Life on the Block—A Reminder from God
 

 Sometimes, I face an automobile mechanical problem that is so frustrating because I just can't figure out a solution.  I know a part of my frustration is my own pride. Others who have counted on me are surprised to hear that I can't fix something that seems on the surface to be just a simple problem.

Sometimes it is part that keeps breaking or an electrical problem that is elusive. Of course, we are all concerned about safety and about making our vehicles dependable. We hate the thought of hitting the starter button and hearing complete silence or fearing that our oversight or moment of brain fade will be will be reviewed in slow motion on TV and on video sharing web sites for the next few years.  

Recently, I faced one of these challenges on a car's electrical system. The car was due to go across the auction block at the Barrett-Jackson auction in Arizona and, as often seems to happen when you are going to sell a car, you can have a flurry of small issues as the moment of sale arrives. 

Being a natural worrier I began to fear what could happen. The worst case scenario would be the car would be sitting in line to go across the auction block, the electrical system goes on the blink, and the car does not start. Having to go home to my classic car friends and explain why they saw my 1956 BMW Isetta being pulled across the auction block on a tow rope would not be good. The unitized starter/generator on my car had always been a bit troublesome so I had gone out of my way to pull out the unit and have it gone over by a specialty shop to be sure the armature and coil windings were OK. Once the unit was back in the car all seemed OK, at least, for a while.

Just a few days before the car was scheduled to be trailered to Arizona for the auction, I had to drive the car about 2 miles to a nearby upholstery shop just to get some final trim work done.  The Isetta has very few gauges but it has a generator light which is the key thing I always glance at. If the light goes out as engine RPM goes up, then all is well. If it does not go out, then no charging is happening and it will only be a few engine starts before the starter motor will not be able to turn over the engine.

This had been working fine previously but I noticed on the 2 mile drive that the light was staying on the whole time - not a good sign.  My heart sunk. First off, my pride was showing.  Had I taken 4 years to restore this car and not been able to get a major system like the recharging system to work correctly? The next thought was a moral dilemma. Here I was supposedly a Christian trying to live a Godly life and I was going to knowingly sell someone a car that would start a few times and then refuse to start. I knew that deception was not an option so I started pulling apart the engine to get to the integrated starter assembly.

This unit is a bit mysterious, even to those of us who own and restore the cars.  This was why I had spent the several hundred dollars to have it refurbished and tested by a starter/generator shop.  As I began the process to disassemble the engine to get to the parts, my prayer was, "God, I have never understood these parts very well but please give me the wisdom to understand how this thing works and get it fixed."

James 1:5 "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." 

I removed the field coils from the engine and a volt ohm meter confirmed that the charging coils had no resistance. Somewhere in the windings a tiny wire was broken. I hauled the little unit to my kitchen table for a closer look and reattached the meter and much to my surprise, it had resistance. Somewhere between the garage and my kitchen table I had changed or touched something. It was obviously a loose surface connection I was dealing with.

A few minutes later I located a solder connection that had vibrated loose way down in a hidden cavity underneath the coils. It took another hour to cut and re-solder the wire connection and apply heat shrink over the joint - all down in the hidden area. The engine was reassembled and, hours later, came the moment of truth - the engine fired and the little red light went out, as expected.

I was rejoicing in the Lord that I had found the hidden problem and that God had indeed answered my prayer for wisdom. I was a bit overcome with thanksgiving and had to acknowledge that it was not my skill or cunning in finding the needle in the haystack, as I had been in this part of the unit many times before and never even seen that connection. In coming to the end of myself, and asking God for wisdom, He had answered my prayer. How many times in my lifetime have I done that and I have still not learned that lesson?                         

The car went to Arizona and across the auction block and now has its new home with a collector in Atlanta, Georgia. The final little gift from God happened on the auction block. As the auctioneer extolled that wonderful points of my car and tried to get the bidding started, I began to have a moment of near panic.   In a "No Reserve" auction, the car is sold no matter how low the bids are. I was exhausted from talking to hundreds of people about the car, going without sleep, and was now waiting to part with my 4 year long project.

In all the commotion of the bids going on and the bidder's assistants yelling and waving their arms, a gentleman standing in front of me turned around and with a twinkle in his eye remarked, "Hey I really like those RFC stickers on your car." I said, "Thanks" and knew that this was a further encouragement from God that He was with me and He was even sending me encouragement through the presence of this friendly stranger there on the platform. The gavel smashed down as the auctioneer yelled "Sold" and my little car drove away.

I was reminded that God promised He will always be there with us - even on the auction block of Barrett-Jackson or in my garage as I'm trying to figure out an elusive electrical problem.

Deuteronomy 31:8 "The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged."

Richard Lewis
Pathways Christian Church
Riverside, CA