Bambi Blessings

    It was starting to show signs of wear, anyway.  I had been putting in more gas, it was using oil, I heard creaks & bumps when I would turn the wheel, & the headlights were so oxidized that driving at night in the rain was a nightmare.  But seeing a time in the future to actually push/pull/drag it in for a trade was no where to be seen on the radar.  There was no "good" time for this to happen anyway, much less on a weekend I was planning on driving 84 miles to my former church to "fill the pulpit".  It's bad enough that my M-F 62-mile round trip to & from work includes traveling on a major US thoroughfare that's littered with impatient drivers traveling from Harrisburg to State College & semi-trucks that are trying to beat a deadline.  It's also a drive that one must be on the lookout for an occasional boulder that loosens from an embankment & rolls into the road.  But then you add in all of the deer who have no concept of traffic--especially when on the move from hunters during their mating season--and you have all the makings of a disaster-in-waiting.

    Folks who meet me going to work at 4:40 in the morning must scratch their head at what I'm doing as I drive along the highway, occasionally flashing my headlights as if to signal that a whole division of state police are behind me in a covert speed trap.  But I've had 3 other close encounters with Bambi to know that even if I don't see any deer, I flash my headlights anyway, as I pass grassy meadows, just in case any were even considering making a run for the highway.
    Such was the case on a Friday morning--the day after my birthday--as I was eastbound & down on the US highway over the mountain range that separates work from home.  Coming around a curve that cut through a section of the mountainside as I approached the mountain summit, my oxidized headlights revealed Bambi with her brother, sister, cousin, & neighbor, all crossing the highway stretched across the 2 eastbound lanes in a clear section of the expressway.  I had just enough time to slam on my brakes & slide into her, feeling that familiar jolt from the impact crumpling another hood & hearing the clattering sound of another headlight being pulverized.  After coming to a full stop, my one lone oxidized headlight dimly illuminated ahead as the rest of the hiking party bolted for the woods.    The car still was running, the airbags had remained in place, & there was no unsettling noises.  So, with only 13 more miles to go, I continued on to work just as I had done in all the other times Bambi & I had encountered each other.
    When I shut the car off at work, I heard no noises nor saw any steam coming from the buckled front-end, & with time pressing for me to start to work, I figured I would survey the damage when I had more time & more daylight.  Not surprising though, the rest of the day went by like a slow-moving mudslide.  This made the 3rd car I had gone through over the course of my 6 years at this job, as if they made cars that were disposable.  And this was a car that was only able to be covered by liability insurance because of its age.  Adding insult to injury, we had dumped more money than we had paid for the car for repairs & inspections...some we were still paying off.  I couldn't afford to pay out of pocket for damage that would, no doubt, be more than the $1,500 we paid for the car, couldn't afford another car loan, &  couldn't afford to quit my job because I had no car.
    We had already been getting NSF notices from the bank account I was using to buy gas for the car so this would just be the final weight that would sink us financially.  All I could do was to sit, feeling as if I were on a stranded boat being buffeted by an ocean that was on the brink of becoming a typhoon.  All I had left was to just tell God that I was completely dependent on whatever He chose to bring my way.  I had run out of options.
    All I could think to do was to put out a request for prayer on my church's list-serv & on some social networks & let time take its course.  After I finished work, I went out to see if the car would start & saw fluid leaking underneath the deer damage.  The car started, however, in spite of everything & I was able to drive it home without any change in the engine temperature.  As I neared my house, though, I did notice a whisper of steam wafting from the buckled hood.  But I was able to get it parked in the garage & could breathe a sigh of relief.  But the pressing concern on the back of my mind was how I was going to get back to work on Monday.
    My wife was home on a sick day so that was the next hurdle.  She often has said that "if it's going to happen to anyone, it's gonna happen to me."  It was if she goes through life expecting the worst.  Ironically, it was just a day earlier I had told her of a "near-deer-miss" & she remarked to me then that if I hit a deer with my car, "we are screwed".  As a faithful husband, I fulfilled her expectations.
    As I anticipated her reaction, I also realized this could drive a stake through plans already put in motion for my annual trip back to AR for my family's Thanksgiving reunion.  I had not missed a single one of these since I was 6 weeks old.  And I had taken my boys to every one since their birth.  I had been helping to organize the plans for this year's reunion & had been promised with some financial help from my cousin in AL to pay for some of the expenses in getting some of the material needed for our 51st year of this tradition.
    Once the shock set in with my wife, we surrounded ourselves in commiseration & began to piece together our options.  I made a couple of calls to folks in my church who may be able to keep an eye out for a replacement car & we decided to follow through with a decision we had already discussed earlier in the year to cash in a life insurance policy that had been started by my dad years ago which had begun paying dividends.  We had held off on it to see how our debt payments would be coming along with my wife recently starting a new church job that paid a bit more money.  My salary at work was cut 20% almost 3 years ago because of the weak economy, in a blatant breech of contract by my employers, so our finances had already been slowly bleeding away.  An emergency of any size would put us on financial life support.  Thus was the case here & my wife dropped the bomb that we would have to re-think the Thanksgiving reunion, too, which was met by a lot of disappointment by not just me but the boys, too, when we told them what happened.  If I had to miss our reunion, there would be very little thanksgiving flowing this year.  When we received the promised check from my AL cousin we saw a note that was placed inside that said the money was for us to use any way we needed...even if it were not for the reunion.  This was an encouraging sign, but I thought what use would it be if I wasn't going to the reunion in the first place?
