“But when ye shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing where it ought not, (let him that readeth understand,) then let them that be in Judaea flee to the mountains: And let him that is on the housetop not go down into the house, neither enter therein, to take any thing out of his house: And let him that is in the field not turn back again for to take up his garment. But woe to them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days! And pray ye that your flight be not in the winter. For in those days shall be affliction, such as was not from the beginning of the creation which God created unto this time, neither shall be.” (Mark 13:14-19 KJV)
It’s been a couple of years that we have been trying to purchase a mattress. Each time that we do, something is wrong with it, and it has to be returned.
This time the wrong mattress was delivered. But just as we figured that out, we realized the delivery truck had left. The men who had brought the mattress had told us that it was the last day of deliveries because, due to the Coronavirus, they were closing. I had the opportunity to tell them about Jesus, and they were saved.
We called them, hoping to catch them on the road to let them know that it was the wrong mattress, but they had already taken it to the warehouse, and it was closed. Who knows how long we would have to wait until this would be corrected!
A couple of months later, the business where we had purchased the mattress was still closed due to the virus. I thought to call the delivery department, and, to my surprise, it was open. I explained to the service agent what had happened. A couple of days later, they sent out a representative to look at the mattress. He looked at the mattress and the paperwork. Sure enough, it was the wrong mattress. The agent said that they would take care of it.
A couple of weeks went by and we had not heard from the delivery department.
I had to call them again. The representative was very helpful. In a few minutes, a delivery exchange was scheduled.
The day of the delivery, my husband noticed the truck drive up to our home. He opened the door, and we watched one man carry the mattress, while another guided his steps.
When they walked in the house, I wondered if I would have an opportunity to tell them about Jesus. But they were moving too fast. There was not a chance.
But right before they walked out the door, they set the mattress down. One of the men took some paperwork out of his pocket, handed it to my husband, and asked him to sign it.
Oh, I have a chance to tell them about Jesus. “Where are you from?” I inquired.
They were both from a Spanish-speaking country. One was tall and the other stocky.
The tall man asked, “Do you speak Spanish?”
“Yes, I do.”
The stocky man asked, “Are you Spanish? I can tell by the way you speak that you are from Spain.”
I told him where my family was from. He said, “You are mixed.”
The men were wearing masks, as were we. I looked into their eyes and asked, “Excuse me, do you know why this virus has happened?”
“No,” they both said.
“Would you like for me to tell you?”
“Yes,” they said.
“Are you ready to listen?”
“Yes.”
“This virus is a sign of God’s Son returning. After this sign, there will be another and another. Are either one of you saved?”
“No,” the tall man answered.
I looked at the stocky man. “Are you?”
“No.”
“You need to be sure that you are, because you certainly don’t want to stay here and live out the worst of events when Jesus comes.”
“No, I don’t,” said the tall man.
The other said, “I don’t want to either.”
“Then I am going to pray with both of you right now to make sure that you are saved. Are you ready?”
“Yes,” they both responded.
Very seriously and honoring God they bowed their heads and began to pray with me. What a beautiful sight.
They both received God’s love. They believed in their hearts and confessed with their mouth that Jesus is the Son of God and that he died and rose again. At His cross, they asked forgiveness of their sins and gave their lives to Jesus to use for His glory.
After we finished praying, they were both still and silent, as they received Jesus as their Saviour. I waited a few moments as the Holy Spirit did the work in their hearts.
The tall man said, “My wife has told me that when things get worse here, we will have to run to the mountains. There will not be a safe place here. I know that our values are gone, and if you don’t have values, things get worse and all that people think of is killing.” He looked at the other man. There has been a prophecy about him, that he will be a pastor because he always does bad, but God wants him to follow Jesus.
“You are saved now. You belong to Jesus. You cannot live the way that you used to.”
“It is hard to follow Jesus,” commented the stocky man.
“It’s much easier to go to hell,” I replied. His eyes grew wide.
“Do either one of you have a Bible?’
“I do,” the tall man said.
“I do too,” said the other.
“You have to read God’s Word every day to help you live for Jesus. You must obey His Word.”
The tall man said, “I know that reading the Bible—it is the food of God.”
“It is food for the soul,” the other one said.
It was obvious that both had heard about the Lord in some way, but had not known of receiving salvation in the One in whom they had heard.
My husband had stood nearby praying, as I was praying with them. Since we had been speaking Spanish, the stocky man asked him, “Do you understand?”
“Yes, a little,” He said in Spanish. I am going to take a photo of both of you. They posed with their masks on and made the peace sign. My husband took out his iPhone and took the photo. “Claudia will pray for you.”
They both thanked me, picked up the mattress, and left. We watched them as they walked across the lawn, one carrying the mattress and the other guiding.
“That was amazing,” my husband said.
“This is why there has been problems with the mattresses. Each time men come to deliver one, they pray to be saved in Jesus.”
“So true, Claudia.”
We both smiled and rejoiced, “Thank You, Lord Jesus.”
“Abba, Father, it has been one thing after the other with getting a mattress, but each time the men who come to the house to deliver one, they are saved. Father, there will not be a safe place to run to as evil grows. But You have given us an escape and refuge, Your Son, Jesus. May many hearts turn to You and be saved during these times. Lord, Jesus, we are the fishers of men. If we can’t get to the sea, You will bring the fish to the shore. Holy Spirit, You are the One who deals with the hearts of men about the Son of God. Thank You for bringing these men—who had heard of Jesus in some way—and thank You that their hearts were ripe for harvest. Salvation belongs to You, Jesus. All glory and power is Yours.”