Divine Appointment at the Rest Stop

One morning on a road trip, I had prayed that if God wanted me to do something for Him, to please show me what He wanted me to do. So I was driving down the highway when I saw a sign for a rest area just up ahead.

Even though I didn’t really have to use the restroom, something told me that I needed to stop there. So I turned off the highway and found a parking spot. As I opened my door to step out, it sounded like someone in a truck nearby was listening to the same Adventist radio station that I had been listening to a moment before.

If that was the case, this could be a great opportunity to talk to them. But how could I find out for certain?

I spotted a trash can near the truck and decided to walk up to it as though I needed to throw something away. But I couldn’t tell if it was the same radio station.

So I walked across the parking lot and sat down on a bench. But I still couldn’t tell if it was the same station.

Why is this bothering me so much? I wondered to myself. Most people would just get back in their car and drive off. Which is what I almost did.

But I had one more idea. If I could somehow listen to the Adventist radio station and the sounds coming from the truck, I could see if they matched. So I went back to my car, left the door open, and turned on my radio just loudly enough to hear it. And sure enough, the sounds matched.

Right then, the speaker on the radio was talking about the characteristics of God’s remnant church and specifically the importance of the seventh-day Sabbath. I didn’t want to interrupt the message the person was listening to, but I also didn’t want to sit in the parking lot all morning.

Just then, the sounds of the radio coming from the truck stopped. Oh no, I thought. Is the person getting ready to leave? I quickly grabbed a Sabbath tract, stepped out of my car and walked over to the driver’s side of the truck.

I waved at the driver who rolled her window down. Can I ask you what radio station you were listening to? I asked. She told me the dial number and I told her I had been listening to the same radio station.

As we spoke, I discovered that she was the custodian. Someone had been leaving tracts and radio station business cards at this rest area and she had begun listening to our Adventist radio programs. And rather than throwing the tracts and business cards away, she had been giving them out to people she met. Not only that, but she had had conversations with her friends and family about which day was the Sabbath.

They said it was Sunday, but she had tried to tell them it was Saturday. Well, she had to get back to work and I had to get back on the road, but I took down her contact information before I left so we could put her in contact with our local Adventist church.

As I look back at that experience, I realize that if I hadn’t spent time with God that morning, and if I hadn’t paid attention to the prompting of the Holy Spirit while I was driving down the road, I would have missed out on this divine appointment. It would have been just another road trip going from point A to point B. But God had a better plan for me that day.

He opened my eyes to see how He had been working all things together for good to those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. One of the most exciting and rewarding things I’ve experienced in my life is when I know that God is working to answer my prayers and using me to be a blessing to others.

If that’s something you would like to experience more often in your life, I encourage you to ask God every day to show you what He wants you to do and be attentive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. You never know when you’ll be able to share with others.

God sets up opportunities for us to share the hope He has given us, the blessings He provides, the life that each and every one of us can experience when we follow him.