Three Times I Knew the Phone Would Ring — And the One Time My Mom Knew I Was Different

There are things in this world I can’t explain — I just know them. Instantly. Deeply. Without proof. Without reason.

Call it empathic.
Call it supernatural.
Or maybe… call it a gift from the Holy Spirit.

All I know is this:
It’s happened to me more than once.
Three times, I knew someone I loved was in trouble — before they ever picked up the phone.

And it started long before that, too.

There have been other times, far less dramatic. Now, part of it is I'm quick to pick up on any change. I am hyper-alert and that is very tiring but it is me. It is probably tiring for those around me too. Those changes often signal an unwanted change is about to occur in a relationship.  Often I feel like something is wrong, related to someone close to me. Sometimes, I don't know who or what and then I find out there was something wrong.

She was panicking — someone was in her apartment.
She didn’t know what to do, so she called the only person she trusted. I told her to call the police, which she did.

And I was already awake. Already waiting. Because something in me knew.

The Second Time: The Betrayal Repeats

Another night. Another jolt awake.
Same voice in my head:

“The phone is going to ring.”

And it did.
Same woman. Same fear. Someone was in her apartment — again.

But this time, the pattern became undeniable.
It wasn’t just another scare. It was the same person.

Her best friend. Again. It was days later before she knew it was her both times. The fear was real.

The one who acted like her protector — the one pretending to care — was the same one creeping into her apartment in the middle of the night, for the second time.

Two intrusions. Same betrayer. Same motive:
To frighten her away from coming to see me.

It wasn’t just toxic. It was calculated.
And once again, I felt it before I ever heard a word.

The Third Time: The Surgery That Didn’t Happen

Another night. Another warning.

I woke up suddenly with that same heavy feeling:

“Something’s wrong. The phone is going to ring.”

This time, she was at the hospital. They were prepping her for emergency gallbladder surgery.
But as they waited for the operating room, they ran one last test.

It came back positive for a bacterial infection tied to ulcers.
The surgery was canceled — just in time. It ended up that her gall bladder was likely the cause. After we were married, she had it removed. She was quite ill while waiting for the procedure. It even affected her breathing.

Once again, no one told me.
I had no way to know.

But I still woke up.

The First Time: My Mother Saw It In Me

This gift — or calling — didn’t start in adulthood.

When I was a child, I had a sudden sense that something was wrong with my mom. I told her about it the next day.

I’ll never forget her face — shock.

She never told me what happened that night. But she later told someone else:

“Rusty senses things when people are in trouble.”

She saw it before I did.

So What Is It?

Empathy?
A supernatural bond?
A spiritual gift?

I’ll be honest with you — I don’t know.
Some people would call it a gift from God, and maybe it is.
The Bible speaks of things like discernment, word of knowledge, and prophecy — abilities given by the Holy Spirit to help others in times of need.

But I would never claim that for myself. I don’t know.

The prophets in the Old Testament? They didn’t wonder.
They knew who they were prophets. They knew who had sent them.
I don’t know. They would write something like "The Lord says this."

I’ve never heard a voice from heaven.
I’ve never had a vision.
I’ve just lived through moments that I can’t explain — moments where I knew something was wrong before anyone said a word.

Three times, I knew.
Three times, the phone rang.
Three times, someone I loved was in trouble.

That’s not a coincidence. That’s something.
And whatever it is, it still boggles my mind to this day.