Day 117: The interrogation

I took a little detour on the way home tonight. Thinking about this project, I jumped off the interstate to drive through a little industrial park. I don't know what I was expecting, but when I passed the FedEx semi-truck and looked up into the eyes of its driver as I cruised by, I knew I'd found my man.

I turned around and pulled up alongside him. The street was empty, and he rolled down his window to talk to me. I got right to the point. "I was just wondering if I could pray for you?" I asked.

He was probably 60 years old, with a balding head and a bushy white mustache. The circumstances might have caught him off guard, I suppose. I'm sure he doesn't have too many people purposefully turn around and stop their cars in order to talk to him. And the question was pretty much wildly out of the blue.

So we talked it over. "What are you all about?" he asked.

"I just like to pray for people," I said. "It's kind of my thing."

"But that sure is an odd question."

"Believe me," I said, looking straight up at him, "I know it is."

He seemed to understand this, but he wasn't convinced. He wanted to know more about me. A lot more.

"Do you work around here?" he asked.

I told him I worked in Wichita. This wasn't good enough for him. He asked what company I worked for, so I told him. He asked what my name was, so I told him. "And if I were to go down there on Monday and ask for you, you would be there?" he asked.

"Absolutely," I said, "I'll even give you my card." I pulled my wallet out to do so, but we kept talking.

He asked me what church I attended, and I told him. He seemed genuinely interested that.

Then it was my turn. I asked where he lived. He said Goessel. Well, I once knew a guy from Goessel, and I threw his name out. My new truck-driving friend knew him. So we made a connection.

A few moments later, I stepped back. "Well, I had just wanted to pray for you, but if you're not comfortable with that, I won't. I'll just take off."

He stopped me then. He told me I could pray for him. He even shut down his rig, bringing quiet to the street. So I prayed quickly, as I promised I would, asking for God's protection and blessing. Then I held up my hand to shake his, and he reached down and took it.

"Have a good Christmas," he said.

On my way home, I saw one of the most beautiful sunsets I'd ever seen.