"Big Blue"

Revelation 21:5
And the one who was seated on the throne said, "See, I am making all things new." Also he said, "Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true."

As a rural pastor, he had no business owning a used Cadillac, except it was well known that the vehicle had high mileage and it was a respected member of the congregation that sold it to him at a bargain price.

It became the pastor’s preferred car for every trip---interstate, back road, or vacation. It was comfortable, and that was all there was to it. But the years passed and the Cadillac aged, and the odometer passed 200,000 miles. During their high school years, two sons drove Big Blue to school. It was not only a matter of owning one automobile outright, it was a matter of having a car that fender-benders could no longer harm. It was an insurance policy against sport car maniacs zipping around corners. This car could take a hit. And it did. Both bumpers showed the wear and tear of misjudgment. The long scratch down the side was never explained. But it was the faded peeling paint that embarrassed even the father of the boys.

The paint job cost a little more than $200.00, and for appearance’s sake, it was worth far more. Never mind that the vinyl roof was also flaking, and the scratch along the side could still be seen, and the bumpers were still crooked. The car looked better.

But time did its work, and the thought of a trade entered the owner’s mind. It was more than an insult when the new car dealer asked, “Has the car turned over to 100,000 miles?” Knowing that the law required disclosure, and that a statement would have to be signed, the pastor confessed, “Yes sir. Twice.” The dealer was polite, but the message was also brutally clear: “We’re sorry, we really don’t want your car.”

So he drove “Big Blue” back to the house and used it for three more years, mostly as a utility vehicle---short little trips, and he added a trailer hitch, so that dead trees on his property would be encouraged to fall in the right direction from a less than expert chain saw user. When the trunk was loaded with firewood, even otherwise non-expressive neighbors smiled at the sight.

On a dirt road on a fall day, the red light came on the dash, signaling that the car was overheating. This was it. Miles from home, water was found and added (though little seemed needed), and the hard decision was made---park it, or drive it.

But what was there to lose, really? The light had gone off, and the decision was made to go for the closest town. When arriving at the town, the light was still off, and the gamble to continue on seemed wise. It wasn’t until Big Blue ascended the long driveway of home that the red light came on again. There was a loving pat on the dash board, a drive to the back of the house, and a turning of the vehicle around for easy loading onto the tow truck in the morning. Big Blue was ready for scrap.

The rest of that day was spent in emptying out the car, taking the best wheels off, and replacing them with badly worn ones. The most significant matter was the removal of the hood ornament, the pride and joy insignia of a Cadillac owner. Not likely to ever own another Cadillac, the pastor has decided to mount this one on a piece of walnut.

A call was made to the junk yard, and the man asked what was wrong with the vehicle. The report was honest, which meant, admission that the “Hot” red light was coming on, that the air conditioner no longer worked, nor did the heater. The battery wouldn’t stay charged. The headliner was drooping on to the pastor’s bald head.

“Well,” said the junkyard man, “Sounds like a cracked head.”

The pastor wasn’t sure if the junk yard man could see his bald head over the phone, or if he were referring to the engine’s head, but then he heard him say, “The most I can give you is $150.00, but only after I see it, and only if you can get it here.”

That night a call from a campus from one of the pastor’s sons miraculously was initiated from the campus end of things. In the course of the conversation, Mom asked the question, “Guess what Dad’s going to do tomorrow?”

When “Junk the Cadillac” was heard, there was a passion aroused in this otherwise carefree student that sounded like commitment and passion!

“Dad! How can you? That’s my favorite car. Just park it in the woods, put a tarp over it. When I get a job, I’ll fix it. Besides, you don’t really know what’s wrong with it.”

For this son to have a job and fix a broken Cadillac, appeared to the dad to be as likely as the end of the world in his lifetime, but that night, he knew he really didn’t know what was wrong with Big Blue. What would it cost to find out?

The neighborhood garage was an honest place to ask questions like this, so, sheepishly, the next day, the car was driven down for a look. They said they couldn’t get to it for a few days, and that was fine, but it made the surprise even greater when the phone rang that afternoon, with the news that the car was ready.

“Ready?” asked the fearful pastor. “How much?”
“Forty eight dollar and thirty eight cents.”
“What was wrong?”
“The belts were frayed and loose. We replaced one. The other one needs it soon.”
“I can’t believe it,” said the pastor. “How did that make the car overheat?”

With a bit of forced patience in his voice, the mechanic answered, “Belts pull the water pump. No belt, no water circulation; no water circulation, no cooling.”

Amazed, the pastor went down to pick up the car, and there the mechanic grinned, “Those belts were bad. I’m surprised you had any air conditioning?”
“I didn’t,” confessed the pastor.
“Well, you will now. How about the heater, did it work?”
“No sir.”
“It will now. Couldn’t keep a battery charged, could you?”

Without making the pastor squirm even further, he volunteered, “You can keep it charged now.”

The ongoing dilemma for the pastor, to this day, has been the hood ornament. Those who know the story mostly think it should be reinstalled, as a matter of confidence in the car’s future, but it’s not.

There is no beauty left in Big Blue, except its comfort, its memory and its unfinished story. On the desk of the office, there is that constant reminder of renewal, not only for old worn out things, but especially for worn folk, never finished.

Lamentations 3:22-23
The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.