Beautiful Payson, Arizona...here we are...although it wasn't actually in our original plans to be here except for a quick stop in our journey towards Kansas.
"We so enjoyed having you this past Sunday at AJ First! Great services and I was so thrilled to see the responses from so many that either received Jesus or re-dedicated their lives to the Lord. We were blessed by the moving of the Holy Spirit and His prompting on people's hearts. It was awesome to work with you in coordinating all of our Prayer Partners and having them serve at the altar for the end of both services. I know from this experience, we need more Prayer Partners when you come back!
Thank you again for your ministry and for your service in God's Kingdom!
God Bless You as you travel!"
In Christ,
Pastor Diana Harris
Worship & Discipleship Pastor
AJ First Assembly of God
After the services, we quickly packed up the equipment, pulled the slides in on the motorhome, loaded the vehicle on the car trailer, grabbed a fast bite to eat and then headed up Highway 87 towards Payson. It was a beautiful day and we were savoring the last glimpse of the towering cacti stretched as far as the eye could see. We continued the climb up the mountain road towards our first stop which was only 79 miles away. The motorhome was purring along and I had just commented, "Honey, we are so blessed to be able to travel in this beautiful motorhome, running so smoothly and to be able to see the beautiful Arizona desert all in bloom before us."
Then...poof...the motorhome stopped on a steep mountain road. Thankfully there was a narrow shoulder on the side of the road so we could pull the coach off to the side of the road as it came to a halt. I saw a concerned look on Larry's face and I thought, "Oh no...not here! " But---that is where we were and that is where we were going to be a while.
In a couple minutes, Larry came back to me holding a long belt that had burnt off which runs the fan that cools the engine. Larry said, "I think I have a spare one in all my stuff under the motorhome." Sure enough, there was one. He put it back on. Relieved and happy, we set off again. About five minutes later, that belt flew off! We didn't have a spare this time. We were stalled. Now the sun was starting to set and we were parked on the narrow edge on the side of the mountain road.
We were seven miles out of Payson, AZ, so Larry called AAA and the closest tow truck that could handle us was in Mesa, AZ, which was 90 miles away. After all the paperwork and planning {five hours later}, the low boy tow truck arrived. It was pitch black out and the traffic was still racing by. The guy looked at the situation and came back to us saying, "This is just not going to work. It's too dangerous. We will have to try and cool your engine and get you to go a few feet at a time to Payson."
Thankfully, by this time, the outside temperatures had dropped from the high 80's to the mid-30's and we were able to inch the motorhome in 5 minute segments the last miles into town. We kind of chuckled to ourselves....the 70 mile trip we had originally planned took us about ten hours to complete. We literally coasted downhill into a big parking lot.
Larry was on the phone most of the night trying to figure out where we could get the necessary parts for the coach. Finally, we got parts ordered and they are going to be flown in from California. As I am writing this, we are still in the parking lot nearly three days later and we are praying for the part to be in …hoping it will be in at any time today {Wednesday}. Larry is, at this moment, under the motorhome getting things prepped so we can make a quick fix and get rolling once again. Prayerfully SOON we will be on the road and heading to Hugoton, KS, where we will be ministering Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
When all of this happened, Larry and I commented, "There are a couple of ways of looking at this. One is that the devil was mad that we invaded his territory on Sunday where God set so many prisoners free. Even though, attacked....WE WIN! Secondly, God could have spared us from something that would have happened down the road."
In all reality, this is not a life and death matter. It is just a major inconvenience. And frankly, after 48 years of living together on the road, you realize that there are going to be bumps in the road. They aren't fun when they happen and sometimes they happen more than you would like, but God is faithful to get us through.
We are looking forward to our weekend of ministry in Hugoton, Kansas, where we will be ministering:
April 12, Saturday, Memorial Hall
April 13, Sunday, Hugoton Baptist Church
***You can call 620-544-8796 or 515-682-0967 for more information and details.
If you are in the area, we hope you can join us. The following week, we will be in Hill City, KS, on Tuesday, April 15th, and on Easter Sunday we will be ministering in Osborne, KS. We will finally reach the home state of South Dakota with a service in Wagner, SD, the last Sunday of April.
May the Lord bless you and keep you!
Gloria
"All our difficulties are only platforms for the manifestations of His grace, power and love."
~Hudson Taylor
This made me think of the phrase..."When life gives you lemons...make lemonade!"
Lemonade Pie
1 small can frozen lemonade
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 small carton whipped topping
Line bottom of 8x8 inch pan with graham cracker crust or use a graham cracker pie crust. Mix frozen lemonade and sweetened condensed milk with mixer. Add whipped topping and fold in. Put on top of graham cracker crust. Chill or freeze.