It was a mystery. One month ago we were checking out of our hotel in Bozeman, Montana. We were on the final day of a fun-filled vacation with one of my sisters, her husband, and our daughter. I cashed in some hotel points for our final night in our favorite state our daughter has adopted as her home. We gave our room a thorough review to make sure nothing was left behind. Well, we blew it. Despite our best efforts, Sarah Young's book, "Jesus Calling," was left behind hidden between the sheets. This isn't just any book. It was a Christmas gift to me from our daughter three years ago. The inscription makes my heart and soul sing for joy. Our daughter puts great thoughts into her gifts and this one happens to be perfect. It's so good that my wife "borrowed it" and uses it daily as part of her morning meditation. We have been going through some challenges in both our lives and not having this book has made our journey much more difficult.
My wife had this feeling in her gut that this book was missing. We shared packing responsibilities the morning of our departure so the final room check was critical. When we got home we searched everywhere for our missing Jesus Calling book. My wife got this sick feeling that Jesus was between the sheets when we checked out. I called our hotel. Thank God they found Jesus. I offered my credit card to pay for shipping and thanked the hotel employee for helping us out. We waited. Nothing. I called again. "We'll check into it and mail it right away," Helen said who has the same name as my wife. The third time I called I sensed I was losing my ability to control my emotions. Helen answered again. I was short. I was not going to accept anything less than complete accountability. "I will hold while you figure out what's going on," I said, telling Helen I could easily replace the book but not the special words our daughter penned inside the cover.
"We have your book," Helen exclaimed.
"Your staff found the book three weeks ago," I answered.
Helen reviewed the notes. She confirmed my address and credit card number I left with her staff so they could mail the book. "I see the problem," Helen said. "We are missing the number on the back of your card. We should have called you. This book has been around this hotel longer than I have been here. Maybe I need to read this." Boom! The Holy Spirit punched me in the gut as if to show me the reason for the stall. The gut punch was meant for me to speak up. "You have my permission to read my daughter's message to me before you send this to me, Helen. Put it on your reading list. It will bring you great peace."
I checked my post office box early yesterday morning on my day off certain the book would arrive. Nope. It was time to escalate my communication. Jesus beat me to the task. I went home and discovered a missed call from the post office. Sure enough, when I called back there was a package waiting for me. It was from the Hampton Inn. Score! Jesus was back after a long absence. I ripped open the package and shared my story at the counter. The postmaster checked the bookmark and it rested on October 1, the last message my wife meditated on before we headed home to our busy lives. The message? Come to me all you who are weak and weary and I will give you rest. My wife did that literally. She rested with Jesus between the sheets. Praise God we found Jesus. It looks like the hotel staff mailed Jesus on the house as no charges for the shipping have shown up. Thank you to the staff at Hampton Inn for helping us on our journey. We'll be back. Have a great day.
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