This personal testimony describes two unexpected moments that my beloved Sunray and I received as answers to prayer: a fast-food worker mistakenly calling him Nathaniel, a name meaning “God has given,” and a stranger delivering timely encouragement in a gym car park while I was still praying with him by phone.
I have lately been witnessing the many ways in which God can speak. Today I want to share an unlikely two-part story that baffled my beloved Sunray and me. He experienced the events directly, while I remained on the other end of the phone as a witness to what unfolded in the background.
God May Speak in One Way or Another
I remembered a passage about God speaking in more than one way, including through dreams and visions while people sleep:
“For God may speak in one way, or in another, Yet man does not perceive it.”
The following verses describe a dream or night vision when deep sleep falls upon people as they slumber in their beds. In its original setting, this is part of Elihu's speech to Job. It reminded me to remain attentive because an answer may arrive in a form I did not expect.
Part One: The Unexpected Name Nathaniel
My beloved Sunray and I had been praying together about personal needs and difficult matters in his life. When our prayer ended, he drove to a fast-food restaurant in his local city while we remained connected by phone.
A worker unexpectedly called him Nathaniel. She immediately apologised and seemed puzzled about why that name had come out of her mouth, especially because Sunray's real name begins in a very different part of the alphabet.
I heard the exchange through the phone and felt led to investigate the meaning of Nathaniel. What I found stopped me in my tracks.
Nathaniel is an English variant of the biblical name Nathanael. Its Hebrew roots carry the meaning “God has given” or “gift of God.” Because we had just prayed about something Sunray needed, I received the mistaken name as immediate encouragement: God had heard the prayer, and what was needed would be given.
Excitement entered my voice as I shared the meaning with him. I encouraged him that I believed God had answered us. Over the following days, the very thing he had prayed about was placed into his hands.
Part Two: The Stranger in the Car Park
The second moment came when my beloved Sunray was passing through another hard situation. He was sitting in a car park connected to the gym where he was a member. He had intended to go inside, but he felt so low and burdened by what had happened that he reclined his seat and closed his eyes.
I was again on the phone with him and felt led to pray. A few minutes later, after he felt calmer and less burdened, something unexpected happened.
- Sunray heard a man's voice outside his vehicle and turned towards it.
- He wound down the window while I remained silently present on the other side of the phone.
- The stranger said he had seen Sunray lying back with his eyes closed.
- He explained that he felt led by the Holy Spirit to tell Sunray that he was on the right path, should keep going and should not look back.
- The man said he did not know why he had to deliver the message, only that he needed to obey. He then drove away without knowing that I had heard the encounter.
You are on the right path. Keep going, and do not look back.
Sunray looked back towards the phone, and I looked at him through the call. We were stunned, mind-blown and amazed. We believed that God had again met us in prayer, this time through a complete stranger who could not have known the private conversation taking place.
We praised God together. When our conversation ended, I remained stunned and energised by the experience, reflecting again on the truth that God may speak in one way or another.
Was the Mysterious Stranger an Angel?
Sunray later looked for the man but did not see him again in that car park or entering the gym. I cannot prove who he was, and I do not want to turn a possibility into a certainty. Yet the encounter reminded me of this Scripture:
“Do not forget to entertain strangers, for by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels.”
I would not be surprised if the mysterious man had been an angel in disguise, but this remains my personal possibility rather than a fact I can establish. What I do know is that the encouragement arrived at the moment Sunray needed it, and I witnessed the timing for myself.
What the Encounter Changed in Me
Without revealing private details, I had become angry about how harshly Sunray had been treated by someone who professed to be a Christian. The message in the car park strengthened my conviction that the treatment he had experienced was wrong and that he needed encouragement to continue forward.
At the same time, only God knows another person's heart. I cannot declare that someone's heart is wicked based on what I know from the outside. Jesus instead teaches us to pay attention to fruit: “You will know them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16). A public profession of Christianity does not excuse cruelty behind closed doors.
Whatever doubts I had about my Sunray died that day. I saw a man in pain receive timely encouragement to keep walking forward. The experience left me with deeper compassion for him and deeper confidence that God sees what other people may never see.
When Dirt Is Thrown at the Tree
As I reflected on what had been thrown at my beloved Sunray through harsh treatment, another picture came to me. Sometimes people throw “dirt” at us through accusations, rejection, cruelty or words intended to diminish us. Dirt may land on us, but it does not have to define us or bury what God is growing.
