Monday, June 2, 2014

Neighbor or Stranger

Will Rogers is quoted as saying, "A stranger is just a friend I haven't met." We are encouraged at a young age not to talk to strangers. There is wisdom in that, of course, because we want our children to be safe, and you never know who that stranger is and what is their intent. But sometimes we find ourselves in a position that the stranger sitting next to us on a plane is going to be there for a few hours, so we might as well greet one another and even strike up a conversation.

Last month, I was on a Southwest Airlines flight from Denver to Dayton. Southwest has a "pick your own seat" policy, so when you get on the plane, you search out a seat. Being 6 feet 4 inches tall, I hope for a seat in the exit aisle so I can have a bit of room for my knees. When I got on the plane, I saw my seat and headed for it - a window seat in an exit row. A man stood on the aisle - he was saving the middle seat for another passenger and the aisle seat for himself. I made my way into the seat, and watched as many hoped to secure that middle seat, but were turned away by the man on the aisle.

Finally, a young woman made her way down the aisle and embraced the man holding a seat for her. She made her way into the seat between us, and the two started talking, obviously catching up on time past. I set to reading my Kindle for the duration of the flight.

After getting off the ground and settling in for the flight, I couldn't help but notice the folder the young woman pulled out of her bag, filled with printouts from the "realtor.com" web site. Having moved less than two years ago, these looked familiar. I started to listen in a bit on the conversation next to me - the young woman was off to buy her first house. It was going to be in the Dayton area, and the man with her was coming along to help her in the process. Since I had some recent experience in this, I crossed the barrier and entered into their conversation.

Her husband is in the Air Force, and will be stationed at Wright Patterson. She was coming to town to look for their first house. Her husband couldn't join in the hunt but trusted her judgment. She was so excited. She wanted to know how far the houses she was considering were from the base, because her husband was not looking forward to a long commute. I shared with her some of my opinions on different areas and things that make Dayton a great place to live. I guess you could say we moved from stranger to neighbor in that short time.

We got off the plane and headed in different directions. I remembered the excitement and uncertainty of the process. I also tried to remember what is was like when we were looking for our first house. I wondered how the house-hunting went, and if she found the home of her dreams. I guess I will never know.

Hebrews 12:2 says this:  "Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it." Can you imagine it? Maybe offering a bit of hospitality we can receive a message from God (share the message of God is what angels do). Have you ever had those chance interactions when you look back and realize how the word or action of a stranger made a difference in your world at that time? How about a time you were the one to offer a word or assistance to a stranger? 

God creates us as a part of community. Everyone we encounter is one who God loves. And maybe we can be the ones blessed by that love, or reflect that love to others.

A postscript:

Last week, my wife and I headed up to Cleveland to help our son, Andrew move into his new house. Andrew's very good friend and college roommate Ryan came over to help. He was the volunteer "muscle" of the day. It has been a year or so since I have seen Ryan, so I asked him about his family. How are his parents and his brother? All are doing fine. He said, "As a matter of fact, my brother is moving to Dayton - he will be stationed at Wright Patterson.  His wife was down there a couple weeks ago to buy their first house. And her Dad came to town with her to help her out." Really? I asked Ryan to text her and ask her if she happened to sit in the middle seat in an exit row on her flight from Denver to Dayton. 

Southwest Flight 2203 - Row 17 Seat E.  Yep. That was her.

I guess she wasn't a stranger after all.

Peace,

Pastor Charlie




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