Sue Nigh

Chapter One

The Angel on the Square

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   "Mommy?” I cried out after reaching for and not finding her warm body next to me in bed.  “Mommy, where are you? I’m thirsty!”  (Time is difficult to gauge as an adult looking back on my childhood.  I must have been about seven years old at the time of this weekend visit with my mother, about two years after she never returned home from work one August afternoon.) Not wanting to get out of bed, I cried out a number of times, hoping for a reassuring answer that she would soon be returning and bringing me a drink. Instead, my voice echoed back to me in the darkness of the tiny, upstairs apartment above the bar on the town’s square.  Panic began to rise within me.  I remember it well as I pondered my next steps. 

   Mustering the courage to get out of bed in the dark, I ran through the small abode crying out for my mother.  Still, no answer.  Abandoning all logic (keep in mind I was only seven), I threw open the apartment door and ran into the dusky hallway.  A neighbor lady opened her door, concern showing on her face, then she silently closed the door leaving me alone once again.  My feet began to carry me at a rapid pace down the long hallway.  I could hear my footsteps on the wood plank flooring as I passed door after door.  Now, the stairway leading from the second floor to the street loomed ahead.  Down I ran, tumbling breathlessly into the street.  “Mommy!  Mommy!” I cried.  The streets were nearly empty.  The hands on the town square clock told me it was one o’clock in the morning.  Not knowing where I was going or how I would find my mother, I took off at a gallop, tears streaming down my face, hoping beyond hope that she would appear.  Instead, I found my face planted in the belly of a man who had been walking down the sidewalk.  He leaned over, asking me why I was crying.  I explained that I had been left alone in the apartment and wanted my mommy.  The man had a kind face and gently scooped me up into his arms.  “I know your daddy,” he said in a calm, reassuring voice, “and I will take you home to him.”  I have no further memories of that evening, or the days, weeks, and months ahead.  I do know that was the last time I would see my mother for a very long time.  

   While this was certainly a traumatic event for a young child (the probable cause of thirty plus years of panic and anxiety you will read more about later), hindsight brings about a much more important truth from what took place that night.  Out of the many things that could have happened to a young child left alone to wander the dark streets, God sent someone to rescue me.  I see the situation with such clarity and thankfulness now – a wonder-filled Miracle Moment from the Lord!

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A Word from the Word

   For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. – Psalm 91:11-12 NIV

 

Questions/Thoughts for Reflection

   Looking back, is there one or more traumatic events in your life that perhaps need a second look?  I often tell my grandchildren to, “Look for the good.”  What I really mean is, “Look for God’s good in the situation.”  Ask Him to show you where He was during these times.  He was there!  Write down your thoughts.  Remember, your story is also part of His story!

 

Prayer

   Lord, thank you for commanding your angels to guard my life.  Please help me to find You in even the most difficult parts of my story.  Thank you for being there even when I didn’t realize you were.  Thank you for helping me see that I, too, have Miracle Moments in my life. 

“Some people complain that God put thorns on roses, while others praise Him for putting roses on thorns.” -- Anon

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