Scripture & Thought
Hebrews 13:2
“Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.”
Michael W. Smith fans may remember the lyrics of his song, “Angels Unaware.” The opening verse reads:
Maybe there’s a light in my soul
Maybe it flickers like a neon sign Outside an abandoned hotel
Maybe there are things you just can’t know
But you can say there are no mysteries in the house you choose to dwell
Maybe we are entertaining angels unaware
I have experienced some of those “angels unaware” moments in my spiritual journey. How about you? Mine have come without my seeking them. An old friend calls or writes or comes by unannounced. I read a verse of Scripture and my spirit senses that God is saying, “This verse is for you!” A stranger asks for a favor, and it turns out the favor comes back as a blessing. Angels? Maybe….
The late writer and editor Fulton Oursler told a story about an encounter between an elderly couple and the manager of a small hotel in Philadelphia. It happened on a very cold and rainy night. The husband inquired at the desk, “Can you possibly give us a room here?” The hotel was full; all rooms were taken. There were three conventions going on simultaneously that weekend, and the manager’s hands were tied. But it was well past midnight, and he did not want to send an elderly couple out into the stormy night. So he said, “Would you perhaps be willing to sleep in my room? I am working all night anyway, and I won’t get to bed until morning.” The couple accepted the offer and rested comfortably in the manager’s room.
When checking out the next morning, the elderly man said to the young manager, “You are the kind of manager who should be the boss of the best hotel in the United States. Maybe someday I’ll build one for you!” Both men laughed, but the one making the suggestion was serious.
Several years later, the young manager received a letter containing a roundtrip ticket to New York City with a request that he join the couple there for a weekend. When the young man arrived, there was a car waiting for him, and soon he reached his destination – the corner of Fifth Avenue and Thirty-Fourth Street, directly in front of a brand-new hotel, a splendid structure of reddish stone, “with turrets and watchtowers, like a castle from fairyland cleaving the New York sky.” Waiting for him at the curb was the elderly man he had helped years earlier. “This,” the older man said, “is the hotel I have just built for you to manage.” The news nearly caused the young man, George C. Boldt, to faint. His benefactor was William Waldorf Astor, and the hotel – the most famous of its day – was the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel.
Dr. Oursler commented, “We should treat well all strangers who seek our help. Under a ragged coat they may hide their wings!”
Whatever our position in life, we all make contact with strangers. We must remember that no one was ever “lost in the crowd” with Jesus. He listened; he was sensitive to the cries of needy people; he knew when a woman reached out in faith to touch him. He gave encouragement to people who were poor, sick, lonely, and forgotten. I believe He expects us to do no less. Watch for those angels! They are everywhere!
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help me to be more sensitive to everyone who crosses my path. It is so easy to look away from strangers when they pass by me. Encourage me to look them in the eye and greet them warmly. They may be people you have sent to me – people who need encouragement or who have other needs. I don’t want to miss an opportunity to be a blessing. Thank you for bringing this truth to my attention.
Amen