Joseph went to the town of Bethlehem. While they were there, the time came for Mary to have the baby, and she gave birth to her first son. She wrapped the baby with cloths and laid him in a manger because there were no rooms in the inn. —Luke 2:4-7
Undoubtedly, angels were present when our station wagon broke down in Vaiden, Mississippi, on the way back from Iowa that Christmas Day. The old wagon coasted down the off-ramp and stopped just across from the gas station.
I sent Lois and the children to the café while I tried to fix the wagon. Sunset was not in my favor, so I joined the family.
We asked the waitress about a hotel and a repair shop. An older couple were listening, and Mary came over. “I couldn’t help but overhear your conversation. Can we help?” she asked. She had spoken with her husband Harold, and they agreed we should stay with them at his hunting lodge because the immediate area was not safe.
So, we piled the children into their car and headed toward their lodge. We made our introductions and before long we learned that Mr. Smith was the former president of Baldwin Pianos and he had rewarded his top salespersons (and their spouses) with vacations around the world. As a music store owner, Lois’s dad had been one of those salesmen and he and Lois’s mom had accompanied Mr. Smith on several of these trips.
That Christmas night we slept in comfort and the next morning were treated to Mary’s breakfast of eggs, fresh-baked biscuits, hashed browns, sausage, juice and coffee. Harold called some friends the night before who had had our station wagon towed to a repair shop—it would be fixed by 11 a.m. so we could continue our travels.
What a gift and what an encounter! Such generosity and love from these strangers and yet less than six degrees of separation. Was it happenstance, serendipity or divine intervention? Time would tell.
Upon return to Baton Rouge, Lois and I considered what gift we could send them to say thank you. We pondered and wrote a letter to Harold and Mary’s hometown newspaper in Greenwood, Mississippi. The title of the letter: “Room at the Inn or Vaiden Angels.” We recounted the generosity of the Smiths and their outpouring of gifts.
Later, Mary sent us a letter. “I could not believe how generous you were with your account of our meeting. In fact, I sat there and re-read it and cried. You and your family were more of a blessing to us than we could ever be to you. Before we offered “bed and breakfast” I said to Harold, “You never know when you are entertaining Angels unaware.”
Awesome Creator. Thank you for the birth of your son Jesus and for all gifts both great and small. May the angels in heaven and on earth unite in one voice and resound, “AMEN”!
Steve Rushing