“Whenever in need, we should come bravely before God’s
merciful throne." ~ Hebrews 4:16
For nearly eleven years Naomi “Pepper”
Andersen patrolled the streets Miami-Dade County. She’d been hit, bit, kicked, and spit on; witnessing
every vile act a human can perpetuate on another. Most people get little more than a momentary
glimpse of what 'Pepper' survived.
Today’s all-too-routine call took her to the local
grocery. An armed security guard had
detained a teenager trying to steal food; probably a gang-banger initiation
stunt.
She placed the boy in the back-seat of her cruiser. “Dude - What were you thinking?” Pepper
asked. But Rafael’s modest silence
stirred something in her gut. She
decided to take him home instead.
Upon arrival, she hiked the broken steps to the door and
knocked. Preschool-eyes peered from
behind the door. When Pepper asked to
see her mommy, the child scampered down the hall to retrieve her.
Pepper pushed the door open and stepped into the entryway
where she saw everything she needed to know.
The kitchen was barren; the furniture old, worn, and threadbare. No doubt - this family was very poor.
A few moments later, the little girl returned and told Pepper:
“Mommy’s busy.” She told the girl to go
back and tell mommy that the police needed to talk to her; she’d return in 10
minutes.
Mom asked if her children were OK. Pepper explained that they were fine and
asked her to step out to the police car and an empty backseat – except of
course the bags full of groceries.
You see – instead of arresting Rafael, Pepper had returned
to the store and purchased the food with her own money. Arresting him wasn't going to solve the
problem of hungry children, so she let him go.
His was a mother so distraught over her inability to provide for her
children that she pleaded for a miracle - as the answer to her prayers knocked at
her door.
But the story gets even better!
After word got out about what happened, fellow officers
donated another $625 for the family to spend at the grocery store. But best of all - a local business owner
invited her for an interview and hired her on the spot as a customer service
rep.
It all started with one veteran police officer trusting her
“instinct” rather than going “by the book.”
But Pepper’s actions were nothing more than an answered prayer . . . there’s
no way any human could execute something so powerful.
Oh great and awesome God, thank You for working
Your miracles through me. Thank You for
peace of mind, heart, and soul. Your
loving world is the real one, and my gratitude runs deep. Amen