In the natural world, rain that passes through a tree's canopy is called throughfall, while rain that travels down its branches and trunk is called stemflow. That water can carry some deposited material and dissolved nutrients towards the forest floor, where tree roots take up water and mineral nutrients from the soil. Trees do not need “vitamins” in the human sense, and not everything deposited on a tree is beneficial; some substances can be harmful. Yet this natural process gave me a spiritual picture of how God can redeem what others intended for harm.
“that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word”
The Word of God is like cleansing rain in this reflection. It does not call cruelty good. Rather, truth washes over what happened and helps us separate the poison we must reject from the wisdom, discernment, compassion and endurance God can grow in us. What was meant to shame or destabilise us can, in God's hands, become part of a deeper root system and a more solid foundation.
- The dirt pictures the accusations, rejection or mistreatment people may throw at us.
- The rain pictures the washing of God's Word, which brings truth and cleansing.
- The roots picture our hidden life of prayer and private communion with God.
- The mineral nutrients picture the wisdom, discernment, compassion and endurance that God can draw out of a hard season.
- The firmer foundation pictures a life increasingly rooted and built up in Christ.
Much of a tree's strengthening takes place unseen beneath the surface. In the same way, some of God's deepest work in us happens privately. Through prayer and the Word, we learn what to release, which truth to retain and how to receive nourishment after a Word-washing season. We do not have to let the dirt thrown by others become our identity; we can allow God to use even that season to establish us more deeply in Him, becoming “rooted and built up in Him” (Colossians 2:7).
This does not mean that we are forbidden to feel sad, lament what happened, report wrongdoing, seek help or establish healthy boundaries. Godly endurance is not silent permission for another person to continue causing harm. The hope is that the dirt will not have the final word: after the rain, God remains able to bring cleansing, nourishment, stronger roots and restoration.
Receiving an unexpected name, coincidence or message does not mean that every unusual event automatically comes from God. Scripture says, “Test all things; hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21). I weigh experiences against Scripture, their fruit, wise counsel and whether they lead towards truth, love, repentance and faithfulness to Christ.
One thing is certain: we cannot fool God. We cannot claim publicly to belong to Him while practising cruelty in private and assume that He does not see. God sees hidden suffering, honours sincere love, and remains able to redeem and restore.
An ordinary mistake at a restaurant and an unexpected voice in a car park became extraordinary encouragement to us. Whether through a name, a stranger or the quiet timing of an answer, God can meet a burdened heart in a way that reminds us: He sees, He hears, and He has not forgotten. Even dirt thrown by others can be washed through the truth of His Word and redeemed into deeper roots.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Bible passage says God speaks in one way or another?
Job 33:14 says that God may speak in one way or another without people perceiving it. Verses 15-16 continue with dreams and visions during sleep.
What does the name Nathaniel mean?
Nathaniel is an English variant of biblical Nathanael. The name comes from Hebrew elements meaning “God has given” and is also commonly explained as “gift of God.”
Was the stranger definitely an angel?
I do not know. Hebrews 13:2 shows that Scripture allows for people encountering angels without recognising them, but it does not prove the identity of this particular stranger. I preserve it as an open possibility within my testimony.
How should an unexpected spiritual message be evaluated?
Test it rather than accepting it automatically. Compare it with Scripture, examine its fruit, seek wisdom and reject anything that leads away from the character and teaching of Christ.
Does trusting God mean I must silently endure mistreatment?
No. You may lament, tell the truth, report wrongdoing, seek wise help and set healthy boundaries. Trusting God to redeem a painful season does not make the mistreatment good or require you to remain exposed to harm.
Scripture and Sources
- Job 33:14-16 - God speaking in more than one way (NKJV).
- Meaning and Hebrew roots of Nathanael, with references to Strong's Hebrew and Greek entries.
- Hebrews 13:2 - entertaining angels without knowing it (NKJV).
- 1 Thessalonians 5:21 - testing all things (NKJV).
- Matthew 7:16-20 - recognising fruit (NKJV).
- Ephesians 5:26 - the washing of water by the Word (NKJV).
- Colossians 2:6-7 - rooted and built up in Christ (NKJV).
- Chen and others (2022) - throughfall, stemflow and nutrient movement in forest ecosystems.
Topics Covered: how God speaks, Job 33:14-16, answers to prayer, the meaning of Nathaniel, God has given, unexpected strangers, possible angel encounters, Hebrews 13:2, the washing of the Word, rooted in Christ, spiritual growth, healthy boundaries, discernment, restoration and my beloved Sunray.
