God and the little red sports car
It was a nice warm day in Guatemala and I needed to run an errand before going home after work. I had just stopped at a red light, and as I happened to glance up the car caught my eye. It was sitting on a new car lot, right on the corner nearest me. I was driving my five year old car, with the broken front seat. I hadn't been thinking of changing cars, I was content with the one I had. For some reason though I really liked that car. It was a small red sports car. I couldn't seem to get it out of my mind. I had no hope that it would ever be mine, but I did mention it to my husband. He had stated on several occasions that he would like a red sports car, so I thought that he might be interested in it for him.
Now let me say right here that my husband and I were in the middle of severe marital problems. He was very blatantly having an affair with someone who had at one time been my friend. The betrayal was very great and very painful. I had known about it for sometime and was feeling very unloved by him.
That night as I sat down to dinner I mentioned to him that I had seen the car, and gave him a description of it and told him where I had seen it.
He didn't say too much that night, but the next day he said that he had gone to see it and that they wanted a large sum of money for the car, and unfortunately he didn't feel like he could buy it at that time.
I said no more about it, but the image of the car stayed in my mind.
About two days later my husband came home saying that he had heard on the news that within thirty days the government was going to double the taxes on the cars. Since Guatemala imports all of it's automobiles the taxes are quite heavy on them and have to be paid at the time of the purchase. He concluded by saying, "so I guess if I am going to buy that car, I will need to do it now."
The next evening he drove home in the new car. He took each of the kids in it saying that this was his new car. Then he asked me if I would like to try it out. I answered "yes", and took it for a brief spin. I liked it a lot, but since he had said that it was his, I didn't want to get to enthralled with it. I did say, "Lord, if you wanted to you could give me this car, but I have my other car, and I am content with it. Thank you for it."
I returned the car to my husbands care.
The next night my husband and my younger son had dental appointments and the new car accompanied them. When they arrived home about two hours later, there was a big dent under the back window. My husband was very upset, he hadn't even gotten the car insured and it already had a dent which he was going to have to fix. He said that there had been a demonstration in the streets, in protest to the raise in bus fare, and that someone had thrown a big rock at his window.
The next day he sent the car to be fixed. Now, although my husband was not living as a Christian, there had been a time in his life when he had accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. Although he never said it, I know that he felt anything was bound to happen to him because of the things that he was doing.
The next day he was getting ready to leave in his new car, but at the last minute he said, "Let me take your car and you take mine, I don't have any insurance on it and something is bound to happen to me if I use it, but nothing will happen to you." With that he took my car keys and left his with me.
He quickly arranged for the insurance, but then felt that his workers would feel bad if they saw him driving a new car, so he continued to leave his car with me, and he drove mine.
My oldest son could hardly wait to get his hands on the car, so he would come asking, "Mom, can I drive your car?" I'd say "you need to ask your father." My husband would hear him ask and would say, "that car is not your mother's it is mine!"
This went on for a long time. I was getting more and more accustomed to the new car. It felt and looked so nice.
My husband's relationship with the other woman had reached a point that he would come home from work, get cleaned up and go out for the night. We had five cars at this time, that were used by different members of the family, and this woman had ridden at the side of my husband in all of them but mine.
One day, the car that my husband used was in the shop being repaired. He said "I am going to take the motor scooter to work, but then I will come home and get my car (meaning the red sports car) to go out in later.
I was so upset, but I didn't want him to see it. When he left for work I went in and threw myself on my knees before God, pouring out my heart. I told Him how bad I felt that my husband was going to take the car that He (God) had given to me, to go out with his girlfriend. I told Him how I felt that it would contaminate the car for them to run around in it, and reminded him of how I used the car for His work, taking people to the doctors or to church. I then asked Him not to let my husband take it. I went down stairs and I got a bottle of olive oil, I raised it to the Lord and asked Him to fill it up with His Holy Spirit. I then began to rub it on the roof of the car and on the dash board inside. I said, "Lord, let this oil be a point of contact for your Holy Spirit. If my husband takes the car, let him feel so uncomfortable that he won't be able to use it to do evil."
At the usual time, my husband returned home. He went upstairs and got all cleaned up. Then he came and asked me for the keys. Under my breath, I was praying hard.
He got into the car, asked me to open the garage door and he was gone.
I turned slowly back towards the house, I felt so sad, but I said, "well Lord, I had hoped that you would have stopped him, but you know what's best. Let your will be done."
I had not yet reached the door when my husband was back and calling to me " open the garage door". As I did he got out of the car, took the key and handed it to me and said, "I guess I'll take the motor scooter after all."
He never made any comment about that evening. From that day on when my kids would ask if they could drive his car, he would answer, "You'll have to ask your mother, it's her car."
The situation grew more difficult between us, and the day arrived when we made a legal separation. When the lawyer was going over what was to be his and what was to be mine he said, "The little red sports car is hers, I bought it for her."
I know that when my husband had purchased this car, he never intended it to be mine. I also know, that from the beginning the Lord had intended that it would be mine. No one was able to take it from me. When I decided to leave Guatemala to come to the States for a year, I sold the car to the leader of our women's prayer group. When she died, she left it as an inheritance for her son, who was still driving it proudly the last time I saw him.
I believe that God gave me that little red sports car as a token of His love for a child who had been rejected and hurt by her earthly husband.
The bible tells us that God is the husband to the abandoned wife. Many times in that very difficult period of my life, I saw His love poured out towards me in a very real way.
"Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that He may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you." 1Peter 5:6 (NIV)
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