Chapter 49 - A Tribute to Our Dentist

“A man that hath friends must shew himself

friendly:…”

—Proverbs 18:24

The first time we met Dr. Dixon—I always

called him Doc—and his wife, Jane, was at a
church in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. A tall man like
me, he was new to the church, and so were we. Doc
and his wife were a very wonderful couple with
children, and we became friends. They were ordinary
Christians who loved the Lord, and though he
was a dentist, he treated us missionaries as equals.
They were always good to us and often invited us to
their home for food and great fellowship. His wife,
was a great cook and put quite a spread on the table.
    We went soul winning as often as possible; I
remember the first soul that he won to the Lord. As
we visited a home, Doc presented the gospel, and
the person responded by accepting Christ. What a
glorious night that was for us!
    He also took me to his favorite fishing spots, and
we usually caught some fish. At one pond something
hit my line and pulled us and the boat all around
until we finally cut the line. Doc thought it was a
turtle, but I still think it was the biggest fish that
ever hit my line. If I had been a good swimmer, I
would have dived in and pulled out “the big one that
got away.”
    Like most people, I dreaded going to the dentist,
but when you have a toothache, a dentist is a godsend.
I had a tooth that was hurting, I called Doc,
and he told me to come right over. I entered his
office as nervous as a rat with a cat bearing down on
it. He looked at the tooth and rendered the verdict;
it had to come out. I gave my permission for the
procedure, and Doc procured a needle that looked
as thick as a cigar and seemed to be a yard long. He
assured me it would not hurt a bit, but I thought,
“He’s not the one that he’s poking that needle into.”
To my surprise, it did not hurt.
    Doc said, “Let’s give it a little time to numb, and
I’ll be right back.” Then he waited on other patients.
In a few minutes (which seemed like an hour), He
returned and picked up a pair of big pliers. In a few
seconds, the tooth was out. I felt nothing and was
very thankful that the dreaded ordeal was over. Now
it was time for the painful part, the bill.
    I walked up to the cashier with Doc behind me.
I almost fainted when he said, “There is no charge,
since this is mission work.” What a blessing! I had
feared this expense would break my bank account. I
thanked Doc profusely, and from that point in 1990
until now, Doc has never charged us for his services.
Praise the Lord for this family and the blessing of
their friendship all these years!

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 48 - Tacos and a Soul for Christ

“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life:

and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life;
but the wrath of God abideth on him.”

—John 3:36

As usual on Sunday morning in Orange Walk

Town, I made our rounds to pick up everyone
who needed a ride to church. Then I stopped at the
taco stand to get a snack for everyone before the
service. I was talking to the four female workers at
the stand about Hell and explaining who was going
there. All four said they were on their way to Hell.
I explained to them they did not have to go to Hell
because Jesus had died on the cross for their sins.
If they would repent of their sins; believe in the death,
burial, and resurrection of Jesus; and open their
hearts to Him; they could become a Christians and
go to Heaven when they died. The four looked at me
as if I were crazy. Then a woman sitting at a table
outside the taco stand asked me the location of our
church. I said it was right up the road on the right
and invited her to the morning service. She told me
her name was Karen; I gave her a gospel tract as I
paid for our tacos and headed to church.
    While we were enjoying our tacos in the fellowship
hall, Karen walked in and sat down, much to
my surprise. When we invite someone to church,
they usually do not come right away, if at all, but
Karen was different. We finished our tacos, sang
some songs, and prayed. Then I asked Alyssa to
share her testimony of what had just happened to
her. What a great testimony it was!
    I felt impressed to teach on salvation instead of
continuing with our usual chapter-by-chapter study
from Genesis. I spoke about Nicodemus and Jesus
from John 3. Then I turned to Romans 10:9–10 and
talked about being born again. We had prayer, and
Karen responded when I asked for those who did not
know their eternal destination to raise their hands.
    After I dismissed the service, Karen was the last
one to leave. Linda and I began talking to her and
soon discovered she did not know Jesus as her personal
Saviour. Before long, Karen began to cry, and
before I knew it, we were all down on our knees
as Karen confessed her sins and opened her heart
to Jesus. Karen became a Christian that day. I am
now at peace with the Lord, she assured us, she
thanked us for our help and said she would be back
again Wednesday night with her mother, though she
might be late since she worked in Belize City, an
hour from Orange Walk Town. Yes, Karen came
back Wednesday night, and yes, she brought her
mother. Praise the Lord!

