Anchorage, Alaska: Divine Appointment

“Someone put a Tesoro gift card in the offering at HOPE CHURCH a couple of weeks ago. They had hand written on the card for “HOPE CHURCH $25.” So I went to a Tesoro gas station to buy gasoline for our ministry vehicle. When I inserted the gift card into the pump, the screen displayed “Card Balance $200. Please see cashier.” So I went inside. The cashier tried to run the card but it wouldn’t work. She called the customer service number listed on the back of the card. They told her the available balance was $0. When I got home, I called customer service myself. I was told the same disappointing news, with further details. The agent said, “This card has never been activated. But you can try to take into another store to just see if their systems might pull something up on this.” So, today I stopped at another Tesoro that I have passed 100s of times. I’ve never had an interest in going there. But this mystery gift card compelled me to try again to see if there really was a balance on this gift card. Once again, the reply was negative. The assistant manager tried hard to get it to work. But I quickly turned the conversation to a spiritual focus. He was like a sponge to receive my witness. He wept as he told me that it looked like he would lose his job since he wasn’t able to get on top of the computer systems. I prayed with him, and he was so grateful. Actually that unactivated gift card had more value than monetary. It set me up to meet a hurting man, and speak hope into his heart!”