    I decided to check messages on the social networks that I may have received based on the news I sent out about the deer hit.  I found that a family I had met almost when I moved to PA from AR had posted that they had a couple of cars they were trying to sell.  This family used to go to my former church (in fact, were part of the original founding members) & I know that they had gone through a lot of trials in their lives but endured through them in spite of the circumstances.  I told them I was to be in town that weekend to bring a message to our old church & would be able to stop by & look at the car to take it for a test drive.  They said that they had not even planned to post a comment online about having a car because they at first thought I wouldn't be interested.
    Next my wife & I decided to rent a car for a few days with a credit card that we had been desperately  trying to pay off.  I did need a vehicle to travel to my former church & my wife had to use our other car for her job on Sunday.  Of course, during all this spontaneous planning, our family dynamic began to  suffer as it took hits from our stress levels that were maxing out in the red.  Any reaction to irritations by our 2 boys would cause us to snap at them.  My wife & I had planned to take the boys to a autumn fest that was being held at a local church, so we dropped them off there & then the 2 of us went to grab a quick bite at our local Chick-Fil-A.
    We hadn't planned to be at the restaurant that long.  We can't always afford to eat out, but when we can, we like Chick-Fil-A because of their Christian business structure & their mission to view every customer with the mindset that every person has a story.  As we started our meal, the franchise owner stopped to ask how we were doing.  We jokingly told him of our deer hit & he winced at the heartache he knew we were going through.  Our conversation then turned to how we had been encouraged by Chick-Fil-A's steadfastness in keeping a Godly business structure going successfully.  As the owner told us of how he had faithfully sought God in his desire to build a franchise in town, despite the decade-long struggle in getting funding & wading through the mire of all the regulations that was characteristic of starting a business in the State College area, God began to speak to me through this businessman's story.  He quietly reassured me that no matter the struggles that come our way--from starting a business to replacing a work car with no budget to do so--He is still in control.  Unbeknownst to this restaurant owner, we had a story of our own that he did not even know about.
    I left Chick-Fil-A feeling encouraged as if God had given my spirit and my appetite much needed nourishment.  We picked up the kids & headed for home ending a day better than it started.  But there was more to come before the end of the weekend.  When we got home, I found I had received an email from a friend who had attended my former church but who moved away.  I hear from her frequently when she has questions about the Bible & always consults with me for answers.
    My friend's husband had passed on & now she travels around performing all sorts of ministry.  She was asking me another question about the Bible regarding prosperity being promised for those who love the Lord & follow His commands.  Does this mean that we prosper financially or spiritually or both?  Ironically, this came on the very day of the deer hit, so I replied to her that I didn't feel very prosperous at the moment.  I shared with her what had happened with my car & went on to explain that prosperity is not limited to a financial result but could be spiritual as well.  She later called me to find out more about my deer hit & encouraged me to not let this crisis stand in the way of serving the Lord.  She emphatically said she would be praying for us through all this.
    As we headed out to pick up a rental car on Saturday--a home Penn State football game in "Happy Valley"--we also got involved in a surprise Fall snowstorm that was churning up through the Northeast.  We managed to pick up the rental with minutes to spare before the place closed at noon & then we slipped our way back to the house in the blizzard.  We at least had a car so I could take the boys with me to my former church to bring a Sunday message.
    In asking for prayer support from friend, I also contacted those who I volunteer with that run a non-commercial Christian radio station.  They indicated that if I decided on buying this car, I could ride with them to pick it up.  Turns out, they had to be in the town where the car is located in order to do some work on a new radio transmitter.  So now I have hopes of replacing a car & possible means of going after it.
    The topic I had settled on for the Sunday message at my former church was to be called, "Why Do Good Things Happen To Bad People".  It was from a Bible study by a pastor of a large Baptist church in Memphis, the late Dr. Adrian Rogers.  I picked it out from some of the Bible studies I had previously given at the weekly prison ministry at the county jail.  This message would not just be for my former church family...but for me, too.  One of the main points in the lesson was that there are many bad or tragic things in our lives that God does not rule over but where He does not rule, He OVER-rules. My oldest boy would also play his trumpet for the service & we were then invited to dinner by a long-time friend who also used to attend there, once the services were over.  The church also surprised us with a $50 honorarium for my "pulpit supply".
    The Lord did use the message to encourage me & my former church members & I finished feeling like things were picking up.  I had told my friend that before we went for dinner, we would need to stop by to see the car I was planning on buying   We spent some time catching up with the family selling the car, both me & my friend took the car out on the road & were both satisfied with how it ran.  After making plans on when to pick up the car, we headed off for dinner.
