Abraham, the earthly father of the nation of Israel, stepped out in Faith. He was told by God to “Leave your native country, your relatives, and your father’s family, and go to the land that I will show you.” (Genesis 12:1) and then “Abram departed as the Lord had instructed…”(Genesis 12:4). He left behind everything he had known and the safety of his family to follow the Lord’s plan for his life. God had not told him where he would end up or what he was to do, he only said “…go to the land that I will show you…” and then God told him ”I will make you into a great nation. I will bless you and make you famous, and you will be a blessing to others. I will bless those who bless you and curse those who treat you with contempt. All the families on earth will be blessed through you.” Wow!
Earlier this year I felt that God was leading me to make a “move” where my employment situation was concerned. I was not sure what that move was to be but I knew He was telling me to do “something”! I was hesitant about just quiting my job because I felt that God had led me there to start with and I was unwilling to just jump up and leave. I had also recently prayed and asked God to “bless me so I can serve you better.”
So I prayed and finally I came to the decision that it was time to talk to my boss. I told him I felt that God had led me to his company. I also told him that I was unsure whether it was to help build his company back up (he had been robbed blind by the technicians before me) or to gain the experience necessary to start my own company. I told him that Abraham stepped out in faith after God told him to go and that I was ready to do the same. I told him I had been talking to Monotronics about a dealership agreement and I said that we would have to get the money situation straightened out or I would have to go. I said that I asked God to speak to his heart if He wanted me to stay and if not then to tell him to let me go. “So I am going to let you make my decision for me.” He sat and looked at me in disbelief. He said he would need to think about it and that he would let me know by the end of the day. The end of the day came and he said he would let me know Friday, two days later, what his decision would be. I had a feeling he would release me and when Friday came he did just that. He said he would accept my two week notice and although he was releasing me that day, he would pay me for the two weeks. I was overjoyed and shook his hand, thanking him for his generosity, and left. I felt completely energized because I believed that this was an answer directly from God.
The enemy immediately began attempting to sow seeds of doubt in my mind. However, I fought them back and continued to pray as I struck out for a land that God would show me. I waisted no time at all getting started. I went straigtht from work to the bank with that weeks check and then home to begin making phone calls. I needed liabilty insurance, a state license, L.L.C. papers filed, and my “Level 2″ license from the Alabama Electronic Security Board of Licensure. By Monday, three days later I had my business license, insurance and L.L.C. papers filed and was registered to take the ABAT test in Montgomery. Coincidentally the ABAT test had been rescheduled from the week before I was released from my job and rescheduled for the week after I was released. Hmmmmm…Wonder how that happened? Had it not been rescheduled I would not have been able to take the test again for months. God had a plan in place and He was showing me His faithfulness by making arrangements ahead of time for my success in His plan.
A few days before the test date I found out it had been rescheduled again and I would not be able to take the test until the following week. I began to have doubts. I was on the phone talking to my Pastor about this very thing and telling him I was doubting myself but that I was sure God would let me know what I was to do. While I was still talking about this to my Pastor the phone beeped letting me know I had another incoming call. I excused myself and answered the other line. The Dealer Rep from Monotronics was on the phone and started asking me how things were going, was I making progress, when would I be ready to start, etc., etc., etc. I also took this to be a direct answer from God. He was tellng me that this was the path He wanted me on and I was once again energized by this thought. The Father of us all, God Almighty, El-Shaddai was taking a hands on approach to my situation. WOW!
The day finally came last week , Wednesday May 7th, and I headed for Montgomery, Alabama to take a day and a half of classes and then the ABAT test. So I am sure that you can guess what happened. For a couple days before the day I was to leave the enemy began attacking me. He threw all kinds of discouraging things in my path in an attempt to slow me down, detour me, distract me, and dislodge my faith in what I was doing and whether I could even accomplish the task God had laid before me. I fought back with prayer and stubborn resolve. I had come to far to fail God now. The enemy continued his attacks right up until the moment I finally hit the interstate Wednesday morning at 4:45 a.m.
