Tuesday, January 11

A reason for everything

Over and over I get to hear various stories from my dad about his days in the navy. One frequent story is about how part of the carrier he was on got flooded and they had to take all the motors apart, clean out all the insides, and rewind some of the motors to make them work again.

I had no idea these stories would be useful, until a couple of weeks ago when we got a severe storm. Thanks to the new golf course next door, we ended up with a river running through our yard, part of which decided to vere off and run into the mechanical room under the workshop. When I finally noticed what was happening, everything was already submerged, and I had about 4,000 gallons of water to get rid of.

Of course the rest of the town wasn't much better off. Several parts of town were completely inaccessable due to roadways being replaced by lakes. We passed several cars stuck on the side of the road (where they had attempted to turn around), and country crews were out trying to build-up areas that were washing away due to runnoff. Luckily we were able to get a the rental store for a gasoline powered pump, and get back, so we were ready to go.

After moving the water, I set about taking the pump motor apart, which was an adventure in itself, rinced it off and let it dry overnight, and after reassembly the next day, it started right up.

Through this and other subsequent ordeals, I've learned to rely on others for help, which is not something I usually do. I've also been thinking that if I can get through these trials with a little help, can I then help others with their troubles and show them they are capable of handling life's challenges.

God promised never to put us in any situation we couldn't handle; but he didn't necesarily say we could handle everything by ourselves.