a story for believing (revised by luke)

well, (luke posting here)... for those faithful readers out there.....the previous story is a little more involved, so i'll clarify and reaffirm....both the story and God's awesomeness. after i ran out of gas i started walking/running toward 116th street with a gas can in one hand and clenching $1.80 cents in the other (all i had in the car). remember, no wallet. i rushed out of the house to get ashley her books and completely spaced it. i only had just over a mile to go and i figured i could get there in less than ten minutes. after a few minutes, though, out of nowhere, a car comes screeching to a halt about fifty yards ahead of me and the passenger door flies opens...when i get there, the lady driving says "been there, done that, hop in!"....a cute blonde haired blue eyed girl in the back seat gave me a big grin. so i hopped in the car, and at this point thought to myself ...thank you God! the lady dropped me off at the exit and i walked the rest of the way to the gas station. after filling my can with $1.80 worth of gas i walked inside and asked the manager if anyone could take me back to my car. he said no. discouraged and helpless, i thought that my best chance would be a good samaritan stranger in the store. so, i stood outside the door and tried politely (and realizing how awkward i must have looked) asking the customers leaving if they happened to be going north on I-69....and i got lucky on my fourth try! a gentleman was headed to fort wayne and he kindly offered to drop me off on the way. once he dropped me off at my car and i put the gas in i actually thought that i might have time to get home, get cleaned up, and make it to work by 8. YES! ..and again....thank you God!! i turned the key and......a few sputters, then nothing. i turned the key again. nothing. instantly, every bit of thanks i had just given to God went out the window, along with a string of horrible obscenities (please forgive me..).......so, after a few minutes of silence, i collected myself and resolved to start all over and try it again. i started walking, realizing there was no point in wasting my breath on running. once again, a good samaritan had come to my aid. only this time, the person who graciously stopped to pick me up was driving a giant semi. SWEET! i had never been in a semi before! when i opened the door and climbed the 8 feet into the cab a scruffy looking man said with a southern drawl, "well i'm headed to alabama, but i reckon you just need to get to a gas station!" what a nice and generous guy..... and again, for the third time now i thought to myself...thank you God!! so i get dropped off..again...at the exit and walk to the same gas station. this time though, i brought my checkbook which i had found in the console of my car thinking, do gas stations still take checks???...i gave it a try anyway and paid for two more cans of gas, in addition to the one i already had. surely three cans would be enough. only now, i had to get another ride to my car....and i was certainly sure my luck had run out. as i paced back and forth inside the gas station thinking of who to call (with their phone of course as mine was lifeless)...i happened to see a gray tundra drive by through the window. i guess it took a few minutes to register....but finally i realized that it was probably abel driving by to his work just up the road.....YES! so i called abe and pleaded that he skip work to take me to my car....only to hear that he actually had about twenty minutes to kill since he was early for work......what perfect timing!!! so to make what started as a horrible morning bitter sweet, abe came to my rescue and took me to my car.......(and as a last crazy coincidence that i have to add.....my dad happened to drive by at the EXACT time abe and i were pulling up to behind my car on his way to his office downtown.....who would have imagined we'd all be within 25 feet of each other for a split second this morning??..... we called him and and filled him in on the story, to which he said "luke, you dingbat!"). yes, i am a dingbat, but a damn lucky (and blessed) one, at that! .....SO, amidst this crazy and hectic start to an otherwise routine December day, there was obviously, to me, a guardian angel at work (or perhaps more than one), and for this i am truly truly blessed....and reminded of how goodwill toward others can go a tremendously long way. and although i'll probably never again meet the lady with the child, the guy going to fort wayne, or the rig driver from alabama, i'll never forget how their act of kindness affected me in a profound way today. their good service was much more than just helping me get some gas in my car. it was a great lesson to me, and i hope to all of you who read this, too, of how we are all called to love others....unconditionally.