I was finally on the road and heading toward my destiny that I believed God had laid out before me. I turned my stereo up loud and began to sing along with my praise and worship music as I went. Soon I was energized once again and I felt unstoppable. I had repeatedly told the Lord that if this was His will for my life then to make it happen and if not then to lead me where He wanted me to go and I would follow. The first hour and a half of the trip was relatively uneventful. I continued to praise and worship as I flew down the interstate. I was sure I would be there at least an hour early for classes. Then suddenly things took a turn for the worse. Very suddenly.
Traveling at a speed of about 87 miles per hour I quickly found myself in a life threatening situation when my front left tire blew out. I wrestled with the steering wheel and after several tense seconds managed to get my truck over onto the shoulder of the interstate. I mustered a half hearted chuckle as my truck slowed to a stop. I was not going to let the devil steal my joy nor was I going to lose faith in my God! I sat still for a moment never even bothering to get out of my truck. I had left home knowing that I had no spare tire. I was unable to come up with the money to purchase one before I left and decided that God would get me there safely. I also had no cell phone because the one I had had was provided by my ex-employer. So there I sat, less than forty miles from my desination, cars and trucks wizzing by me with no way to change my tire and no way to call for help! I began to do the only thing I could…. I prayed.
I had just passed an exit a mile or so back and I thought about turning around to go back. However, the median of the interstate was very deep and traffic was much too heavy for me to cross over anyway. I was unwilling to back my truck a mile down the side of the interstate and knew I could not afford to be stopped by law enforcement if I turned around and went the wrong way. I thought that there was surely another exit a mile or so ahead of me so I started my praise and worship muic playing again and began slowly moving down the side of the interstate with my emergency flashers going. I reasoned that if God really wanted this to happen that I could not let a blowout stop me now. It only took a few seconds for the bumpy ride to cause my cd player to begin skipping. My heart sank. I turned the stereo off and continued at a snail’s pace.
Soon I began to realize where I was on the interstate. I had now limped two or three miles down the highway and there was not only no exit in sight but there were also not even any signs telling me an exit was ahead. After a few moments I saw billboards advertising businesses at an exit about ten more miles down the road. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks. I had done many satellite installs in that area of the state a few years earlier and I realized to my dismay that I was in a stretch of highway that had no exits for about fifteen miles. The enemy began to whisper in my ear. He tried to discourage me and make me think that I would not make it to my destination. I prayed even harder.
After about the sixth or seventh mile riding on my flat tire a large section tore loose and began slapping hard against the fender and front bumper area of my truck. The sound of the tire slapping metal over and over began to grate on my nerves. I knew I was damaging my truck and soon I stopped to see if I could remove the three foot piece of tire from the wheel. I tried everything I could to pull it loose. I even hacked at it with a saw blade from the tool box on my truck to no avail. The steel belts inside the tire were not going to allow me to remove it. During this time several big trucks came within feet of me as they passed by without stopping to help. I also saw three state troopers fly by without hesitation. I was beginning to think I would not make it to my destination. I was beginning to doubt that God had wanted this at all and that maybe I left my job for no good reason. I began to pray again and told God that if this was His will to get me there.
Back in my truck I continued to travel on the side of the highway while the tire continued to damage my vehicle. I worried that the friction from the torturous pounding was going to set my truck on fire but I could not bring myself to stop. Something inside of me kept urging me to continue my slow and arduous journey. I looked off to the side of the interstate hoping to see a business or a residence along the nearby roads. Soon I began to see houses and even a church but no sign of human activity and only one small house with a vehicle in the carport. I thought about stopping and crossing the highway to see if I could get some help or use a phone. It was not long until I decided that the effort of crossing the highway, climbing the fence and checking from house to house would probably eat up more time than continuing down the side of the road. Surely there had to be an exit coming up soon! Finally the huge chunk of tire that was tearing my truck to pieces let loose and went flying into the air. Now, although riding on my rim, I was moving along much more easily and without so much bouncing and jerking. I had now been traveling on the side of the highway for almost forty minutes and more than ten miles. Praise God it was only another two miles and I saw an exit sign!!
