Monday Motivation: Christmas Miracle

Friends

Eric and I experienced some high-stakes drama a few weeks ago, and I decided I needed to write this story down and share it with you. It’s one of those moments when the power of prayer and the infinite grace of God collide, showering you with the absolute certainty that you’ve just witnessed a miracle!

 

+++

“I sought the Lord, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears.”

Psalm 34:4 – NIV

 

It was time to leave the campground, and the truck wouldn’t start. The pounding rainstorms from the night before had thankfully abated, leaving bright sunshine in their wake. Still, it was far from warm and pleasant. The temperature had dipped into the low 20s overnight, and the thermometer seemed stuck in place instead of climbing. 

 

Eric went outside to start his preparations for hitching-up, while I readied the inside of the camper for transit. Thankfully, the neighbor in the camper across from us was out and about when the truck failed to crank, and he graciously offered to give us a jump-start. Once the truck was running, we quickly moved through the hitching-up routine, but when Eric climbed back into the truck cab, he found the sliding center window in the back windshield open. We never open that window, and he hadn’t touched it, so how did it get open? Even worse, it didn’t seem to want to close, despite pressing the switch repeatedly. Did I mention it was freezing outside? 

 

“Maybe the electronics got messed up when the battery drained,” he offered. “I’m sorry, but maybe I can get it closed once the battery charges up fully.” With a shrug of resignation, we climbed into the chilly truck cab and started off on our two-hour journey to visit my folks for Christmas.

 

Things didn’t improve. Before we exited the campground, the back window closed all by itself. That was weird, but good. Yet, before I could even catch my next breath, the turn signal started making very strange noises. It sounded like it was going to blast off and take flight! As we turned onto the main road, the lights on the dashboard began to come and go. The back window opened by itself again, and then closed without a touch from Eric’s hand. We were on the main road now and wondering “What in the world is going on?” Suddenly, the horn started blaring, and it wouldn’t stop, despite Eric’s pounding fist. Did I mention that we had a 9000-pound camper in tow?

 

Eric pulled over to the side of the road, hoping to stop the incessant squeal of the horn. He jumped out, lifted the hood, but quickly realized he had no idea where to find the horn. Climbing back in, he decided to cut the engine in hopes of silencing the ear-piercing noise, but the truck wouldn’t turn off! He kept fiddling with the ignition to no avail. He pounded on the steering wheel in sheer frustration, and blessedly, the screeching horn suddenly stopped. Panic flooding his hazel eyes, Eric looked at me and said… Well, no, I won’t tell you what he said. You can guess.

 

My voice trembling, I said, “We need to find a Ford place.” 

 

He immediately concurred, his fingers flying over his phone screen in search of something close by. The Fort Mill Ford dealership was 26 minutes away. Setting the GPS, he put the truck in gear. 

 

Realizing it was Saturday, I stammered, “Maybe I better call and let them know we are coming?” He quickly agreed, and I directed Siri to call. 

 

Explaining our dire situation to the employee who answered the phone, I heard him hesitate and then call out, “Gary, I got a couple traveling through and they’re in trouble. Are you willing to stay?” 

 

“How far away are they?” I heard Gary say. 

 

I practically hurled the words, “26 minutes!” On pins and needles, I held my breath until I heard Gary, the diesel truck mechanic, call back, “Yeah, I’ll stay.”

 

Eric was gripping the steering wheel at 10-and-2, his knuckles blanched white, while the turn signal continued to go crazy and the dashboard flickered. Tow haul went off, then traction control, both making the camper behind us feel like a squirrel trying to squirm out of a cage. Eric just kept driving, eyes locked on the road, while I sat in the passenger seat, saying nothing, almost afraid to breathe  for fear the poltergeist that had enveloped our truck would get worse. Head down, hand cradling my forehead, I prayed. And I prayed. And I prayed some more. In fact, I didn’t stop praying the whole way, alternating between, “Lord, help us!” and “Lord, help us make it there!” with a few “Lord, PLEASE!” thrown in for good measure.