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 47 - A Tribute to Our Doctor

“A good name is rather to be chosen than great

riches, and loving favour rather than silver and
gold.”

—Proverbs 22:1

Let me tell you about our wonderful doctor

who is now retired but in good health. When
I was a young boy and fell from a tree, our nextdoor
neighbor took me to see Dr. Stalling. He did
not waste any time but immediately took me into
the examining room and stitched up my split leg. He
did a marvelous job, and to this day, you can barely
see the scars. That man worked what I considered
magic as a youngster.
    Dr. Stalling was always quick, to the point, and
always right with his diagnosis. He always prescribed
the right medications and told you exactly
how to take them. From the first time I met Dr.
Stalling, I admired him. I felt there was more to this
man than that of being a doctor. He did his remarkable
work with love and care for each one of his
patients.
    As I grew older, I continued to use Dr. Stalling
as my personal doctor; and after I was married, he
became my family’s physician. In 1978 I trusted
Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour, and my family
and I headed for Bible school at Tennessee Temple
University. Dr. Stalling was still our personal physician,
though.
     When we became missionaries, he changed
the way he charged for his services to us. We discovered
this new arrangement when Linda wrote
a check in payment for services received when
she visited him one day. About two days later the
check was returned to us in the mail. I thought there
was a mistake, I stopped by the doctor’s office to
inquire about it. His receptionist told me that Dr.
Stalling had said there was no charge and to send
the check back to me. What a blessing—this was
truly “un-Belizeable.”
    Sometime later I needed to see the good doctor.
He was as friendly as usual. He asked how things
were going in our missionary work, and I told him
that it was going well. I then discovered that Dr.
Stalling was a Christian and loved the Lord. I knew
then that was what I had sensed about him when he
had stitched up my leg as a young boy.
    This man, whom the Lord had blessed to become
a doctor, loved the Lord very much. After our chat
and his examination, he gave me a prescription; I
headed to the receptionist to pay for the office visit.
     She said there was no charge. Since the day
when he did not charge Linda, Dr. Stalling has never
charged us a penny for his services.
     Dr. Stalling is retired now, but we still consider
him our personal physician. We praise the Lord for
a man of God who has been both a great doctor and
a great blessing to us for many years.

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 46 - My Heart Is Beating So Fast!

“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily,

I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God.”

—John 3:3

“That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord

Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath
raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For
with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and
with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

