I Was Just Trying to Get Through the Day… Then Grace Showed Up: Zaina Bent

Last night, I learned, again, that God doesn’t need perfect timing. He just needs my yes.

The day started with promise. I sat down at Starbucks to focus on some projects and reset my energy. I had a few conversations that gave me perspective, including insight about my blog and upcoming goals. I even made plans to get support with it in the coming week. It felt productive until it didn’t.

Later, I made a trip to Walmart to grab some containers for packing. While walking in, I noticed a woman outside playing the violin. She stood near a sign, sharing that her mother was battling cancer. Something in me paused. I felt led to give, and I did. Not because I had extra to spare, but because I knew what it meant to be in need and still show up with faith. Her music, though quiet, played like a reminder: even in pain, we can still create beauty. Even in lack, we can still give.

But the day didn’t stay peaceful.

Back at home, what was meant to be a simple task turned into a heavy one. There was more chaos than expected. The energy in the house felt stifling. I was overwhelmed. My curtain rod even came crashing down, like a symbol of how everything felt like too much.

Still, I had a child to care for.

Though I had planned to make something at home, I couldn’t move past the frustration. So I stepped out for a quick bite, not because I wanted to, but because I needed to.

And just as I pulled into my driveway, a man approached me.

He was soft-spoken and apologetic, explaining that he had no way to get home, short on money for the bus and train. Without hesitation, I gave him more than he asked for. Not for recognition. Not for praise. But because I know what it means to give from an emptied place and still say yes.

He called me an angel.

But what he didn’t know is that he was mine, too.

Because in that moment after a frustrating day, a heavy heart, and a spirit stretched thin I forgot that I still carry light. That even when things feel out of place, I can still be someone’s answered prayer.

Both he and the woman with the violin reminded me:

My compassion still works.

My heart is still open.

And even in transition, I am still being used.

I don’t know what either of them may have been running from or returning to. But I do know this: God placed them in my path for a reason, and both encounters happened when I least expected them, one as I walked in, and the other just as I got home.

I have good debt to pay. Goodness to give. Purpose to fulfill.

And if all I have is a few dollars, a listening ear, and a softened heart, I’m still walking in alignment.

Let this be your reminder, too:

You don’t have to be at your best to be used by God.

You just have to show up and sometimes, even that happens right as you pull into the driveway.