The Three O’Clock Call

“You will sleep more peacefully after visiting one needy person than after preaching to thousands.” – John Piper

Years ago, at a radio station in Cleveland, I met Rena. Rena was an energetic, dynamic promotional-mined community affairs director who had whipped cancer twice. It takes a strong person to beat the odds against cancer and do it not once, but twice.

What does a two time cancer survivor do? Make a 3 O’clock call!

Every day at three, Rena would drop everything she was doing and make a telephone call to someone in need. It might be someone in the hospital, or home sick. It could be someone that had just been diagnosed with an illness, or a person that had lost a spouse or was going through a divorce or just a rough patch.

The purpose of the call was simple. Just to let someone know that she was thinking of them, supported them, and loved them. She made a call every day at 3, without fail.

I remember asking her once, if she ever ran out of people to call. “Never, there are always people that we know who are in need.” She replied. And she is right.

Several years later, I decided I was going to carry on her 3 O’clock tradition. And for a while, I did. Everyone I called said, “You know, I was just thinking of you, or it’s so great to hear your voice.” And everyone was thankful for the call.

As time passed, so did my diligence to the call, but recently I’ve started again. Think about it, you might want to join me.

Note: This post was originally published August 20, 2012. Currently, I am on a brief hiatus finishing my book, Finding God’s Grace. During that time, I will feature posts from the past that you may not have had the chance to read. I hope you enjoy them. I’ll have new, original stories in April.

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