I pulled off the interstate and exited to the right. I came to a stop in the parking lot of a very busy store and was very quickly a spectacle of wonder for all those coming and going. My truck fender was dented and blackened from the rubber slapping it repeatedly. The front spoiler and metal above it on the left side of my vehicle was damaged and hanging down almost to the ground. The tire was completely gone with the exception of a small strip around the interior of the metal wheel rim. The rim was also severely damaged and it was obvious to me that both the wheel and tire would have to be replaced. I walked into the store and got a cup of coffee, paid for it, and asked if the clerk knew of any businesses nearby that sold tires and rims. She did not. Now you realize the devil was not going to miss an opportunity to whisper doubts in my ear again and he relentlessly began attacking me. I was unwilling to give up so I asked if there was a towing service nearby. She said yes and looked up the number for me and even dialed it on her cell phone and gave the phone to me. I explained my situation to the man who answered and told him that I needed to be in Montgomery by eight o’clock or I was going to have big problems. He said he would have a truck there soon. It was now about fifteen minutes after seven and I was starting to get anxious. I walked out to my truck and stood there for a moment looking at what had once been a relatively good looking vehicle! I began to pray again.
After about fifteen minutes or so a flatbed truck showed up and the truck driver, a woman, loaded my truck in a hurry and we climbed into the cab to head for Montgomery. I was now within thirty miles of my destination. I explained the situation to her, including my conversation with my boss and that I was sure God was leading me to do this, as we traveled the interstate. She informed me along the way that she had been diverted from another call and sent to get me because she was told it was an emergency. She assured me I would get where I was going but that I would be fifteen minutes or more late because the traffic in Montgomery was terrible. “That’s ok.” I told her. “Just get me there and God will take care of the rest!” Sure enough we arrived about twenty minutes after eight and she called in the charge to be applied to the credit card I gave her. She told me that she would be dropping my truck at a nearby repair facilty and would tell them to fix it for me. I removed my paperwork from my suitcase and rushed inside.
When I walked in I was immediatley met with a question from the instructor, “And what have we here?” he asked as the whole class turned around to look at me. I said “The guy who’s late because his truck broke down thirty miles from here and had to be towed the rest of the way.” He, to my great relief, allowed me to present my confirmation letter and gave me my books. I apologized to him and the class and took my seat praising God in my heart! I was there and now I was once again sure that this was God’s plan for me. I was amazed I had made it at all and had no doubt that God was continuing to take a hands on approach to this situation. I struggled to settle my twirling thoughts and concentrate on the material being presented.
When our lunch break came I went looking for the cafeteria. We had had one at my classses two years earlier when I was attempting to get my level one license. I could not find the cafeteria anywhere and went back to ask the instructor if there was one at the training facility. Once again I was dismayed to find out there was nothing but a snack machine and a drink machine. However before I could even begin to pray the instructor offered to give me a ride to lunch. Praising God in my heart again I told the instructor my story as we traveled to a nearby resturaunt. When we reached the resturaunt my instructor offered to buy my lunch. I said “You don’t have to do that but thank you I appreciate it very much”, and I accepted his kindness. We went through the buffet line and were seated. So far, at this point, he had still not revealed to me whether or not he believed in God but had only quietly and patiently listened to my story. He soon said,”Let’s say the blessing.” and bowed his head and began to pray. I thanked God in my heart that he had provided me with a Christian instructor. He was unashamed to bow his head and pray in public! Praise God!
