Sometimes I Write

God is using a car to stretch my faith. Faith stretching is so nerve-wracking for recovering control freaks like me. 🙂 Here’s the story:

Instead of participating in Supper on the Pearl last Saturday night (our weekly meal with our street friends in Boulder), I was sick at home on the couch, honing my TV watching skills.  Benny called to tell me he was on his way home and he said, “By the way, I gave away my car tonight.” Um…WHAT? He told me about a young couple he had met that were traveling and their van broke down, stranding them. The repair was going to cost them thousands of dollars. A local church had put them up in a motel for a few days and given them money for food. We’ve heard all kinds of stories, but Benny was sure they weren’t just scamming him. He has pretty good discernment when it comes to that stuff. He said he felt the Holy Spirit telling him to give them his car. He has/had a 1993 Ford Escort Station Wagon that runs pretty well. He said he argued with God at first, but felt strongly that he should give it away. So Monday morning we drove it to them, handed over the keys and the title, and hugged them goodbye.

Now for the faith stretching part. Benny is leaving for a week-long fund-raising trip tomorrow morning. He’s taking our van – our only vehicle. I have to admit I was shocked (and mad) that I was going to be stranded at home. I know the word “stranded” is a little dramatic, but I have church on Sunday, jury duty on Monday, teach at school on Tuesday, a field trip on Thursday, and he’s not coming back until Thursday or Friday. What am I supposed to do? He said he was sure he was being obedient and that God would work something out. He’d ask around to see if anyone had a car I could borrow while he’s gone. 4 days later, nobody has responded to the need.

God and I have been talking about this all week. It’s gone something like this:

Me: God, Is Benny out of his freaking mind? Did you really nudge him to do this? Did he hear you correctly? A little advanced warning so I could plan for this would have been nice.

God: Trust me. Everything will be fine.

Me: You do realize that I have a busy schedule, right?

God: Yes, I know your schedule better than you do.

Me: O.K. well, this will be a great story to tell, eventually. Can’t wait to see how it turns out. I’m glad we helped someone, but I’m trying not to be irritated that it’s going to inconvenience me all week. I think I need some help with my attitude about all of this.

God: Yes, you do. Don’t worry, it doesn’t help, and I have everything under control. You’ll see, I get the glory in the end.

Me being me, I formed a back up plan. Those of you who know me, are laughing at me right now. I know it. 😉 I called friends and worked out rides to and from school and church, and planned to borrow a car for jury duty, but was stumped when it came time to figure out the field trip. I called my friend Rae because I was supposed to take one of her kids with me to the field trip and told her I may not be able to since I wasn’t sure how I was going to get there myself. She said, “Well, we have an extra car if you need to borrow it while Benny is gone.” Problem solved. After 4 days of waiting and all of that back up planning, it took a 3 minute conversation with a friend and my need was met. I’m the one out of my freaking mind.

I still don’t know how this story ends. My problem for the next week is solved, and I feel better, but even after Benny comes home, we’re going to need another vehicle. God is my provider and even when He doesn’t clue me in ahead of time, I can be confident that something will happen. I just need an occasional reminder. Maybe God is nudging some other man out there…

~to be continued~