    My Friend & I spent several hours catching up on things & enjoying a hefty dinner with his wife.  The boys got to take in several hours of the Cartoon Network as we enjoyed each others' company.  By late afternoon, we needed to make our way home, so I packed the kids in the rental car headed out the door.  My friend walked me to the car & as he shook my hand, slipped a wad of cash to me & said he also wanted to help in this time of need.  I, of course, told him he didn't need to, but he disagreed.  As we were driving eastward back home along the freeway, I examined the wad & counted out $160 in disbelief.  He really didn't have to do that.
    After arriving home, I gave my wife what the church gave me & then the wad I got from my friend.  She was dumbstruck by this sudden blessing & sat there just shaking here head, also in disbelief.  I went to bed thinking of just how many prayers were said for us over this incident since I first started telling folks about it.
    Monday I had my trepidations taking a rental car to work with Bambi lurking in the woods.  But I made it to work & back & only saw Bambi once, peeking off the roadside as I drove by blinking my lights.  Coming home after work, I checked the mail & saw an envelope from my friend who keeps me brushed up on my Bible knowledge.  Inside, I found check & a note saying this was a gift that God will hopefully multiply.  I shook my head in amazement at how God had manifested Himself in so many ways since Bambi & I first "connected".
    Since it was Halloween, I went around with the boys as they "trick-or-treated" through the neighborhood.  After we got home & sorted out the candy, we began getting them ready for bed.  Both were still pretty anxious about possibly not getting to spend Thanksgiving with their cousins this year.  They told me they were going to ask God to make it possible.
    The phone rang for me as I was keeping the kids on the bedtime track & was told it was my cousin from AL calling.  He had been reading about the progress of how the deer hit had jeopardized our trip to our reunion & wanted to do something to help.  He asked how much costs were involved for fuel for the trip.  I told him what I typically would spend for the 3,000+ mile trip.  He said I should not have to worry about being able to make it to our family reunion because he would pick up the tab.  I guess the gift from my friend that I got in the mail that afternoon really did multiply.
    As I waited to find out when I need to meet my friends who will be taking me to pick up the car, I reflected on the blessings that have come as a result of Bambi, who began a series of events that was used by God to remind me that in the end, it's all His to start with ...and ultimately it is He who still has everything under control.
    I picked up the car & drove it home on I-80...which must have had every tractor-trailer in the entire state of PA traveling on it that day.  Since it was a Wednesday, my wife had to be at choir practice & my oldest son was wanting to make it to a youth group he has been attending.  So, coming straight from St. Marys, I met my wife at a McDonald's that was at the I-80 exit that I get off to go to our house & had the kids swap cars.
    As I headed to drop off my son at his youth group, traveling through State College, the brakes on the car started going soft & the brake light came on.  By the time I dropped my son off, I had no brakes at all.  Since there were no garages I knew that were open after 7pm, I opted to stop at Pep Boys to see what was the problem.  I called my friend who sold me the car, who was mortified at hearing the news.  He offered to buy back the car but I wanted to first diagnose the trouble.  Pep Boys found that the entire brake line was rusted & was saying it would be an 8 hr. job, costing at least $1,000.
    Hello, God?  This is NOT funny.
    I had to lose a day of work the next day & started at 7am looking for someone to do brake work quick, effective, & cheap.  My friend offered to let us pay for the repairs out of what was owed them & send them the difference.  My friend at the Christian radio station gave me a few garages to call, most however most told me that they could take the car the next day or the next week.  One garage in town said they could take it that day.  We opted on this even though they did not take credit cards (which is our safety net in emergencies).  We could, however, pay for the work using a local check against our line of credit.  It only took 6 hours to replace the brake line with corrosive-resistant brake line & we were only charged $303, saving our friends from losing over $700 off their price of the car (no thanks to Pep Boys--which I do NOT recommend to anyone for any reason!).
    With the car repaired, we received word that our insurance settlement would be in the mail this week so we could pay the car off with our friends & get some other debt paid.  We spent the weekend enjoying 2 drama-free days & telling folks in our family & our church of how God provides.  We resumed planning for our trip to my family's Thanksgiving reunion with my oldest son practicing on his trumpet to play my dad's favorite song, His Eye Is On The Sparrow.  I thought what an appropriate song to play that attests to the over-ruling power of God!  And, God has continued to provide through my family.  Today when checking the mail, another letter came from another cousin who has felt led to send us money to help pay for our trip to my reunion!
    November typically is associated with the Thanksgiving turkey, but this year our Thanksgiving will be symbolized by Bambi.  It was because of Bambi we experienced a minor catastrophe which ushered in a major wave of blessings.  We, indeed, have much to be thankful for:  A car, a job, wonderful friends, a supportive church family, an invaluable family, & an amazing God.
    To God be the Glory!  GREAT things HE has done!