About the same time the next day our friend called us to say the van was fixed. He ended up replacing the fuel pump since it was clear that the engine was not getting gas. We arrived shortly after he called, paid for the work (at a discounted price graciously!) and headed on our way. We drove less than a mile from the shop and the van stalled again! With the whole family in the car I pulled the van to the side of the road, put the hazards on and walked the mile back to the shop to tell my friend what happened. Shocked by my arrival, our friend loaded in his tow-truck and towed us back to the shop again. We waited about a half hour while he checked a few things under the hood. Turns out the fuse to the fuel pump had blown. He replaced the fuse but it blew again almost immediately after he started the van. Partly embarrassed and feeling bad for our waiting at this point, our friend quickly rigged the fuse box with a special type of fuse attachment which required a lot more voltage to blow the fuse. This time, thankfully, we drove all the way back to my father-in-law’s house with no problems.
The next morning I was leaving to go back to NJ. Marci and the kids were staying behind and driving back to NJ with her mother a few days later. As I was about to leave town I stopped to get a coffee at Anderson’s bakery, shut the van off, got my coffee, returned to the van and, you guessed it, the van wouldn’t start. I couldn’t believe it. Since I had a deadline in getting to NJ I ended up trading vehicles with my mother-in-law so that I could leave. This also gave our friend a couple more days to actually fix the van this time.
Dumbfounded by the vehicle at this point, our friend brought it to another friend to see if he could accurately diagnose the problem. The problem, as it turns out, was not the fuel pump or the fuse or anything to do with the fuel system. The problem was a lot simpler than he realized. Turns out Ford installed an emergency fuel shut-off switch in the rear of the vehicle which was being engaged by the loose-jack bouncing around in the rear compartment. The jack was supposed to be secured so as not to bump into the switch but I never re-secured it the last time I used it. All we had to do was secure the jack and disengage the shut-off switch and all would have been fine. That would have been nice to know $300 prior!
So how is this experience spiritually significant? I believe the problems in our lives both personally, nationally and internationally are really a lot simpler than we initially imagine. We have many societal vehicles that are stalled on the side of the road right now. Our families are broken. Our government is in debt. Our schools are violent and chaotic (not all of course). Our personal lives are stressed and many times on the brink of a nervous breakdown. To “fix” these vehicles we employ many remedies: committees, counselors, credit card companies, the police. However, once we have exhausted all of our remedial agents we drive a mile down the street only to have those same vehicles stall again. During round 2 we replace fuses and hurriedly look for quick fixes to our heightened problems only to find that they work for a time, but stall soon again.
The fact is these societal vehicles will continue to stall until we discover that the real problem originates from an unsecured jack in the rear of the vehicle. Work hard as we may, the vehicle will continue to break down on us until that jack is secured again.
For many years America ran quite smoothly. In fact for many years America was like a brand new vehicle. She was the most admired vehicle in the world. America was the van everyone wanted an opportunity drive. But in recent decades the jack in the back of America has come loose. As a result many mechanics are being employed to “fix” the problem, but with only temporal success. They don’t yet see what the main problem is.
I believe the same is true of many families today. For many of you it may be that years ago your family ran like a brand new car. She was admired in the community, stable, financially sound, peaceful and communal. All family members seemed to know what was expected of them and honored and respected all others. But in recent decades the jack in the back of your family has come loose. Now you wonder if the family will survive to see another generation. Ever since your grandparents passed away it seems like everyone is rushing around trying to fix the problem but the van keeps stalling.
In the book of Jeremiah, Jeremiah the prophet said, “If at any time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be uprooted, torn down and destroyed, 8 and if that nation I warned repents of its evil, then I will relent and not inflict on it the disaster I had planned. 9 And if at another time I announce that a nation or kingdom is to be built up and planted, 10 and if it does evil in my sight and does not obey me, then I will reconsider the good I had intended to do for it” (Jer.18:7-10).
I believe one lesson from this passage is that the Lord, the God of Israel, the God who sent Jesus Christ is in control of the nations that rise and the nations that fall. The rise and fall, running and stall of all societal vehicles (families, governments, nations) are not happenstance; the Lord says He is in control of them. Since this is the case, He also gives conditions upon which those vehicles will remain running. They must “repent of [their] evil” (to repent means to turn 180°). They must “obey Me”.
In short, the loose jack in the back of the vehicle translates to sin and disobedience in our lives. When I allow sin and disobedience to enter my life I quickly detach the jack in my life. When I allow sin and disobedience in my life relationships begin to crumble. Families begin to deteriorate and divide. Communities begin to implode. Nations begin to invade.
Our American leaders today seem to believe that America is great because of her clever economics. They credit Capitalism. They credit our military might. They tell us that our national debt, high unemployment rate and ineffective school systems are the cause of our national stall and if we just fix them all will be fine again. I disagree. Those things are symptoms of the main problem, yes, but fixing those things will be equivalent to replacing the fuel pump in my van. They will help us run for a very short while, but be prepared to stall again.
When will we see that the reason America, our family and our community ran so good for so long was because for so long we were obedient to the Lord Jesus Christ? Or, in the BCC vocabulary, American ran so good for so long because America “built life around Jesus” for so long. The Lord, seeing our obedience, then blessed us with financial gain, peace and a just system of law. But ever since the American people considered alternative ways of life as preferable to the life of obedience to Jesus Christ, so have we seen our blessings float away. No matter how hard we try to fix the many problems in America, they will continue to recur until the jack of Jesus Christ is re-secured to His proper place.
So what about you? Is the jack of Jesus secure in your life? Are you being led by the Holy Spirit today? Are you stalled and dumbfounded how to get going again?
Let me encourage you to live out your faith today in every second. Slow down. Love your neighbors in their time of need because of Hurricane Irene. Intercede for your Mayor and councilmen in prayer. Be the example of Jesus in your family. Speak to your church leadership about getting out the in the community as a congregation and leading the way. Don’t be afraid to call evil evil. Refuse to believe that America, or your family for that matter, can never be what she once was. The Lord has reversed the curse of disobedience more times in the course of history than any of us can count. He can do it again!
I believe it’s time to re-secure the jack. Today I will do this by visiting the low-income neighborhood in our city to talk to residents about Jesus. I will also call some estranged church members to encourage them. What will you do today to resure the jack of Jesus in your life?
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