THE MYSTERIOUS, HIDDEN DELICATESSEN

After Dick and I retired, we moved from California to Arizona. My 90-year old mother lived in Minnesota, and now that I was retired, I spent summers with her.  One year I drove our motorhome, with my black lab, Shadow, and towed my Honda CRV behind it.  My daughter, Suz was coming to Minneapolis, to visit Grandma, and then we were going on to Ohio to visit my son, Shane.

My husband gave me explicit directions for towing the Honda.  He said that after every six hours of towing, I MUST STOP to recharge the battery and protect the transmission on the vehicle being towed.  There was a specific procedure to go through, to keep the Honda from being damaged.  I always kept track of when six hours were up to take care of my car.  I was told to not exceed six hours!

The most difficult part of driving a motorhome and towing, was assessing the area, before I turned into it, to see if there was enough space to drive through or to turn around.  I couldn’t get myself into a situation where I would have to back up. I started to pray ahead for easy parking spots to drive through, without backing up.   “God, I am towing my Honda CRV behind the motorhome, and every six hours I have to find easy parking to recharge its battery and protect its transmission. Please help me find places to park where I can easily drive through.”

As I left Arizona, I added another prayer request!  “God, my dog, Shadow, needs to have grass for when she goes potty. Please help Shadow out, so there is grass near where I stop.”  The dog had grown up in California, with a big back yard full of grass.  When we moved to Arizona, where it is a challenge to keep grass alive, Shadow refused to go potty unless there was grass.  So we bought a roll of fake grass for her.  She knew the difference, but started going potty again.  God promises to meet our needs, but would He meet a dog’s needs?  In the Bible God tells us, “Pray about everything, tell God your needs, and don’t forget to thank Him for His answers” (Phil. 4:6-7).

I had a nice trip from Arizona to Minnesota.  It was just Shadow, and me.  We stopped every six hours to take care of my Honda, and each time there was miraculously grass for Shadow!  I looked for truck stops, because trucks also need huge spaces for turning around!

Shadow became spoiled, having the front passenger seat all the way.  When we picked Suz up at the Minneapolis Airport, Shadow growled when Suz stole her seat.  Now Shadow couldn’t see out, as before.  I built a make-shift seat for her between Suz and me, so she could look out, and she was very happy with her new seat!   So, we took off on our adventure!

Suz and I visited my mother, and then we started for Ohio to see Shane, who was working at Aerborne Express there.   To avoid driving through Chicago, we planned to go south on Highway 39, but when we stopped for gas, people were complaining and warning others about the construction on Highway 39.   We decided to go South on Highway 251.  It appeared to be a good through road on our map, but it was an old highway, and it seemed to go through continuous cities.  It was slower, but we were relaxing and enjoying our time together.  Our last stop to tend to the Honda had been at 11:00 AM.  That meant that at 5:00 PM, and no later, we had to stop and do that again. There were no trucks stops on this highway.  Once more we needed a place to pull over where I could easily park the motorhome and Honda.  Shadow would need to go potty, and she again required grass.

We were beginning to get hungry, and discussed what kind of restaurant to look for.  Suz said she was hungry for Italian food.  That sounded good to me, but I also wanted an awesome dessert!  “Dear God, at 5:00 PM, when we stop to cycle through the gears on the Honda, we need to eat.   We are starting to get hungry, and that is a genuine need, but, Suz is hungry for ITALIAN FOOD!  Forgive us, God, if we are asking too much, and also mentioning a deadline, but 5:00 PM is when we must stop.  So, would you help us find an Italian restaurant with a big parking lot where I can park this rig, without backing up, that has grass for Shadow, wonderful Italian food, and awesome desserts?”  Was that asking too much?  We genuinely needed food, but was it okay to ask God for Italian food and good desserts, drive through parking, and grass for Shadow?

Unbeknownst to us, while trying to spot an Italian restaurant with a huge parking lot, with grass, God caused us to miss a sign—and we did not stay on Highway 251.  We were on a road with restaurants.  Then, minutes before 5:00 PM, there on our right was an Italian restaurant!  I could see a huge parking lot, so I turned in!  There was also grass!  I pulled over so the grass was right beside the motorhome.  Shadow was in a hurry to get out, and Suz said she would meet me inside the restaurant.  In a flash, Shadow and I were walking in the blessed grass.  “Oh, thank You, God!”

Then Suz came back and told me bad news:  The restaurant was closed!  We had been so thankful, that we hadn’t ‘noticed that there were no cars in the parking lot, nor that it was closed!  But THE GOOD NEWS, Suz had noticed that back behind the restaurant, in the far corner of the parking lot, was a delicatessen!  It was so hidden away, that it must have been known to locals only! While I tended to the Honda, Suz fed Shadow and put her back in the motorhome.   Then we set out to see what this hidden, mysterious delicatessen had to offer!

And it had everything we had prayed for!  Wonderful Italian food, with amazing desserts!  God knew where this wonderful place was and caused us to miss seeing the sign when Highway 251 turned, and guided us to this tiny, mysterious restaurant!  “Thank You, God!  We know that was You, guiding us, because we would have never found this amazing hidden deli! 

In Philippians 4:19 God promises to meet all our needs.  Our list had grown to be five things we “needed” when we stopped at 5:00PM.  I was concerned that we were asking for things that weren’t actually needs, and asking too much.  If anyone tried to manipulate God, there would be only silence, so He evidently loved granting our needs and wishes.  He must not have minded, because He granted every request!  What an awesome God we have!  He guided us to stop right at 5:00 PM, near that Italian restaurant, there was grass, and He caused Suz to see the hidden delicatessen, which had awesome Italian food and incredible desserts!

The restaurant people gave us directions to an RV park where we camped that night.  Suz and I thanked God, and we will never forget how God showered us with His love by granting all our needs—and even our wants!