At just the right time and place

I always pray that I might have a storying opportunity on every flight, train or bus trip. I go with an eager sense of expectation wondering if God will prepare someone’s heart for a story. I ask Him to use the story to bring someone closer to Him.

On this particular morning in southern New Zealand there was a lot of fog. Several flights were cancelled or redirected. The lady sitting next to me was having to take an extra flight and miss the funeral she was going to. She was friendly and willing to talk – some people aren’t.

She asked me what I did and thought a storyteller sounded interesting. I asked if I could tell her a story and told her the story of ‘Blind Bartimaeus’. I didn’t choose this story for any particular reason but as she answered some questions she shared more of her background. At one time she had attended a church quite regularly but had ceased some years before.

I said, “It sounds to me like you know ABOUT Jesus but don’t necessarily know Him personally. Is that how you’d describe it?”

This led to me asking her, “If you were to die today, what do you think would happen to you?”

“I’m not really sure.”

I asked if I could share another story and shared about the two thieves on the crosses next to Jesus. I love this story because it so clearly says that salvation is not about anything we do. That thief who was told, ‘Today, you’ll be with me in Paradise,’ never had an opportunity to hop off that cross and do any good deeds, be baptised or read the Bible.

It was obvious from our discussion that this lady had never understood the good news and the rescue that Jesus offered. Unusually in my experience she was ready to accept Jesus’ offer of salvation on the spot when she was told how. I suggested she speak to Jesus and say, Sorry, thank you, please – ‘sorry’ for living her life without Jesus up to this point and not realising His importance, ‘thank you’ for His death and love for her and ‘please’ asking for His forgiveness.

We prayed together and she said, “God made sure I was unable to catch my flight because of the fog. He made me get on this plane and arranged for me to sit next to you.” How right she was!