I was set up to take over my father-in-law's international oil additives business, Big M Products with the old Roadrunner on wheels logo. The business was in competition with STP and Casite.

I had a beautiful red headed wife that was converted after I had won her to the Lord. She was enrolled at the college where I had finished my first year.

I had been elected vice President of my Sophomore class in Bible College and was on the top honor roll list.

We had respect and were thought to be the model couple that many turned to in times of marital trouble.

We had three original rare paintings passed down to us from her side of the family, now valued at 1.5 million dollars.

My future looked bright. I was getting offers to speak from abroad and from every state in the USA.

I was in good health, considering I had received spinal injuries from knives in the back just years before. I wore a suit and tie everyday and carried my Bible every where I went, with my mind set on Jesus.

But that all changed after a turn of bad events, back to back. The business barely broke even and closed before I took it over. My wife decided she didn't want to be a preacher's wife, and more specifically...my wife, nor did she desire to continue her education in the small college we were attending.

And then that summer I caught my wife slipping around with a seventeen year old, having an affair. She left in our nice paid off car. Later, while I was preaching at the Louisiana State Camp Meeting, she came with some people and took everything we mutually owned, including our mutual fortune in paintings.

I was pressed to finish college and had to move from our on campus apartment next door to the college President into a small, shared dorm. I struggled with the challenge of college with a depression that got worse each day. I became an emptied shell and my wife was constantly on my mind. I couldn't shake her memory. And then I discovered our child she was unknowingly carrying was aborted and she had some of the bills sent to me as a slap in the face!

The thought of losing my son or daughter broke me. It broke me! It just simply broke me! On top of all this I was very weary from much study in a field of calling that I was not interested in completing anymore.

I started slipping around to Gilley's Club in South Houston. It was owned by that once famous singer, Mickey Gilley, where the movie Urban Cowboy was filmed. I would have just dropped out of college altogether, but dad had such high hopes and had spent so much money to insure my college bills stayed paid. I couldn't let him down, but I felt trapped in a life I no longer cared to have.

I became angry at God, so angry that I finally told Him to leave me alone. I meant it too. I stopped attending all church services. I told Him if He spoke to me again I was coming to meet Him by throwing myself in the path of a car.

I just went crazy, irrational and stupid as stupid has ever been. I was on my way to a bar when God starting dealing with me again. I turned the radio higher so the Rolling Stones could drown out His still small voice.

The car began to sputter and spit and soon I was out of gas and stuck on Houston's 610 loop; out of gas and out of will to live.

I pounded the roof and hood with my fist, making dents everywhere. I saw a walkway that stretched across the freeway and headed for it.

I was serious about throwing myself into traffic from that freeway crosswalk. I cursed as I walked, kicking cans and trash in my way. I cursed the trees; the wind; the moon; the cars; the trash; every cigarette butt and beer can I saw; and then I cursed God and called Him a liar!

"My life has come to nothing! I'm not helping anyone with my continuance! Damn everything! I want to die and go to Hell just to make you sad God!" I screamed.

I was silent for a moment after that. Thinking, "Man I've done it now!" And then I told God, "I suppose now that I've gone this far, I'm going to find out how big of a God you really are! I've called you a liar to your face. Now what are you going to do about it, huh?!"

By then I was on the railing, waiting for a huge fast paced truck. I was really tired of living. To prove to myself I meant it, I threw my wallet with all money and license far into the tall grass around the shoulder. I wanted no ID on me. I wanted people to wonder who I was. I wasn't anybody. I wanted to die a nobody. "Who cares?" I thought. I was consumed with self pity.

I raised a leg over the rail after seeing an ice cream truck approaching. "It's going to be a rocky road Lord cause I'm coming to meet ya.... AGAIN." I yelled. "Are there any last words you wanna say to me this side of eternity? If so you better say it now!" I yelled.

As I was enraged, about to jump, God knowing I was serious moved upon me and I heard the words:

"I can take your curses, but it is your lack of praise that disturbs me most."

Man was that an awesome thought at that moment! It stopped me in my tracks. I suddenly didn't want to die that way. His Spirit came upon me and I fell to my knees in repentive prayer and praise. I stayed that way for over two hours. When I tried to move my feet they were numb and weak. It took a while to get the feeling back in them.

Taking one step at a time, slowly I finally made it to the bottom of the crosswalk. I felt better after that time of repentance but I truly had no idea what I was going to do or how I was going to get back to campus...

As I reached the highway shoulder two large men in a beautiful Lincoln Continental pulled up, sitting straight and looking forward. Without seeing any effort from the one on the passenger side, the door suddenly swung open as if on it's own! I rubbed my teary eyes and took a double take. They looked at me with big smiles and the driver offered a ride.

