A Remarkable God! The Story of Donna

My journey continues. 
Last night while I was at church, I received a voicemail and a text telling me that the homeless woman I’ve been looking for since last week (to give a shoebox full of supplies to) was standing on the corner where I first saw her. She was long gone by the time I got there. Unfortunately, I missed this elusive person again! 
Today after helping to take down Christmas decorations at church, I worked up an appetite and thought I would drop by Wendy’s to pick up a cheeseburger on the way home. Lo and behold, I saw the homeless woman standing on the corner on the other side of the street!

I immediately turned the truck around and drove right toward her and pulled into the parking lot. I got out of the truck, slowly approached her (so as not to frighten her). I told her my name and that I had some water and other items in the truck to give to her if she was willing to take them. She walked back toward the truck with me.

She told me her name is Donna. She and her daughter have been living out of her car for the past two years after losing employment at a local McDonald’s. I inquired about the location of her car and her daughter. She pointed toward a distant area of the parking lot but would not take me toward them.

I retrieved the shoebox out of my truck. I told her she was such an inspiration to me and others and that I was so very glad to finally meet her after about a week of searching.
She would not touch the shoebox, so I kept it on the grass by her feet and opened it. She did not want the whole box as offered, stating she had no room in her car and that her family really didn’t need anything. I encouraged her to take out whatever items she wanted. 
She settled on a bottle of water, some folded-up paper towels, a plastic grocery bag, a single-serve peanut butter snack, a granola bar, and the prayer taped inside the box. She refused the pack of Kleenex indicating she “was sensitive to them,” but she wanted the paper towels to use as her newer sign to hold up. She “wasn’t allowed to write on” her sign, but that she really wanted to read Psalms 27 (because “this all started on Route 27”). She shared her fragmented story and focused on the Bible.
I offered to bring her my Bible from home if she would still be around for a few more minutes. She smiled (I told her she had a beautiful smile!), but she didn’t want to take my only Bible. Besides, she wasn’t sure how long she’d be on that corner anyway.
I told her about Community of Faith United Methodist Church and reassured her we can get more Bibles there. We held hands and, with her acceptance, we prayed together. Then she gave me the best gift of all. She called me a true Christian. My heart and soul melted. I’ve held many professional titles behind my name throughout my lifetime; NONE as sweet as this, from the homeless woman I now know as Donna.
I ran home, got my Bible, took it to her. She accepted it, put it in her plastic grocery bag on the ground, and went back to holding up her blank paper towel sign again. God bless, Donna! 

This remarkable journey continues because of one remarkable God, to whom all praise belongs! We can’t make this stuff up; this love is real and powerful. Wait until you read Psalm 27!

(This Psalm gave Donna her hope to cling to as a homeless woman. She would often stand on the street corners facing traffic in the Florida heat holding up a paper sign with nothing written on it).

Psalm 27 (NLT)

A psalm of David.

1 The Lord is my light and my salvation—
    so why should I be afraid?
The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger,
    so why should I tremble?
2 When evil people come to devour me,
    when my enemies and foes attack me,
    they will stumble and fall.
3 Though a mighty army surrounds me,
    my heart will not be afraid.
Even if I am attacked,
    I will remain confident.

4 The one thing I ask of the Lord—
    the thing I seek most—
is to live in the house of the Lord all the days of my life,
    delighting in the Lord’s perfections
    and meditating in his Temple.
5 For he will conceal me there when troubles come;
    he will hide me in his sanctuary.
    He will place me out of reach on a high rock.
6 Then I will hold my head high
    above my enemies who surround me.
At his sanctuary I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy,
    singing and praising the Lord with music.

7 Hear me as I pray, O Lord.
    Be merciful and answer me!
8 My heart has heard you say, “Come and talk with me.”
    And my heart responds, “Lord, I am coming.”
9 Do not turn your back on me.
    Do not reject your servant in anger.
    You have always been my helper.
Don’t leave me now; don’t abandon me,
    O God of my salvation!
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
    the Lord will hold me close.

11 Teach me how to live, O Lord.
    Lead me along the right path,
    for my enemies are waiting for me.
12 Do not let me fall into their hands.
    For they accuse me of things I’ve never done;
    with every breath they threaten me with violence.
13 Yet I am confident I will see the Lord’s goodness
    while I am here in the land of the living.

14 Wait patiently for the Lord.
    Be brave and courageous.
    Yes, wait patiently for the Lord.

Bonnie Zickgraf is a retired pastor, author, columnist for The Times, and an RN in mental health nursing and health plan accreditations. Send comments and prayer requests to [email protected].