During the ride back from lunch, through most of which I had continued to tell him that I had faith that God was leading me as he ate his food and mine got cold, he began to ask me questions about my beliefs and quoted many more scriptures than I would have been able to. I was obviously in the company of a devot Christian and was again thankful to my God for his help. I felt much better by this pont and was very encouraged by our conversation. He told me he would be happy to take me to the repair facility that afternoon to pick up my truck after class. I accepted greatfully and thanked him repeatedly for his kindness.
After class let out the instructor and I headed a mile or so down the highway to where my truck was being repaired. When we pulled into the parking lot my heart sank once more as I saw my truck still sitting on what was left of my front left wheel. The instructor was amazed to see the damage and I said “I told you I was determined to get here!” He could only agree.
Once inside I was told that my truck had very expensive rims and that they had a hard time finding a replacement. They told me they were $600 new but that they had found a used one at a junkyard that I could purchase for $275! I told them I did not want the used wheel and that all I needed was any old used rim and tire. “Anything that will get me on the road again.” I was then informed that they had already prepaid for the wheel and that it was being shipped from another junkyard outside the area and would not arrive until Friday. This was two days from then. I was suposed to be done with classes and the test the next afternoon and had no money to stay for two days in a motel. Despair welled up in me like a flood and I almost began to cry standing there in the office of the repair shop. The man was obviously angry and said he could not return it and he had already paid for the wheel with his own money. Knowing from past experiences how this could turn out I told him that I would pay for the wheel and they could ship it to me, but that I needed a used rim and tire as quickly as possible. I had the money in my bank account to pay for the repair and the wheel but I also had checks out that would be coming in soon and the money was already taken. Things were looking desperate again!
When I had finished dealing with the bad news my instructor asked me where I was staying and offered to drive me there. I told him that I honestly had no idea where I was going to stay that night. I told him that when leaving for Montgomery that day I was low on funds and was counting on God to help me find a cheap motel and if not I would sleep in my truck. However that option was no longer available to me. So, my instructor suggested a cheap motel just down the road. He drove me there and on the way offered to come pick me up in the morning and said he would be more than happy to pick me up to go to church with him and his wife that evening. I told him I would call him on his cell phone to let him know if I would be going.
After arriving at the motel I reluctantly paid more for a room than I could afford. I was at the point that I could not see anything else to do! I made my way to the room and once inside all the pressure that had been building through the course of the day exploded within me. I dropped to my knees and cried out to God for the strength to continue. I made a phone call to my mother in Florida, another fee on the credit card, and spilled my heart out over the phone. Trying to encourage and console me as best as she could she ended the call by telling me to get some rest and not to worry that she would help me pay for the repairs. I had already borrowed quite a bit of money over the past couple of weeks to make this happen and I had no idea how I would repay it.
After a short time I was feeling a slight bit less stressed out and decided that the place I needed to be that night was in church. I knew that being in God’s house with His people would help me like nothing else in this world could. So, I called my instructor and told him I was going to take him up on his invitation to go to church. He was happy to hear so and said he would arrive to get me around six thirty that evening. It was at that time about four p.m. and I decided to lay back and watch tv for a little while. I soon realized that I had no alarm clock in my room and I was afraid I would fall asleep. Instead of laying down I freshened up and worked on ironing my shirt which had become wrinkled during this whole ordeal. Praise God for cheap motels with microwaves, mini refrigerators, and ironing boards. They even had a small coffee maker and a single pot premeasured packet of coffee with creamer and sugar. So I poured the water in, placed the coffee in the filter basket and turned the pot on. After a few minutes I went over to the counter to get my cup of coffee and found that it had overflowed and made a huge mess around the sink outside the bathroom! At this point I just stood there staring in disbelief. Even the coffee maker was in on the plot to discourage me. Nevertheless I drank what had actually made its way into the pot and quietly wiped up my mess on the counter. Soon my instructor called to let me know he would be arriving early to pick me up so that he and his wife could buy me dinner before church. Two meals in one day, a ride to a motel, church and a ride to class in the morning. This man was quickly becoming my hero!