The one on the passenger side moved to the back seat. I climbed in the front and thanked them for stopping. I made a comment about how nice the Continental was by saying, "This is a fine Continental ride! How much does one of these cost?" No answer came. The driver only nodded and said he knew where my stranded car was. That was all either of them said for the whole ride.

I asked if they played football. Their necks were as wide as my large thighs and their shoulders were super wide and thick. In size, the width of their palms could make two of mine.

They only smiled and nodded in silence and never answered any questions so I shut up. They brought me to my car, raised the front hood and did something, but I couldn't see what.

The driver said, "It will run now. Start it." It turned over immediately. I was thanking them when the other said, "Sir, you have need of this. You have no money," sticking a single bill in my top coat pocket.

The driver stated, "You need petroleum fuel. Go straight to a station." I was beginning to wonder. I had never heard anyone refer to gasoline as "petroleum fuel" in common speech.

I asked, "Where are you guys from anyway?" They never replied but again they just smiled and nodded. "Do you two know Jesus?" I asked, in a pitiful attempt to witness, thinking, "These men might not be saved?'

The driver answered, "Yes. We know Him well. We've just recently spoken with Him. Thank you for asking. You will be blessed because of it! Now go with God!"

I was encouraged as I glanced down at the instrument panel lights. The gage was still sitting on empty but the car was running fine. It then occurred to my thick head, "How did they know I was out of gas? They never looked at the gage and I never mentioned anything about being out of gas. I also had not said anything about not having any money.

It then came to me that the motor was in the back, not the front. I was driving a Volkswagon Beetle! "What were they doing if they weren't checking out the motor? They didn't put any gas in the car? Who are these guys?" I thought.

They climbed into their beautiful Lincoln which was parked behind me. As I was letting the motor warm up, I looked into my rear view mirror. There they were, still smiling at me.

I waved for them to head out first, then waited for them to pull out. I heard that Lincoln engine whine and as I quickly glanced in the mirror again only seconds later, the Lincoln was gone without pulling out on the one way highway!

I got chills and checked my pocket. They had given me a crisp one hundred dollar bill.

The next night found me at church. While I had my eyes closed in worship, a man in an expensive suit slipped something in my side suit pocket. I glance up at him. I had never seen him at church before. He walked away towards the altar at the front.

As his bodily presence passed by those sitting in the pew, the ones he was passing began to raise their hands with shouts of praise to God. Some moved out of their seats and proceeded forward to the altar for prayer. Others gathered and soon there was a crowd at the front. Some gathered for prayer and some for salvation. I quickly took what was given out of my pocket.

It was another crisp one hundred dollar bill.

I saw the man still in the middle of the crowd so I left my seat and approached to speak with him. As I was getting close to the man, others flooded the aisle in front of me and for a second I lost sight of him. In only that second he was nowhere to be found, and no one had left the gathering to leave through the only door of passage he could have exited from.

The members began singing Amazing Grace which was the song that had been sung when I first came to know the Lord. I bowed and buried my face in the carpet and wept as God's Spirit comforted my soul like spring waters rushing over me.

The next afternoon at college chapel, a minister spoke on the theme that one can not live afresh in Jesus with living on past blessings only.

"One must be renewed in Christ daily! and learn to discern the miracles happening around you everyday! The smile on a baby's face; the beauty in a sun rise; the salvation of a soul. Come what may, losses or not... gear up your mind to live for God and stop running on empty!" he said... in part.

And then I thought, "Oh so true!" as I my hand was resting on that second Ben Franklin in my suit pocket. I knew it had been given from the hand of an angel.

As the preacher concluded the message he said, "If you want to be blessed through hardships, try out giving what God has given you!"

I placed the hundred dollar bill in an offering envelope along with a check for $101.00 that I knew wasn't in the bank. I had spent the first Franklin on "petroleum fuel" and college bills, along with any other money I had. I was broke but far from broken. My soul had been restored!

I thanked God and whispered, "Lord. I hope you honor hot checks?" I just knew that the money would be there for the check to clear. And it did. A Bible college student came up to me from out of the blue before the check had gone through, and said:

"Brother Scott, I don't know why I was told to give you this odd amount, but Jesus let me know in prayer to write you a check for two hundred and two dollars!"

Have faith in God, and never, NEVER give up!

CONTINENTAL RIDE © Copyright 2003 ~ by Chaplain Scott.
All rights reserved to chaplainscott.com

Written Feb 6, 2003 5:20 AM CST --- Top