From Glory to Glory--the Story of a Tire

Once upon a time in a land far away--well, actually, it was the country south of the United States' border, Mexico--a missionary was driving his van to the city to which he felt called. Suddenly a noise that did not bode well was heard. Sure enough, the subsequent lob, lob, lob noises and listing to one side gave proof that the missionary had indeed met his Waterloo--the dreaded flat on the highway.

Now, this was no run-of-the-mill busy highway. Everything around it was totally desolate. No houses, no businesses, and definitely no service stations for miles and miles and miles. Its saving grace? Although it had no shoulder, the barren expanse of sandy soil that bordered it allowed for the van to list to a semi-upright stop.

Out exited the missionary's wife, his wife's grandmother, and his toddler son. They were, unfortunately, of no earthly use to him in this crisis, so the missionary girded himself like a man and began to change the tire. Also unfortunately, the listing to the side and the sandy soil were a recipe for failure. In frustration, the missionary threw his implements to the ground. How was he going to get this tire changed?

Angry exasperation emanated from him in waves that sent Grandma walking away from the van's resting place in order to get the toddler out of his way. The man's wife simply wrung her hands and prayed silently.

Suddenly, from over the hill they had come from, came a Mexican peasant on a donkey. "Oh good," thought the wife. "A man! Maybe he can help my husband!" Then came the niggling thought. "But a man on a donkey obviously from an isolated ranch? What will he know about tires?" Turns out, the donkey man knew a lot about tires.

Kneeling down next to the missionary, he said, "Why don't we try this?" And in two shakes of a lamb's tail the man on the donkey had that tire changed. The missionary tried to give him some money, but donkey man graciously refused it. He had been glad to help. Then he got on his donkey and trotted away. He crested the hill in front of them, but when they got in the van and should have caught up with him and passed him, donkey man was nowhere to be seen. To this day the missionary's wife (that would be me) can't help but wonder if that man was an angel in disguise sent by God to help His children in distress. We might never know.

What we do know is that some eighteen years later the scene was repeated, this time in the barren plains of Texas as the missionary and his wife drove to a west-Texas town to fellowship with a fellow missionary. This time no man on a donkey appeared, but the missionary was able to change the tire for the spare by himself (no angel needed!). What was different was the missionary's attitude. The first tire episode was riddled with frustrated anger. The second time around, there was (can you believe it?) nothing but peace.

Although the missionary was able to change the tire by himself, the same potential for frustration simmered beneath the surface of the situation. Our car was foreign made, a sedan more suited for the city than the ranch country we traveled in (as attested to by the truck upon truck that we passed at every turn). Yet this time around, the potential for disaster bred no anger.

We reached the next small town which boasted only one tire shop. And in that one shop in the middle of nowhere there was one (one!) tire that would fit the foreign-made car we drove.

The missionary praised God. It felt like a miracle. But the real miracle, I thought, was the transformation of a man who let anger erupt when frustrated at situations (I must add that I am eternally grateful that he never exploded in anger with me or the children, only at frustrating state of affairs) to a man who could not be moved no matter the situation. Same man, same potentially frustrating situation, but totally different attitude. Now he lived, breathed, and emanated the tangible peace of God at every step .

How did this happen? I said it was a miracle, but it really wasn't. It was the wonderful transformation available to every child of God who yields their life to Him. You do not have to be chained to the negative characteristics that have defined you in the past. Although Jesus washes away our sins when we come to Him, the old man in us needs to be renewed, that is, our thoughts, our desires, our emotions. As we seek God, spend time with Him in His Word, spend time talking to Him, spend time worshiping Him at home and in His house, something beautiful happens. Our mind changes. Our desires change. Our emotions change. Little by little, we begin to reflect the image of our Creator.

I have been so, so blessed to witness this and other such transformations in so many of God's children. My heart's cry is, "Lord, change me as I have seen these Your children changed! Help me be like Jesus!"

"I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God" (Romans 12:1-2).

"But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord" (2 Corinthians 3:18).