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The man slowly looked up.
This was a woman clearly accustomed to the finer things
of life. Her coat was new. She looked like she had
never missed a meal in her life. His first thought was
that she wanted to make fun of him, like so many others had
done before.
"Leave me alone," he growled...
To his amazement, the woman continued standing. She was
smiling -- her even white teeth displayed in dazzling rows.
"Are you hungry?" she asked.
"No," he answered sarcastically. "I've
just come from dining with the president. Now go
away." The woman's smile became even broader.
Suddenly the man felt a gentle hand under his arm.
"What are you doing, lady?" the man asked angrily.
"I said to leave me alone.
Just then a policeman came up. "Is there any
problem, ma'am?" he asked..
"No problem here, officer," the woman answered.
"I'm just trying to get this man to his feet. Will you
help me?"
The officer scratched his head. "That's old Jack.
He's been a fixture around here for a couple of years.
What do you want with him?"
"See that cafeteria over there?" she asked.
"I'm going to get him something to eat and get him
out of the cold for awhile."
"Are you crazy, lady?" the homeless man resisted.
"I don't want to go in there!" Then he
felt strong hands grab his other arm and lift him up.
"Let me go, officer. I didn't do
anything."
"This is a good deal for you, Jack," the officer
answered. "Don't blow it."
Finally, and with some difficulty, the woman and the police
officer got Jack into the cafeteria and sat him at a table in a
remote corner. It was the middle of the morning, so most
of the breakfast crowd had already left and the lunch bunch had
not yet arrived. The manager strode across the cafeteria
and stood by his table.
"What's going on here, officer?" he asked.
"What is all this, is this man in trouble?"
"This lady brought this man in here to be fed," the
policeman answered.
"Not in here!" the manager replied angrily.
"Having a person like that here is bad for
business."
Old Jack smiled a toothless grin. "See, lady.
I told you so. Now if you'll let me go. I
didn't want to come here in the first place."
The woman turned to the cafeteria manager and smiled.
"Sir, are you familiar with Eddy and Associates, the
banking firm down the street?"
"Of course I am," the manager answered impatiently.
"They hold their weekly meetings in one of my
banquet rooms."
"And do you make a goodly amount of money providing food
at these weekly meetings?"
"What business is that of yours?"
I, sir, am Penelope Eddy, president and CEO of the
company."
"Oh."
The woman smiled again. "I thought that might make a
difference." She glanced at the cop who was busy
stifling a giggle. "Would you like to join us in a
cup of coffee and a meal, officer?"
"No thanks, ma'am," the officer replied.
"I'm on duty."
"Then, perhaps, a cup of coffee to go?"
"Yes, ma'am. That would be very nice."
The cafeteria manager turned on his heel, "I'll get your
coffee for you right away, officer."
The officer watched him walk away. "You certainly
put him in his place," he said.
"That was not my intent. Believe it or not, I have a
reason for all this."
She sat down at the table across from her amazed
dinner guest. She stared at him intently.
"Jack, do you remember me?"
Old Jack searched her face with his old, rheumy eyes "I
think so -- I mean you do look familiar."
"I'm a little older perhaps," she said.
"Maybe I've even filled out more than in my younger
days when you worked here, and I came through that very door,
cold and hungry."
"Ma'am?" the officer said questioningly. He
couldn't believe that such a magnificently turned out woman
could ever have been hungry.
"I was just out of college," the woman began.
"I had come to the city looking for a job, but I
couldn't find anything. Finally I was down to my last few
cents and had been kicked out of my apartment. I walked
the streets for days. It was February and I was cold and
nearly starving.. I saw this place and walked in on the
off chance that I could get something to eat."
Jack lit up with a smile. "Now I remember," he
said. "I was behind the serving counter. You
came up and asked me if you could work for something to eat.
I said that it was against company policy."
"I know," the woman continued. "Then you
made me the biggest roast beef sandwich that I had ever seen,
gave me a cup of coffee, and told me to go over to a corner
table and enjoy it. I was afraid that you would get
into trouble. Then, when I looked over, I saw you put the
price of my food in the cash register I knew then that
everything would be all right."
"So you started your own business?" Old Jack said.
"I got a job that very afternoon. I worked my way
up. Eventually I started my own business that, with the
help of God, prospered." She opened her purse and
pulled out a business card. "When you are finished
here, I want you to pay a visit to a Mr. Lyons. He's the
personnel director of my company.
I'll go talk to him now and I'm certain he'll find something
for you to do around the office." She smiled.
"I think he might even find the funds to give you a
little advance so that you can buy some clothes and get a place
to live until you get on your feet. If you ever need anything, my door is always opened
to you."
There were tears in the old man's eyes. "How can I
ever thank you?"
he said.
"Don't thank me," the woman answered. "To
God goes the glory. Thank Jesus... He led me to
you."
Outside the cafeteria, the officer and the woman paused at the
entrance before going their separate ways. "Thank
you for all your help, officer," she said.
"On the contrary, Ms. Eddy," he answered. "Thank
you. I saw a miracle today, something that I will never
forget. And...and thank you for the coffee."
If you have missed knowing me, you have missed nothing.
If you have missed some of my emails, you might have
missed a laugh.
But, if you have missed knowing my LORD and SAVIOR, JESUS
CHRIST, you have missed everything in the world.
Have a Wonderful Day. May God Bless You Always.
And don't forget that when you "cast your bread upon the
waters," you never know how it will be returned to you.
God is so big He can cover the whole world with his Love and so
small He can curl up inside your heart.
When God leads you to the edge of the cliff, trust Him
fully and let go, only 1 of 2 things will happen, either He'll
catch you when you fall, or He'll teach you how to fly!
'The power of one sentence! God is going to
shift things around for you today and let things work in
your favor. If you believe, send it. If you don't
believe, delete it. God closes doors no man can open
& God opens doors no man can close.. If you
need God to open, some doors for you...send this on. Have a
blessed day and remember to be a blessing....
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