As I left work and walked into the empty parking lot, it felt like my car was miles away. It was the only one left in the parking lot (again) as everyone had already gone home. I was carrying a box of things to work on this weekend and felt the weight with each step. This wasn’t the usual TGIF with all the happy feels. Nope. I was feeling really weighed down.

But it wasn’t about the box. Nope, the weight was a heaviness that came from the uncertainty of what’s ahead, the figuring out of all of the new protocols and guidelines (not to mention paperwork to navigate with all the new legalities that would need to be covered for my students during the covid era)… Yeah, the weight felt heavy and I breathed a prayer to help me get back on track with my attitude and not feed fears…

So, I’m walking, carrying, praying, and I see a blue car turn into the drive of the parking lot and start beeping. I recognize the car as the one that often parks at the house on the corner lot beside the school. I figure that whoever is driving is just alerting their family that they are home, so I opened my car door and proceeded to put my stuff in. But nope…that little blue car kept coming–it wasn’t beeping at family–it was beeping at me!

I stopped and said hi to the lady and before I could ask her if she needed anything, she said, “I just want you to know that God has got you. He has got you teachers…we are praying for you and know that it’s hard. We can trust Him. ” She continued to talk for about five minutes and encouraged me to the core. The tears I had been holding back for the past few weeks just poured out.. I didn’t even feel embarrassed. I just let them flow and listened to what this sweet woman had to say. My tears poured out not out of sadness, but out of feeling heard, seen, and encouraged by a woman I had never even met.

But I’m not just talking about being seen, heard, and encouraged only by this sweet woman of God. No, the encouragement went way deeper than that. I’m talking about being seen, heard, and encouraged by God Himself. I so believe He heard my prayer and sent that woman to beep her horn and give me a total pep talk to trust Him in the midst of all the crazy. I laughed and thanked her for obeying God and beeping her horn at me–that I needed a wake up call. She laughed too….and I’m hoping that when she saw the tears rolling down my face that she was affirmed in her faith as well.

We talked a few minutes more, and I thanked her. I thanked her for listening–not to me but to God. I truly believe that the Spirit of God nudged her to go and beep her car horn and get my attention. I’m so very thankful she listened to Him and acted. I truly believe that because she did, I got a glimpse of Him at a time when I really needed it. Me pulling up my bootstraps just wasn’t cutting it. I needed a fresh reminder that God is in our midst and that I can trust Him.

There’s a verse that says “do not withhold good from another when it is in your power to do it.” Good might look like a word of encouragement or a smile or a gift. It might be all of the unseen prayers. It might be giving anonymously or beeping your horn out loud. But I think as we walk in step with God and seek Him, well, we are listening…and if we are listening, we will hear what He’d have us to do–in the big and the little things. His Word truly is a lamp unto our feet, but the cool thing is, as we walk in His word, that can help light the way for others as well. Not only that, it can lighten the load they are carrying in amazing ways.

Take it from me… the burden I was carrying as I left the school was left in that parking lot–because a woman chose to listen when God nudged her to beep her horn. May we all be as bold and courageously kind to follow where He leads, and speak what He says to speak. We never truly know the impact we could have on those around us, that’s for sure. …and the ripples go out. So here’s to beeping horns and saying words and looking at those around us in the eye. Here’s to using our gifts to reach our world–and listening to the One who loves us most and created us to walk in the ways He’s prepared for us. Those ways might look different in each of us, but I’m thankful that today, it looked like a woman taking time to talk to a stranger and speak truth, and wake her up by beeping her horn.

Because she listened to God, I could hear Him too.

Yeah, I’m truly thankful for that.

By His Grace~

Heather

” For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”

Ephesians 6:10