My instructor and his wife arrived on schedule and we went to eat at a barbeque place on the way to their church. The food was good and once more I testified to God’s grace in my life and told them of many of the trials I had been facing. They were supportive and encouraging and so gracious to me. I will never forget that day and their Christian love that made the difference in that horrible day for me.
We then went on to his church and after meeting several people, singing a song, and having prayer we went to bible study class. During that class, which was on their first week of breaking from regular studies, I was introduced to an amazing lecture on the founding fathers of our country. The speaker spoke about personal letters written by our founding fathers and even bills passed through Congress in the early years of our country that directly contradicted the modern day belief that our founding fathers did not want religion in our government. He showed pictures of actual documents that reside in the Library of Congress which backed up everything he had said. I was amazed and delighted and knew that this was another of God’s ways of showing me again that I was where I needed to be! I have had many discussions with people about this exact subject and was unable to prove any of my beliefs due to a lack of substantial proof. Now I was being shown a wellspring of knowledge and irrefutable facts to support my beliefs. Praise God! I left church refreshed and renewed in my faith that God was in control of everything going on around me. I gathered information from the speaker about the website he has and the Library of Congress website so that I could do my own research. I will be posting a page on my church website in the near future about this very subject. We arrived back at my motel around nine o’clock. After showering and watching an inspirational show on television I turned out the light at exactly ten o’clock.
I slept like a rock that night for six hours and awoke at almost exactly four in the morning. Six hours of uninterupted sleep that night was the most I had had in days. I do not believe I even rolled over once during the night due to the relatively unmussed conditioned of my hair and the position in which I awoke. I showered again and took the time to gather my belongings together before watching more inspirational television that morning. Around seven o’clock I went down to the lobby of the motel to check out and then afterwards I ate a “continental breakfast”, whatever that means. I had coffee and two delicious danishes and then walked outside to wait for my instructor to arrive for the ride to class. While outside I gazed up at the sky which was becoming overcast and wondered if we had bad weather coming. I also talked to God this entire time and thanked Him for all he was doing for me and asked Him for the strength to finish out my ordeal. Soon my instructor arrived and we went to class. I shook his hand upon entering the vehicle and thanked him again for all he had done and was still doing for me. I told him how thankful I was that God had put a “Godly” man in my path. He was very humble and appreciative of the praise.
The first half of the day went quickly and then we had our lunch break. My instructor had somewhere he had to go for a quick meeting at lunch so I stayed at the facility to have a snack and wait for the test after lunch. I reassured him this was ok because the look on his face said to me that he wished he could take me to lunch again. During the last half of the lunch break I had my first opportunity to speak with some of the others there for the test. I went to the dry marker board and helped three or four of them to gain a better understanding of how to calculate current and power and voltage drops in a parrellel/series circuit the instructor had drawn on the board before lunch. I made a few good business contacts with people who work in this area and once again I give God the credit for placing me in a position to do this through no choice of my own in the matter. I would have gone to lunch and not been there to help them if I had had my truck available to me.
My instructor returned from lunch and the test began. We were given two hours to answer fifty questions and although that sounds like a lot of time it really is not for most. I was third to finish the test in under an hour and am confident that I did not miss more than two or three questions. I waited around another hour until the last person finished just three minutes or so before time ran out. I helped my instructor clean up where he had set up a coffee maker and loaded everything in his truck. We traveled the short distance to the repair facility where we found my truck sitting out back waiting for me to pick it up. They had put a used five spoke Chevrolet rim and used tire on for me and I was delighted to see things had worked out. Why had I doubted for a moment that everything would turn out ok? I am only human is the only answer I could give myself. I thanked my instructor again and could not help but hugging him as I shook his hand. Then I pulled my truck around front and went in to pay the bill. Once inside I found that the place was in utter chaos due to all the customers and phone calls coming into the office. I finally got the repairs paid for and was on the road home by four p.m. What a relief. I turned on my praise and worship music and began to sing with the songs. Now all I had to do was make it back home! Easier said than done.
