A saying hangs in our flat in Prague as a reminder to trust, yet how quickly things are forgotten in a moment of panic or desperation. The saying goes, "Sometimes God answers prayers the way we would pray them if we knew what He knows."
While in Italy for Fall break, we were often forced to stop and ask for help. We needed help from strangers for directions, from bus drivers (for getting off at the correct stop since they are often not labeled), or help with communication in general.
The last night that we were there, we we found ourselves in yet another one of these situations… Our hotel was a good hour outside of Milan so by the time we caught the train, we were way too late to get the last bus to take us to our hotel. It was around 11:00p.m. and we were quickly running out of time, patience, and options.
We considered walking, but we had no map and no way to figure out exactly where we were in the dark. After about thirty minutes of trying this or that, we finally decided a taxi was our only option (easier said than done). We headed toward the centre of town looking for a familiar car with a lit up sign on top. At this point we were willing to pay the overpriced fare.
Cars were indeed everywhere and we were on a busy street, but no familiar yellow taxi was to be found. We finally asked a police officer where to go and he suggested the train station (back where we had started). By this time, we were sure that our hotel booking had been canceled (considering check-in was between 3 and 10p.m. and it was now hitting midnight). The situation was looking grim and I was praying for a cab (any cab) to pass by. After back tracking to the train station expecting a line of yellow cabs, we were sorely disappointed to find a very quiet street. The only sign of life was a group of "scary" men standing near the bus stop that was no longer an option.
I don't remember how it happened exactly but somehow (maybe because we looked confused) we began talking to the group of "scary looking" men. We were trying to ask them which direction we needed to go. They kept asking us where we were trying to get to, what our hotel street was, what the phone number was. We even tried calling the hotel to get better directions to help with our explanation but there was no answer. No one seemed to know where the hotel was and we were beginning to think it wasn't a real place. We knew the general area that the hotel was in (near the arena), so finally one of the guys told us that he'd take us to the area and ask if anyone knew the hotel.
We were now in the hands of a stranger from Ghana named Ben. Ben was a funny guy, that had we seen under different circumstances, at a very different hour of the day, we'd probably never even have met him or spoken to him. But at this point, we were desperate. Getting in an unmarked car at midnight with a "shady homeless looking" man you just met doesn't exactly inspire confidence. Again, we were desperate.
What I'd asked for in my prayer was a taxi and in my mind the answer was a little yellow car with a lit up sign on top and a driver that would know all about our hotel and we'd be there in five to ten minutes tops. What I got was a small, dark, messy car (no sign on top) with a driver named Ben that had no idea where we needed to go. We must have stopped five different times to get out of the car or yell at passerbys asking directions from anyone and everyone. Once we even picked up a drunk man at a bar who was sure to take us directly to the place, only to find out that it was the wrong place.
We finally convinced Ben to go back to the landmark that we were sure our hotel was near. In the end, we spotted the street name ourselves. Ben insisted on staying with us until we contacted the hotel owner because he didn't want us to be stranded. When we finally arrived around 2a.m. we asked Ben how much he wanted for hauling us around and he just said,"Whatever you want to give me."
I wouldn't always recommend getting into a car with a random stranger, but on this particular night I learned an important lesson. I was willing to pay some yellow cab stranger whatever he wanted in order to find our hotel but God answered my prayer with an unmarked car and an unofficial taxi driver that didn't even ask for a specific amount of money.
I had answered God's prayer for Him in my own mind and I'd judged the answer that He gave me when it didn't match mine. I still don't know much about Ben other than he left Ghana because of the conflicts there but I do know that he was an answer to prayer.
…maybe Ben needed the money that we ended up paying him (sounded like he'd been out of work for awhile); maybe we just needed a reminder to trust God; or maybe this was another example of why you shouldn't judge others based on preconceived notions. Whatever the reason, thank God for the kindness of strangers.
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