Growing Gratitude

My family and I were on a scenic Sunday evening drive when we noticed a man whose car had broken down on a very busy street. It appeared to us as though it had just occurred, so I pulled into a vacant parking lot and went to check on him. I waited as he wrapped up his phone conversation with a tow truck dispatcher and then he turned his attention to me with a smile.

The man had a kind face: the sort of features that are worn more from smiling and sunshine than from scowling and hard living. Given the circumstances, he was surprisingly warm and cheery. He had been there for an hour. He shared a bit about how he’d moved from Michigan. And as he described his life, he made it a point to mention his job. This turned out to be what stuck with me most. He pointed to his nearby factory job and beamed as he described his work. He even went out of his way to mention how well his employer treats him and that he sees his job as the provision of God.