Recently I had one of those weeks when it felt like there were no moments to pause, take a breath and enjoy the day. Meetings followed meetings. Messages and emails piled up in my inbox. Calls needed to be made, notes reviewed, and more meetings conducted. By the end of the week it felt like I had crammed 11 days into seven. When I awoke on Monday morning, the eighth day in this stretch, every joint in my body ached.
I know many of you are just as busy and even more so. Maybe you’ve noticed when a cycle like this hits us it is easy to lose sight of the ones we love, to forget why we are running from here to there and back again.
Sometimes, though, fortune smiles and from out of nowhere we get a reminder of the presence of God. Near the end of my busy week I caught a cab for the San Diego airport. I noticed the cabbie had metal crutches on the front seat of his car. I could see his legs were smaller than normal. There were extension devices on the brake and accelerator pedals. I threw my bag on the back seat and said, “Airport, please.”
He asked, “Are you here for the pastors’ conference?” I hesitated to reply. I wasn’t in the mood to argue theology or to hear one more person tell me why the church is all messed up. “Yes,” I said. Then I tried to redirect the conversation, “How long does it take to get to SAN?” He said, “Twenty minutes.” Then he rattled off a string of one liners that were pretty funny. I am terrible at remembering one liners but this guy had dozens of them. He had me laughing until my face hurt. I asked, “Do you perform at clubs or on television? You’re hilarious.” He said, “No. I just like to entertain my riders. Some people don’t like it. I can usually tell right away and I leave them alone. Others seem to need to relax, let off some steam. You seemed VERY stressed when you got in so I was pretty sure you needed some humor.”
I said, “With that intuitive sense you’d make a great pastor.” This time he laughed out loud and replied, “I’m not sure I believe in God but if there is one I’m pretty sure that laughter and love are the only gifts he wants us to share.”
At the airport, as I paid my fare, the comedic cabbie turned to me, offered his hand and said, “Brother, blessings on your day. Travel well. Share the laughter. Share the love.”
“Grace,” someone wrote, “is everywhere.” It’s true. Somewhere in San Diego there is a cabbie making sure that his tiny corner of the universe is filled with the God-given gifts of love and laughter.
Grace and peace to you,
-Glen
