FALL 2010Tom Etherington
Mullica Hill MMart by Emma Prince
On a bitterly cold winter night not so long ago I was driving north on Route 130 in Pennsauken on my way home. I was stopped at a traffic light about two blocks from my house when a young woman, maybe in her early twenties, tapped on my window. When I lowered the window a bit, she asked in a slightly Spanish accent if I were going anywhere near Willingboro and, if so, would I give her ride.
Taking her to Willingboro meant driving about an extra eight to ten miles north, but the night was cold and she was wearing a coat that was far too light for such a night. I figured that since God had given me a nice warm car, He wanted me to share, so I'd take a chance that she wasn't dangerous.
As I passed the street I live on, I wondered if she might be bait for two or three hulking males waiting for me at the end of our ride. I said a silent prayer for protection, knowing that at this point He was the only defense I had against either her boyfriends or her accusations of impropriety.
We talked a bit on the way. As we neared her destination she indicated a drop-off point so I could resume my trip north. I told her that I actually lived in the direction we had come from, but that I would take her down the road to the development in which she lived, it being such a bitterly cold night.
We stopped in front of her house she thanked me profusely and she asked me in to meet her family. When I declined, she asked if she could give me a hug. As we hugged she added a peck on my cheek as a bonus and thanked me once again as she left my car for the warmth of her family.
I could easily have left her standing in the cold had I decided to use common sense, as acting in fear is often called, but we are called to stand up to fear and act in love. Jesus always spoke of fear as the opposite of love. Knowing that we can depend on the love of God to sustain us gives the courage to rise above fear and share that divine love with others in faith.
The Epistle to the Hebrews tells us that faith is the substance of things not seen. We give the unseen substance by our actions.
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Monday, September 06, 2010 at 06:18 PM
