Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels unawares.
Heb 13:2
7:00 AM The conference would convene in Tokyo in less than 36 hours, many of which I would lose through the time zones. It was snowing in New York. My plane out of Ohio had been delayed. Flights in to JFK had been suspended. It was going to be a very long day.
11:00 AM JFK is open. I board the plane in Ohio at exactly the time my connecting flight was departing for Juneau, Alaska and on to Seoul, South Korea.
It was noon when I arrived in The Big Apple. Since I missed my original flight, I had twelve hours on my hands to see New York.
I bussed, trained, and dif the subway all over the city. I’d been on subways in Athens, Greece before, but it was nothing like the subway in New York. Every representative of humanity was there. I was pleased Mother Nature had a plan in mind of her own for me that day.
I saw the city from JFK to Brooklyn, Times Square to Statue of Liberty. I stood where what is now Ground Zero in New York. I had stood between the World Trade Center buildings at ground level looking up.
I have heard it said that ancient Hebrews said God was a mountain with a cloud at the top. Some of God can be seen. Some of God can never be seen. That’s what it felt like. It had been overcast and I could not see to the top of the buildings.
Just before 1 AM, a Korean Air Lines 747 with hundreds on board departed JFK. I was seated on the aisle. Seated in the row with me were a Korean businessman and a nurse on her way to the Philippines.
It was late. There was much on my mind about my coming experience in Japan and Korea. I intended to sleep to avoid thinking about it. As I closed my eyes, I heard a voice.
“Excuse me”, it said.
My eyes were closed. I did not respond. Whoever it was could not want my attention.
Then, I felt a touch. I opened my eyes.
The nurse wants to talk. I am tired and not particularly impressed.
Her name is Anjelica Antonio. She is so persistent, the man between us insists one of us change seats with him so he can sleep.
For the next five hours, she talks. When she tires, she slips her arm inside mine, looks up at me with beautiful sleepy eyes, yawns, finds a comfortable position for her head against me and proceeds to go to sleep.
I couldn’t sleep. Besides the conference waiting for me in Tokyo, I now have another spin going on in my head.
3:30 AM Pacific Standard Time
We land in Alaska. Everybody must get off the plane. It will be refueled and cleaned. There are two hours to reboarding. I am sure what has been an interesting moment will have concluded.
I get off the plane and go about my business. In the line at the food court, there is a tug at my elbow. If I weren’t so preoccupied with the reason I am traveling, I could enjoy this, and it occurs to me I may have no choice.
I am a Minister of the Gospel by calling. I am on my way to Japan to meet with more than 1,000 ministers to study the Church in Japan and Korea.
I realized more may have happened from New York to Alaska than I thought when it dawned upon me that God might be answering my prayer. I had prayed for God to send a wife. I also wanted her to be a nurse.
From Alaska to Tokyo, I spent little time thinking about the 747 just like this one that had been shot down just a week before by Russian MIG fighter jets. By the time we landed in Tokyo, I did not look forward to saying goodbye to Anjelica.
We had a couple of hours together in Tokyo before she had to leave to Manila. When it was time for her to go, it was emotional. In sync, our lips reached for each other’s. I leaned over as she reached up and a moment of shared love was eternally sealed.
I watched her walk away. I felt sad as if a part of myself was going with her. Part of me wished all of me was.
Love is its own power. It appears at times and in places unannounced. The wise will be ready.
The Hebrew text is powerful. Be not forgetful to entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained angels (Anjelicas) unawares.
Father: Bless your children to always be wise and always be ready for love. Amen
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