A Trucker's Miracle
How God Answered My Prayer on the Highway
When I was a boy, my father had a truck-driving business. He passed away when I was 17, so I took over his business, hauling fruit across the state of Texas. I also trucked Christmas trees out of New Mexico and peaches out of Colorado.
In the middle of the night on a 500-mile trip, I was driving into Caprock, Texas, when the engine stopped running. It quit right in the middle of the freeway. I didn't know what to do. I tried to maneuver the truck off to the side of the road, but I was going up a hill, so I couldn't go very far. The truck came to a slow stop.
I sat there for a minute and remembered that I'd started straight-shift cars by rolling them down hills and popping the clutch. Maybe that would work for the truck. I let the truck roll backward down the hill and let off the clutch, but nothing happened. The truck had no power. (Later, I discovered a short in a wire.)
No matter what I tried, it wasn't going an inch. I made a big mistake by rolling it backward. When I did, the trailer swerved out into the traffic and crossed both lanes of the highway! My truck had jackknifed. I got out and peered at my predicament: I was stuck across the highway, in the middle of the night, with no lights, no power, and no flares to warn oncoming traffic that my truck and trailer were sprawled across two lanes of traffic. Fortunately, there wasn't much traffic out in West Texas.
I was only 17 years old and as far away from God as I could be. I knew about God, but I didn't have a relationship with Him. While I was growing up, my Mom had a drug problem—she drug me to church every Sunday. (smile)
Like Samuel, I'd grown up in the house of God, but I knew Him only from a distance. As I sat in the truck that night, I began to pray because I needed God's help. I whispered a simple prayer: "Jesus, save me."
I can't explain it, but after three or four minutes of having a truck jackknifed in the middle of the freeway, something miraculous happened: The engine started up! I pulled it off the side of the road, and then it died again. That night, I realized God had heard my prayer.
But, you may ask, how could God hear the prayer of someone who wasn't born again? I believe He does. Two things helped me out that night:
Many people had been praying for me. In fact, if it weren't for my mom and my family members praying for me, I wouldn't be where I am today. I've ridden on their prayers.
I sensed the incredible love that God has for each of us.
God shows His love to people even before they trust in Him. Theologians call it "prevenient grace"—the grace that comes before we're saved. Even when I was sinning, God helped me get a jackknifed truck out of the road. His answer to my prayer kept me from killing myself and other people that night.
Too often, we focus our attention on our needs, our plans, and our goals, and we hope God will make us happy and successful. Being self-absorbed isn't a life of genuine faith. It's not about us at all.
God's grace reaches into the lives of the hurting, the needy, and the broken, and He delights in revealing Himself to them. It's not called "amazing grace" for nothing. It's extraordinary!"
Take-aweays:
God's love and grace can reach us in our darkest moments, even before we have a personal relationship with Him.
The prayers of others can have a profound impact on our lives.
A life of genuine faith is about recognizing God's extraordinary grace and love, which reach out to the hurting, the needy, and the broken, and delighting in His presence in our lives.
Thank you for reading!
Excerpted from my book, The God Nudge: Learning To Flow In The Supernatural. (Check out the new cover at the link above. Smile.)