Speechless

It's hard to know how to start this post. Actually, the whole thing is hard to put into words.

Where do I begin?

Let's just say we needed a car. Badly. (We've had a series of high mileage, older model vehicles. They've served us well at times, but they've also created many, many problems for us.)

In recent years, the vehicle frustrations just seemed to snowball. And finally both of our cars simply gave out on us. One was towed away a few days ago, the other sat in a parking lot awaiting some kind of decision as to what to do with it.

We have spent the last two weeks borrowing cars from people, and wondering what we would do next.

But that's not really where to start....

The story is really about a remarkable group of individuals.

And, I'm getting speechless again. I'm still having trouble expressing all of this.

Friday night, after our church's Christmas Celebration Concert (a great night, I'll post/link to pictures later), we hung around, basking in the evening. As a result of much prayer and inviting, our size was doubled when over three hundred people packed our building. The atmosphere overflowed with joy - pure joy.

About an hour after it ended, Bill and I opened the back door of the church - and a long line of people shouted "Merry Christmas!"

Two men walked up to us, and handed us each a set of keys. The people divided, revealing two shining vehicles facing each other, under the lights.

Vehicles with bows.

A gold-colored Kia Sportage. And a silver 2008 Honda Hybrid.

I'm having trouble even writing about this. It's two days later, and I don't believe it has sunken in yet.

Picture a group of happy, beaming friends, and two stunned, sort of dazed recipients.

No jumping. No shouting. No waving arms all around. Just slow walking, very quiet, complete and total 'speechlessness.'

There were embraces. Many, many embraces. Words of love, words of appreciation for us, and for our input into their lives, and their children's lives.

It was beyond anything I've ever seen or experienced. Over and over, these individuals were thanking us for what we mean to them, and sharing their joy at being able to do this.

And we were still in shock.

And then we were handed an envelope with money for a year of car insurance.

I know I cried at times, and hugged lots of dear friends. I hope I said thank you, but I don't know if I said anything. I remember saying 'this is too much' to a few, who just kept on beaming and smiling and laughing in the night.

Eventually my Dad led us all in prayer, and I know the tears flowed easily then.

It was after 3 a.m. before we got in bed. At 8:00 Saturday morning, we woke up, and Bill said to me in a kind of is-this-really-real-or-did-we-make-this-up wonder, "There are two cars in our driveway." He'd gone to the window at least three or four times in those five hours, just to make sure.


When our nearly twenty-two-year old daughter was still quite little, our church gave my Pastor-Dad a gift at Christmas, as they have since continued to do each year. (Bill had not yet joined the staff as Associate Pastor.)

It was a very generous sum, and it was all in cash. Maybe because it was 'cold, hard cash,' I felt uncomfortable with the way my Dad had begun to put it on the dining room table, and to let Bethany have fun counting it. Dad saw my hesitation, and said something I'll never forget.

He told me, "She's going to see and hear many things as she grows up, of difficulties associated with the pastorate. She needs to also know when people express their love."


Already, the testimony of this over-the-top generous gift from a small band of Christian friends has touched those who have heard about it. And so, I share it here.

I share it for those who need to be encouraged in what Christian love looks like, and acts like. These people gave sacrificially, out of their love and their desire to meet our need (and on into meeting our desires...we had not bought a new car in nearly 27 years of marriage).

Lots of people in ministry can tell about the hardships. I know I can. We've been there, more times than I care to describe. I know the climate in the valley.

But I choose to focus on what it's like when God uses His followers to create a little piece of heaven-on-earth, when He enables us to serve - with joy, and empowers others to give - with love. And when together we are knit as one, as a family, for Him.

It's a beautiful, beautiful thing - and I don't think we'll get over it for a long, long time.