The Master Mechanic

The hot sun, on that 91° day, was beating on his neck as he bent over the engine of his 1996 Ford pickup truck. Muttering to himself for the fifteenth time that day, “Ford, should have known they would make these parts impossible.”

He had gotten the part off by having to saw it off, as the old rusty bolt had seized itself. Then when the new part comes in the mail, it’s the wrong size by a needful 6 inches. Upon calling around, he finds that Ford doesn’t make the part anymore. So off to the junkyard he goes to take the part off of another vehicle. Between driving to another city to get a bolt and gulping water to stay hydrated, the man is all the time thinking of how to get this repair done. Done the right way.

Once the right part is secured  down with the right bolt, it is time for a test drive. And after all of that effort…the truck starts to do exactly what it was doing before all the parts were taken off and replaced. Discouragement setting in, he decides to pull in the nearest store and grab his favorite iced tea.

“Hey that’s a nice truck you’ve got there. ’96 isn’t it?” A man says to him as he’s getting back in his truck. The stranger walks over and comments how clean the old truck is and what a good looking truck it is. The stranger then says, “I used to work on these models all day long back in the day. I’m a Ford mechanic at the local Ford dealership.”

He can’t believe his ears! What fortune. So he decides to tell the stranger what work he has done and to no avail. The stranger leans his head into the engine and points to a small box and simply says, “These used to be made of metal back then, when it gets hot outside they collect condensation in them causing the valve to short out. Replace it with a newer plastic case found on most Fords and you won’t have the problem anymore.”

Sure enough the next day the box was replaced and the issue was resolved.

Isn’t God so much like that stranger? The Master Mechanic who can come along in the middle of our problems with a simple solution. He can see the little things that get overlooked as we are focusing on the big things. He is able to step in even when we are trying to fix our problems and He can make a way for us that we never imagined.

The ‘he’ in this story was my husband. I think it was so awesome and encouraging to see God send him someone who knew how to help him. God didn’t send a Chevy mechanic or a backyard mechanic. God sent my husband exactly what he needed when he needed it.

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