of the joys of being a writer.”
January 16, 2017 @ 8:59 pm
Thank you for sharing this story, Kathy! A few years ago I felt God’s nudge to take a copy of my small devotional book for cancer survivors to my hairdresser appointment. I ignored the nudge (I thought I was just being ridiculous) and went to the appointment without my book. While my hairdresser was cutting my hair she started asking me questions about my cancer diagnosis and how I got through it. Her questions became more and more specific and I finally realized that she was asking for personal reasons. She admitted that her doctor suspected that she had cancer, ordered medical tests, and she was waiting for the results. I told her I had a book for her and went home to get her a copy of the devotional. It was a minor inconvenience to go home and get the book, but it did make me smile and wonder why I didn’t just do what God wanted in the first place. My hairdresser didn’t have cancer, praise God! But she did read and appreciate the book.