On this particular day in January 2000, my husband and I had been having a difference of opinion off and on over silly stuff for a couple of days. So, when I needed to go back to a department store to exchange a pair of shoes, he got even more upset. When we arrived at the department store, he asked me a question as I was getting out of the truck. I couldn't hear him because of the high volume of traffic leaving the parking lot. He didn't repeat the question, so I didn't think anymore about it and continued on my way. Just as I stepped inside the store, my angel's voice (female) whispered in my right ear and spoke my husband's name, and told me "he had left." I turned around to look to see whether he was parking the truck; he was not. There were now only a few scattered cars in the lot. For some reason, I was not concerned that he had seemingly left. Not hearing anything more from my angel, I went about taking care of my business, exchanging my shoes.
Upon leaving the department store, I looked for my husband to see if he had returned; he had not. I waited for fifteen minutes, then I just started walking in the direction of my home. The weather had gotten worse It was terrible outside--snow mixed with freezing rain made walking treacherous. I made it over a block on the dimly-lit street before slipping on some ice and falling hard to the pavement. I was covered from head to toe in a wet, freezing mess and on top of that I had hurt my right ankle. I looked around to see if I could get some help in getting up, but there wasn't a single person on the street walking or driving. After about ten minutes of struggling, I managed to get up on my feet, picked up my purse and shoe bag and continued gingerly down the block.
I started to pray. It was dark, and I felt unsafe and talking to God has always had a calming effect on me. I was walking on the street where there was a long stretch of barren, unlit property. Just as I got a little less than halfway down the block, out of the darkness walking across this empty lot, were six (I assumed) young teenage boys all were wearing dark clothing with hoodies. The angle at which they were crossing the property - and the pace at which they were walking - would put them less then ten feet in front of me, and that's exactly what happened. I tried to make myself as small as possible so as not to be noticed. For whatever reason they didn't notice me, and once they passed in front of me, they never turned around to look behind them. After a few minutes, I started to feel very comfortable walking behind them. (I really did.) I could have literally ran up eight feet and touched them, they were just that close. As we walked, it was as if they were escorting me down the unlit street It was an additional two long blocks of semi-darkness before they crossed the street, just before we came to a brightly-lit intersection, and disappeared into the night.
When I told this story to an elderly friend of mine, she thought the young men were God's angels, sent to walk with me in the darkness until I reached the light. I think she was right--because of what happened next...
By the time I reached the intersection, it was void of any kind of traffic--walking or driving. Everything was either closed or looked deserted. I looked around for a public telephone, having found three, but they were all out of order. So I continued walking, stopping occasionally to look for a bus, I didn't see one. (I didn't have enough money left for a cab, and I wasn't sure my husband was at home to pay for one). I was still a long way from home. My clothes were soaked from a combination of falling down and the rain. My hands were freezing, and my right ankle throbbed with pain. (I was in trouble.) I started to pray again, while I was walking closing my eyes (this time) for only a few seconds talking to God (my constant companion) and asking for His help.
No sooner had I said my prayer and opened my eyes, the brightest color of yellow I have ever seen filled my eyesight. I was within a finger's length (and I mean that literally) of a huge 1940's-style yellow cab with white mist emanating from all over it. (There had been no cab anywhere on the streets around me when I closed my eyes for a couple seconds to Pray.) Now suddenly there was one right in front of me. Praise God!
It was just sitting there directly across my path, if I had taken another step I would have been in the cab. I was just standing there stunned. The driver said 'get in', and I managed to blurt out, 'Where did you come from?' He just smiled. (To this day I can't give a description of the cab driver, and I was looking directly at him. What I will say is that he was a most kind and extremely friendly, smiling individual.) Once again, I wasn't afraid. A calmness had come over me. So, I decided to take a seat in the cab, if for no other reason than to rest my aching body for a few minutes. While sitting, I decided to tell the cab driver I didn't have the total fare to get home. But before I could say anything, he turned around and said, "I am here to take you home. There will be no charge." I suddenly felt (in spirit) incredibly safe. I was just about to give him my address, when he quickly turned the cab around and started heading in the direction of my house, as if he knew where I lived. I blurted out my address anyway, sat back and enjoyed the unexpected ride home. While riding there was conversation between the cab driver and myself, but I can't remember what we talked about.
When he pulled up in front of my home my husband's truck was in the driveway, so I told the cab driver I could pay him the fare. He smiled and shook his head, 'no' and said, "You are safely home." I thanked him for his kindness, stepped up on my porch, turned to wave him on, but the driver and his 1940's-style yellow cab had vanished.
On that night, there was a miscommunication between my husband and myself that could have easily turned out badly for me. I praised a most loving God for his kindness in watching over me in my hours of distress, and for providing me with a special cab ride home. Praise God!
Copyright 2007-2009
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