Today’s Miracle Monday is a story of protection from Brother Tim Scolaro that puts an interesting perspective on life’s mishaps.

We were going home from Southwest Campout on a holiday weekend with the family in our minivan. We had been driving for over three hours through rural mountains and desert on two-lane highways. Along this drive, there are many stretches of road where you don’t see a building for over 30 minutes at a time. Also, we did not have cell phones with us. (There was no coverage in those remote areas even if we had.)

We were on the road between Show Low and Globe, Arizona, coming down the hill on the long incline that ends at the traffic light by the Taco Bell in Globe. I realized that the engine stopped running, and we were literally coasting down the hill with no power. I tried to start the engine to no avail. Since we were still out in the open desert, there was no place I could readily stop for help.

We continued coasting down the hill for quite some distance to a point where we approached the town, and there was a stop light at the bottom of the hill. Before we needed to stop, the light turned green, traffic cleared, and I was able to continue coasting to make a right turn onto the highway. As we began to slow, I looked for a place to stop safely and spotted a McDonald’s restaurant nearby, so I pulled into that parking lot.

I popped the hood and looked to see if there was any obvious problem, but I am not a mechanic and really did not know what to look for. We were still over an hour from home, and it being a holiday weekend in a small mining town far from any major city, I knew it would be a long wait for a tow, and there was no guarantee I could find a reliable and available mechanic.

Of course, we were praying for direction, and I walked over to the McDonald’s only to find Brother Ike Smith and part of his family there, also heading home. I explained the situation, and Brother Ike mentioned that he has some experience fixing cars. He came out, took a look at the engine, spotted a connection that had worked its way loose, and was able to fix it in a matter of seconds.

We were back on the road with less than a five-minute delay, and we praised God that He kept the van running until the exact moment when we would be at a spot where we could get the help we needed to continue on our way!

It seems normal to expect the unexpected in life, but God knows what we need and helps us to grow through these experiences. This incident was something that built our boys’ faith much more than if we had a trip home with no incident, so we thank God for what seemed to be a problem, but what He turned into a blessing.

Now if we can only realize that we should be thankful for whatever happens in life. “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” Romans 8:28

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This article has undergone ministry review and approval.