Pennies from Heaven

A couple of years ago I read a story about an upcoming businessman who was taking a prospective and wealthy client to dinner. On their way into the restaurant the well-to-do gentleman stooped to pick up a penny from the ground, paused for a few moments, head bowed, then continued on with the evening. The young businessman was perplexed. Why would someone with so much money be bothered with a simple penny? Halfway through dinner he could stand it no more.

"Why, if I may ask, would you stop to pick up a penny?" he asked. "Surely it is nothing in itself and hardly worth the effort. Why even bother?"

The wealthy man smiled. "Ah, but don't you see?" he replied. "Every penny has a message: 'In God We Trust'. Whenever I see one, no matter where I am, I pick it up and pause a moment to say a prayer. I feel it is a message sent down from God to stop me in my tracks and remind me to put my trust into what - and who - is important."

Ever since I read that story, I see a dropped penny so differently. I can no longer pass by one without picking it up. Sometimes I pause briefly to offer a quick prayer of thanks, yet there are times when I stop completely to listen for the message I am meant to hear. It's interesting how I often seem to find them during difficult times and in unexpected places....and they always stop me in my tracks. Perhaps they truly are reminders that I am never alone and that there is always someone to turn to whom I can trust.

People are like pennies. There are millions of us on this earth, circulating at any given time and place. To view us from afar we may appear insignificant and common. But we each hold value. We, too, can carry a message through our words, actions and deeds that can stop people in mid-stride and help them learn about faith; about holding on to what - and who - they are meant to. I suspect that the true wealth of the gentleman in that story went far beyond the monetary.

Pick up the pennies along the roadway of your life, stop for prayer..... and trust. Then see how rich you truly are.