A Pizza Lunch – And God’s Token Of Love
“Shew me a token for good; that they which hate me may see it, and be ashamed: because thou, LORD, hast holpen me, and comforted me.” Psalm 86:17
In Psalm 86, we see the Psalmist in the midst of a distressing time as his enemies have risen up against him. In the last verse of this Psalm, he is asking the Lord to give him some sort of reassurance that, although he is experiencing troublesome times, God is still right there with him.
Reading that verse this morning brought to my mind the many times that the Lord has given me a “token”…a reminder in the midst of a storm that He is still right beside me…He has not forsaken me…yes, He still loves me. The token has brought peace and comfort to my soul, a smile to my face, and the strength to go on.
Down through the years, the Lord has used tokens of many different varieties and I am continually amazed at the loving and personal God that cares so very much for each of His children! This past Friday, I received one of those tokens of His love and I haven’t been able to get it off my mind. I know…tokens are the most precious to the one receiving them, but would you please bear with me while I share this blessing?
We had a full day planned and, as I prayed for safety that morning, my prayer also included that we could be a blessing to someone along the way. First stop – the Holiday Market with Ashley and our lil buddy, Branson. After spending several hours looking at the many craft and food vendors (as well as tasting some yummy samples 😉 ), the girls and I headed on to Sam’s Club for a late lunch and grocery shopping before driving about an hour back home. Not long after we sat down to eat our pizza, a gentleman walked over to our table and asked if he could say something. “Sure” was my hesitant reply. He then proceeded to tell me how much he appreciated us praying for our food. He went on and on about how he and his wife did the same thing, how he especially appreciated that I did it with my teen girls, how they had two teenagers, etc, etc, etc… As he went back to his table, I looked over to see his wife smiling and waving.
“Girls”, I whispered as I leaned over to them, “you just never know who’s watching”. While we continued to eat, the Lord brought to my mind what I had prayed that morning. I had to tell God, “Thank you, Lord, for letting us be a blessing to someone today.”
Yes, that “token” brought a smile to my face that afternoon. But the token didn’t stop there.
Later on that evening, Courtney called. Amid our conversation, I told her we had gone to Sam’s and she informed me that they had gone to their Sam’s in Santa Fe as well. She then proceeded to share a blessing with me. A portion of our conversation went something like this…
ME – “We went to Sam’s this afternoon”
COURTNEY – “We did too.”
ME (smiling)
COURTNEY – “I want to share a blessing with you…”
ME – “Ok…tell me…”
COURTNEY – “Well, while we were there, we ate pizza for lunch.”
ME (laughing) – “We did too!”
COURTNEY – “When we were finishing up eating, a man walked over and handed us two pizzas he had just bought. He told us he had been watching our family and really appreciated how the older boys were helping their daddy, etc, etc, etc…”
ME (laughing in amazement now) – “Let ME tell you what happened to US…”
After talking with Courtney further and taking into consideration the 2-hour difference, we figured out that these two incidents took place at just about the same time. (Our late lunch was around 2:00ish…theirs was around 12:00ish.)
Now, you may think it silly what I’m about to say –
that Sam’s Club,
and more specifically – that a pizza lunch at Sam’s Club,
and even more specifically – that a pizza lunch @ Sam’s Club at 2:00ish EST along with a pizza lunch at Sam’s Club @ 12:00ish MST ……could bless this Momma’s heart!
Only GOD!
What may have been a small blessing to a couple in NC as well as a man in NM…at just about the same time…was actually a token of God’s love to me. Yes, as I think back on the entire incident, it has brought a smile to my face, peace, and comfort to my soul as well as strength to go on.
If we are saved, our future is in the hands of a loving Father Who only desires what is best for His children. We don’t ever have to question His love, purpose, or presence in our lives – but sometimes we may. And, although we have the Holy Spirit and His Word to comfort us, every now and then it is as if the Lord just reaches down and “hugs” us by the way of a token. What a wonderful, loving, personal God we serve!
The exciting thing about the Lord’s tokens – we just never know by what means He will manifest His love. Why He may just allow us to be a blessing to strangers while “sharing” a pizza lunch at Sam’s with a daughter and her family. 1680 miles is no obstacle with God!!! 😉
“I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth.” Genesis 9:13