Divine Appointments

[God gives divine appointments--let us not miss ours that come along regularly. This is from my friend, Jeff Gregory, in Dallas-- Mack T. ]

This evening I was doing some late night shopping at Albertsons Foods and as I was unloading my shopping cart onto the conveyor belt at the checkout , I pulled out my keys and was fumbling through them looking for my Albertsons keychain card so I could get a discounted price on a few items. The cashier lady spoke to me in a foreign accent and said, “Those cards aren’t used anymore. How long has it been since you’ve shopped at Albertsons?”

I replied, “I couldn’t remember if Albertsons still used the card or not. It hasn’t been that long since I’ve shopped at Albertsons.”

As she was checking me out, I read her nametag. It said, “Megibre.”

“Your name is Megibre.”

“Oh, you pronounced my name correctly.”

“What language do you speak?”

“I’m from Albania.”

“Oh, you speak Albanian.”

“We came here because of the war. Maybe you heard about it.”

“Does “Megibre” have a meaning in English, like “Margaret”?

She shook her head.

“How long have you been living in Dallas?”

“I’ve been here eleven years.”

“What is your religion?”

She looked a little sheepish, and said, “I’m Muslim.”

I was surprised because she didn’t look at all like a Muslim woman. She was about 55 years old – looked like a typical middle-aged American woman.

I continued the conversation: “I’m a Christian. I believe in Jesus. Do you know Jesus?“

“I don’t know anything about religions. I work all the time. I have four children.”

“Jesus is the one who died on the cross so we could have forgiveness of sins.”

She looked at me as if she didn’t know what I was talking about.

“What are you going to do with your sins?” I asked.

“We don’t eat all day from 6:00 am till 8:00 at night…”

“You’re talking about Ramadan.”

“Oh, you know Islam?”

“You know what sins are? The things we do that displease God. God doesn’t like our sins and has to punish them. But Jesus came to pay for our sins by dying on the cross. Because of our sins God will punish us in hell, but instead he punished Jesus on the cross so we won’t have to go to hell. He came to give us forgiveness and eternal life. Do you know the Bible?”

She was looking at me like she was having a hard time grasping what I was saying. She also was fidgeting a bit. There was no one else around within hearing distance so I didn’t hesitate to carry on the conversation.

“Jesus died on the cross but he rose from the dead on the third day. He resurrected. He’s alive. He’s a living Savior.”

“I became a Christian when I was 21 years old and he’s been with me ever since. Jesus came into my heart and forgave me of my sins and he’s given me peace and joy.”

“I’m sorry. I have to go.”

As I passed by her on the way out she was helping another customer but she said to me, “Come back. Thank you.”

After I unloaded my groceries into my car and was driving down Buckner Boulevard, I began to pray loudly and with emotion:

“Oh God, may this woman know she has met a servant of the living God this night. May she know that a messenger from God has come to her this night. Stir up her heart and mind. May this night be the beginning of a search for her to learn about Jesus. Speak to her, O God, in dreams. I pray she will look for a Bible.

O God, I pray I will meet her around your throne one day. Maybe she will even remember this night, this conversation. O God, may this night be a divine encounter for her!”

Will you join me in praying for Megibre’s salvation?

- Jeff Gregory