Ella and I went to our favorite Christian thrift store today (all clothes $1. I found some awesome stuff!). On our way back to Big blue (my minivan) we came upon a kind woman who was walking her little dog. As my wee one is a huge animal lover, we stopped to pet the kind woman's dog. The dog jumped on Ella and licked her face. The kind woman gently scolded the dog. I assured her that it was perfectly okay. She explained that she has been teaching her little furry guy not to jump on anyone, because his nails had not been clipped in a while (Ella was bundled up in layers, so she was left unharmed). As she said this, I bent down to pet the lil furry fella, and the woman burst into uncontrollable weeping. At first, I wasn't sure if she was laughing or crying. I was completely caught off guard. Once I realized that she was, in fact, weeping my brain sent signals to my ears to tell me to listen up to what she was trying to get out. That precious stranger spilled her story out to me in that parking lot, and my heart broke into a million pieces. From what I gathered through her sobs, she had recently been evicted from her home. She's been hunting for a new place to live for five weeks. She and her dog have been living in her car. She said that she bought him when he was just a puppy, and was scared that she would never find a place that would allow her to keep him. She said that she couldn't fathom not having him in her life. She also went on to tell me that her husband had left her just before the eviction. They recently celebrated their 26th wedding anniversary. She had a back injury that left her on disability quite a while back. She explained that she received nearly $800 a month from it, which was a blessing, but not enough to keep her house note up as well as utilities. Her husband is offering no support. I didn't ask any questions, so I don't know why. This woman looked average. Probably a little older than my mom. You would never know that she was going through all that she was going through just to simply look at her.I felt so guilty because I didn't know how to help her. My brain thought as quickly as it could for numbers she could call. People who may be able to help her. I wondered if I should offer her my own home. I quietly prayed as I listened to her sob. I asked her where I could find her in the event that I found out any info on housing in our area. I assured her, over and over, that she would be in my fervent prayers. I was so worried that my words would fail at being near enough. To my surprise, she smiled and expressed this precious gratitude that I was not expecting because I didn't feel like I did near enough. I still don't.
I think that it was just very important for her to simply get it out. Be heard. She needed to know that someone was going to be praying for her. She needed to know that she wasn't invisible. That she existed and mattered.
There is this great big world out there. It's so much bigger than I could ever imagine. A world in need of constant prayer.
Lend an ear. Give a hug. Smile to everyone you pass. Something is better than nothing!
I hope that you'll add this friendly lady and her little furry guy to your prayers.
Relishing in His goodness...
