You might suppose
that there is very little of interest in the daily
life of an innkeeper. Not so. For, although I seldom
leave the inn and have never traveled far, I meet
travelers every day who tell me of distant places
and wonderful sights. I hear about their homes.
Sometimes, because they are lonely, they tell me their
personal stories.
And, though I haven't traveled very far, I have a
couple of stories of my own.
One afternoon
I was busy about the inn putting the final touches
of the day’s cleaning in anticipation of the arrival
of the first guests. The front door opened and a
stranger came in. Turns out that he wasn’t looking
for a room for himself. He was a Samaritan and said
that he did not expect to stay at an inn that catered
to the Jewish. But, along the way to my town he had
come upon one of my fellow countrymen who had been
attacked and beaten by robbers. He wondered if I
would rent a room to the unfortunate man. The Samaritan
said he would pay for it and be on his way.
What I saw when
I stepped outside was not a pretty sight. On the
back of a burrow a man sat slumped in obvious pain.
The blood that seeped through his bandages gave evidence
of someone who had been savagely and brutally beaten.
I summoned for the Samaritan to help me lift the man
down and we carried him into the inn. After we had
placed him on a bed, the Samaritan said he would pay
me for his care if I would be willing to look after
him. And, if it cost more he would pay me when he
came back through.
His generosity
was astounding. It caused me to feel a twinge of
shame. And, it caused me to renew an old vow that
I, too, would be more generous.
This was not the
first inn that I had managed. Many years before when
I was much younger, I had managed an inn in the little
village of Bethlehem. It was a chaotic time. The
Roman Caesar had commanded that all people should
go to their ancestral homes to be counted for the
census. So thelittle village began to fill with all
the people who were traveling there. Mine was the
only inn. And, there was not enough space for everyone.
It was an innkeeper’s dream.
I
thought of my sister. I thought of my mother. What
if it had been one
of them?
If it were my sister, I would have given her my own
room.
I remember a young
man who came to the door of my inn. He said that
his little wife was heavy with child and could I please
find room for them. I peeked my head outside and
saw her. She was beautiful and, yes, heavy with child.
But, there were some important people coming to my
inn and I had to save the room for them. So, I shook
my head and sent the young couple away. There was
no room in the inn and I sent the young couple away.
There was no room in the inn.
I
remembered how I felt after I turned them away.
Word
came the next day that the young woman had given birth
to a baby boy in a stable. I thought of my sister.
I thought of my mother. What if it had been one of
them? I felt a tide of shame. If it were my sister,
I would have given her my own room.
So, when the Samaritan
came to my door, I remembered. I remembered the man
and his young wife. I remembered how I had felt after
I turned them away. This time I decided to do what
my heart told me.
I decided not
to let the feeling pass but to make room for the injured
man. But, that did not seem enough. So, I turned
to the Samaritan and said, “There is room for you
here as well.”
I think I saw
a tear in his eye. He offered me his thanks. But,
in my heart I whispered to myself, “No. Thank you.
An
Opportunity to Share.
Like the innkeeper,
the chaplains and volunteers of Lifeline Chaplaincy
meet strangers every day. These are the patients
and their families who have traveled from distant
places to receive treatment at the Texas Medical Center.
Some come for cancer treatment. Others need medical
attention for heart disease. Some are children who
need surgery to correct birth defects. Some come
to the medical center because no other place can treat
them.
Some 100,000 patients
come to the Texas Medical Center every day. Most
are far from home. All are in need of spiritual as
well as physical care.
The
chaplaincy comes to the aid of these patients and
their families. Ministers and volunteers attend patients’
bedsides to pray and encourage. They are there to
hold an anxious hand or put an arm around a crying
shoulder.
For those patients
and families who are in financial crisis and in need
of emergency assistance for a hotel room, a meal,
a parking pass or transportation, Lifeline is
there with its Compassionate Touch project.
You can help Lifeline
Chaplaincy care for these patients. Your financial
gift can provide the means for Lifeline to
offer the kind of assistance that is needed. At the
critical time. To those who need it. Because of
you, Lifeline Chaplaincy will be there to welcome
the stranger.
