by Peter M. Lopez

“Are they servants of Christ?…I more so; in far more labors, in far more imprisonments, beaten times without number, often in danger of death. Five times I received from the Jews thirty-nine lashes. Three times I was beaten with rods, once I was stoned, three times I was shipwrecked, a night and a day I have spent in the deep.” 2 Corinthians 11:23-25 (NASB)

Fortunately, most of us will never encounter what Paul encountered. However, if we are “lucky” enough to avoid uncomfortable situations altogether, what else might we miss?

I attended a funeral some time back. Afterward, I was seated across from a pastor who had traveled the night before from another state. One bit of the table conversation struck me, as the pastor’s wife related their adventures in finding a hotel room the previous evening, she said every hotel room in a particular town was full except one. The only vacancy was at a hotel with a casino. Suffice it to say, the good couple drove on to the next casino-less town and found appropriate accommodations. The words of the pastor’s wife still ring in my ear, though. She laughingly said, “Can you imagine what everyone would have said if they knew Pastor So-and-So and I stayed at a casino?” Everyone seemed to get the joke.

The more I thought about it, the more I wondered whether there was only one vacancy for a reason. Maybe a hotel clerk needed an encouraging word, maybe there was someone in the hotel bar with family problems, or just maybe it was some stranger’s night to encounter Jesus, even if in a casino.

I think the lost are called “lost” for a reason: they aren’t where they’re supposed to be. If Christians aren’t where the lost are, how can we expect to find them? Not that we should be trolling bars, nightclubs, or casinos, but we just might find that the only vacancy in town is specially reserved just for us. Who knows where other uncomfortable divine reservations might await us? One thing is certain: We’ll never know if we never go.