Walk With Me

This morning I am thinking about the stranger I met at work yesterday afternoon.  It was approximately 1:40 p.m., which meant I had about twenty minutes to quickly check emails and voice messages before my 2:00 meeting started.  The man had stopped his white truck to let me pass, as I walked across the parking lot and headed for one of the building’s side doors.  I was already halfway down the hall, near the elevator, when I heard the pounding on the door.  When I turned to look, I was surprised to see the man standing there beckoning for me to come back.  He was holding up a box and pointing to it, mouthing words I certainly could not hear.  Surely he didn’t think I was going to walk back down there and open a side door to a secure building for a stranger with a box.  I was annoyed.  I figured I would just turn around and ignore him, but for some reason I just couldn’t.  Knowing that he had seen me see him made me feel…well, accountable.  So I walked back down the hall toward the door.  He began pointing to a label on the box, and I was thinking, “Come on, man.  You’re not going to fool me with some box.  I watch Investigation Discovery!”  When I was close enough to the door, I could see two things.  First, I could see that the truck he had parked along the side of the building was for a delivery company.  Secondly, I could see that the label on the box bore the name of a colleague who worked in the building.  I began pointing in the direction of the main entrance, because that’s where deliveries are supposed to be made.  He started mouthing words again.  And again I pointed…this time with a more sweeping gesture…toward the main entrance.  Then he dropped his head and started to walk away.  As he did, I guess I lost my mind a little because I stepped outside the door.  “The main entrance is right around there,” I called after him.  He turned around and pointed to his mouth, and in an accent I didn’t recognize he said, “My English…I’m sorry...it is locked, no?”  The annoyance and suspicion I felt gave way to compassion, and I said, “Walk with me.”  Together we started walking around the building to the main entrance.  “My truck,” he offered.  But I declined with a side-eyed look.  (After all, I watch Investigation Discovery.)  As we walked, I learned that he had entered one of the side parking lots.  Consequently, he never saw the main entrance and had been going from one locked side door to another.  When he finally saw the main entrance, his face lit up with a childlike grin.  He thanked me sincerely, as he made his delivery.  And I made my way to my meeting.  Upon reflection, it occurred to me that he really might have been some kind of crazed, box-toting killer.  On the other hand, he could have been an angel in disguise.  What I really think, though, is that he was just someone who needed a little help to find his way.  Today, I am praying for eyes to see and ears to hear others who are feeling frustrated and lost—mentally, emotionally, and spiritually—after knocking on one locked door after another, searching for the way to know and fulfill their purpose.  I pray for a heart to discern those who are of no danger to me, but are just souls who may need a little help along paths that I have already known.  Even when it seems to be an inconvenience, I pray for the grace to say, “Walk with me” until they find their way.