 

A wave of relief washed over us as we entered the dealership, receiving rushed directions to find a spot in the back parking lot to drop off the camper. The biting wind ripped through our jeans as we hurriedly unhitched, me praying all the while that the truck would cooperate for the process. Camper safely stowed, we headed back up to the service entrance.  Afraid to even try to turn off the truck, Eric left it running as we grabbed our backpacks and jumped out of the truck. Racing across the asphalt, we yanked. Open the double doors and launched ourselves into the service desk area. A flurry of words erupted from both our mouths at the same time. The bewildered service clerk bobbed her head back-and-forth between us, trying valiantly to take it all in.

 

Unbeknownst to us, Gary, the diesel mechanic, was sitting in the corner listening to our diatribe. He spoke up, “I’m your guy. I bet it’s the battery control module. That’s what it sounds like. Have you guys got a place to stay?” 

 

Dead silence, our shell-shocked eyes locked on his. Gary went on, “If that’s the issue, I will have to order the part on Monday. Maybe it will get here Tuesday, maybe. Christmas is on Wednesday, so it will be at least Thursday or Friday before I can get to working on it.”

 

If I hadn’t already been in a state of panic, I was now, as I contemplated spending Christmas stuck in Charlotte. My mind was spinning so fast that I barely heard the comments floating back-and-forth. 

 

“There’s a KOA campground just down the road,” the service clerk offered. 

 

I caught Eric responding, “Yeah, OK, but how are we going to get there?”

 

Gary must have seen the ashen look on my incredulous face, because he stopped the conversation with, “ Let’s just wait and see what we got. It could just be the battery, so let’s just let me take a look and see what’s going on.” With that, he climbed in the truck and headed for the service bay while the desk clerk Jessica ushered us to the waiting room.

 

Taking a seat, my previously quiet mouth started making up for lost time, launching into a series of “What if’s.” Eric silenced me with troubled eyes and a raised hand of caution. “Let’s just wait and see what they find. Then we can make a plan if we need to.” 

 

I stopped my external dialogue, and shifted to an internal conversation that began with “Please, Lord, please, let this work out!” 

 

We waited, and waited, and then waited some more. To our surprise, there was a full menu restaurant inside the dealership, and as we finished a much overdue lunch, Jessica and Gary walked up to our table. Dreading the news, we quickly stood up to join them. 

 

Gary launched in, “Well, it is the battery control module.” 

 

My heart sank. There goes Christmas. 

 

But he wasn’t finished. “You’re not going to believe this, but we have the part.” 

 

The words hit me like a Mack truck. Two joy-filled words flew from my mouth, “Praise God!” 

 

Jessica grinned and jumped in with, “Yeah, I couldn’t believe it when I pulled it up and the computer said we had the part.” 

 

Gary excitedly chimed in, “Yeah, I couldn’t believe it either when the computer said it. We both went down to the parts department to see for ourselves. No way could it be there.” 

 

“But it was!” Jessica interrupted. “We don’t know how, but we have the part.” 

 

Beaming with utter relief, I exclaimed, “Praise God! I know how. It’s divine intervention! I’ve been praying like crazy since this all started!” Their heads bobbed in agreement, both of them clearly relieved for us. I turned to Eric and exclaimed, “It’s our Christmas miracle!”

 

And it was. Settling back into our seats, Eric reached for my hand. Sighing deeply, he said, “I think maybe a prayer of thanks is in order.” That was my cue to lead us in prayer, and we bowed our heads in unison.

 

Gary had the truck repaired in another hour or so, following up  with us to offer a full report on the issues he found. With a huge smile, he wished us a “Merry Christmas!” He couldn’t have delivered a better gift.

 

The truck cranked right up, and after hitching up our camper, we set off to celebrate Christmas with my parents, both of us feeling overwhelmed, yet incredibly thankful. We had our Christmas miracle, and a story we won’t be forgetting anytime soon!

 

+++

“Jesus looked at them and said, “With man this is impossible, but not with God; all things are possible with God.””

Mark 10:27 – NIV

 

PRAYER

O Good and Gracious Lord, You are the Way-maker, the Miracle Worker, our ever-present Promis Keeper. You bring light to our darkness, protection in our moments of peril. Thank you for hearing our panicked prayers that day and intervening to bring forth a miracle. Lord, give us eyes to see how you are always working for our good. Teach us to continually seek You in prayer and trust You in all circumstances.

In the Trustworthy Name of Jesus, we pray,

Amen

 

New Year’s Blessings,

Anita

 

-APS 1/27/2025