That bad weather I had been worried about hit the interstate about forty-five minutes later as I approached Birmngham, Alabama. Traffic slowed almost to a stop several times due to the torrential downpour and soon it came to a complete stop because of a wreck up ahead. After inching my way along the interstate for more than thirty minutes I finally got past the first wreck and before I could go more than ten more miles traffic stopped again because of another wreck in Birmingham. I was continually praying during this time and trying to remain positive. I asked God to just “please” let me get home. I have never wanted to make it home from a trip worse than I did at that moment. Finally the roads opened up and I was on my way again. Traffic was thick and grated on my nerves but I finally cleared the Birmingham area and made my way seventy some miles north to my exit. As I exited and turned onto the west bound highway heading into my hometown the clouds broke and the sun came brightly shining down on me and my battered vehicle. I felt like that was God’s way of telling me once again that He was there with me the whole time! I praised His name again and thanked Him for His help!
Now I am sure that you think the story ends here but I still have a liitle more left to tell you. God was not done showing me His mercy, grace, and love. The next morning I arose early and took my eight year old son to school. As soon as possible I called NTS, the people who grade the tests like the one I took. I was on a mission to see if I could get my grades rushed through so I could get my license as quickly as possible. I was told by my instructor and a staff member of the NFBAA that it was highly unlikely that this would be possible. The grades normally take four to six weeks to be returned. My father had always told me that “It never hurts to ask because all they can do is say no!” I love my father and have missed him deeply since his death almost ten years ago. I proudly took his advice and asked the question. The answer was “No”. However I did not give up there. I told the woman I was talking to that I did not doubt her word but that I was also not the type of person to give up that easily. After the two day adventure I had suffered through I was not about to quit now. I explained my financial duress and asked if there was anyone higher in the company I could talk to, she put me on hold, and then returned to tell me this : “I just spoke to my supervisor and we will see what we can do for you” After asking me what class and test I took and the location and name of the instructor I was told that they were going to make a note of it and see that those test were ran through ahead of the others. Praise God!!!
So, I called my instructor to let him know I had gotten back safely and to tell him what they had said. I first thanked him for all his kindnessess again and before I could hang up he said “Wait, let me tell you what happened last night after you left.” I listened with wonder repeatedly saying “God is good” as he told me about the storm that had come through Montgomery the night I left. Less than four hours after leaving in my truck the repair center where my truck had been taken was almost completely destroyed by a massive downburst at around eight pm. God had once again saved me from further disaster and was making sure that I knew His grace and mercy and love were surrounding me at every turn. What an amazing revelation it was to see the video on the internet from a local television news station. The Firestone store on Highway 231 South (The Troy Highway) in Montgomery, just a half mile or so from my motel room was lying in ruins. Half the roof was collapsed on vehicles inside the building and bricks and cinderblocks were strown everywhere. Had I not felt so desperate about leaving Thursday afternoon and pushed so hard to get any old used rim and tire they could find to put on my truck I would have been stuck there while my vehicle was hidden in a pile of debris.
All I can say is Praise God ya’ll! Praise God for His never ending love, mercy and grace. I will be testifying about this trip tomorrow night out at the mission in Valhermosa Springs. I can’t wait to tell the guys there what God has done for me. They are in a thirteen month descipleship program for alcohol and drug addicts. They will gain great encouragement from this story I am sure and then God will gain all the Glory and Credit He deserves in the situation. I am so thankful for a heavenly Father who loves me like no other!!!
No matter what we encounter in life, no matter how difficult the situation, no matter how insurmountable the task may seem if we are determined in our hearts to follow the path the Lord has laid out for us then I know, I have complete faith, that he will make a way for us!!! Never give up, never give in, pray without ceasing and have faith in God and I can guarantee you from personal experiences like this one that He WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!!!!! PRAISE GOD! PRAISE JESUS! PRAISE THE HOLY SPIRIT!!!