—Romans 10:9–10

I was up by six this particular morning. I had

coffee while reading the Bible and having my
personal devotions. The devotion read, “You will
meet someone today who needs Jesus.” I thought
to myself, I meet people every day who need Jesus.
    I then went about my daily business, which
included buying some ink for my printer. Upon
arriving at the business about eight thirty, I found
the Computer store closed. I asked a man standing
nearby when the computer store would be open, and
he answered, “In five minutes.” He turned out to be
the owner. In a few minutes, another man arrived
and opened the door. The three of us entered the
building, and a teenage girl walked in behind us.
    I located the ink and paid for it. Then I handed the
owner, the employee, and the teenage girl a gospel
tract and asked them if they were to die soon, where
would they spend eternity? The employee answered
that he had been to our church a few years ago but
was no longer attending church. The owner and the
girl said they were going to Hell. We talked for a
few minutes about salvation and other subjects from
the Bible, and then the owner left. The girl and the
man who worked there continued asking questions,
and I gave them answers from the Word of God.
    The teenager asked a question that I could not
remember anyone having asked me before in the
context of witnessing. Alyssa, the young girl, asked,
“What about premarital sex?” This question took me
aback a little, but the Lord gave me the right verse.
    “The Bible, which is the Word of God,” I
explained, “teaches in 1 Corinthians 6:9 that fornicators
shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” They
understood the meaning of the word fornicators. I
further explained that people who engaged in premarital
sex would not go to heaven unless they
repented of that sin and all other sins and turned
to Jesus for salvation. I also talked about Hell and
explained to them if they did not get saved, they
would die and end up in that terrible place.
    The young man did not want anything to do with
what I was talking about, but he listened as I continued
talking to Alyssa about her salvation. All of
a sudden, she exclaimed, “My heart is beating so
fast!”
    “Young lady, that is the Holy Spirit of God
speaking to your heart. Right now He wants you
to open your heart and let Jesus come in. Are you
ready to do that?” I urged.
    “Yes, I am,” she answered without hesitation.
    “Are you willing to give up your lifestyle for
Jesus?” I questioned further.
    “Yes, I am ready to give my life to Jesus,” she
assured me. Then there in the store, she bowed her
head and in her own words, repented of her sins and
accepted Jesus as her personal Saviour.
    Lifting her head as she finished praying, Alyssa
asked, “Pastor Jay, do you have a Bible that I can
get? I want to read God’s Word.”
    I rushed out to the church to get a Bible, that
Beam’s Bible Ministry, Gulfport, Mississippi, mails
to us and returned to give it to her. She promised
to come to church the next morning at ten o‘clock.
As I was walking out the door, the Lord reminded
me what I had read that morning, “You will meet
someone today who needs Jesus.”
     Yes, the devotional was right and the next
morning seventeen-year-old Alyssa was in church,
just as she had promised. She shared her testimony
and related how her heart had beat so fast when she
heard about salvation. When I asked her at what
point her heartbeat had slowed down, she replied,
“My heart stopped beating fifty miles an hour and
went back to normal the very moment I opened my
heart to Jesus and became a born-again Christian.”
    We dropped Alyssa off at her house after service
that morning, and I asked, “Alyssa, will you
be coming to church tonight?” She said she could
not come because of homework. I replied, “Alyssa,
this is what you do. When you go inside, do your
homework right away so you will be able to come
to church tonight.”
    But then she said, “I have volleyball practice.”
    “Alyssa, will it be volleyball, or Jesus?” I asked.
    To that, she replied, “I will be in church tonight
at seven o‘clock,” and she was.

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 45 - That Was Quick!

"Let brotherly love continue. Be not forgetful to

entertain strangers: for thereby some have entertained
angels unawares.”

—Hebrews 13:1–2

While on furlough and living in Jacksonville,

Florida, we enjoyed dining at S & S Cafeteria
for lunch. One day we noticed another couple
dining not too far from us. As we continued to enjoy
our meal, a nudge came from the Lord to pay for
the couple’s meal. Lord, you know they have the
money to pay for their meal. They are wearing neat
clothing and looking prosperous. I’m a missionary
and almost broke, I argued with the Lord.
     The impression, however, would not leave. My
wife and I finished our meal and went to pay our
check. This same couple came right up behind us.
The Lord was still prodding me to pay for their
meal; I was still trying to get out of it. I handed my
check to the cashier then turned around and asked
the couple, “May I pay for your meal?” They were
stunned, but they handed me their check, thanked
me, and headed out the door.
    When we walked outside, the couple was waiting
for us. The man introduced himself and his wife and
then asked, “Why did you pay for our meal?”
I explained that I was impressed of the Lord
to do so. He thanked me again and said, “I’m the
pastor of a church right down the road. This is the
first time that I have had anyone right out of the blue
pay for our meal.” He thanked me again and said
that this act was a real blessing to them. I told him
I enjoyed doing it and hoped maybe he would pass
on the favor one day to someone else. We never saw
this pastor and his wife again, but I am happy that I
obeyed the voice of the Lord.
    Another time at the same cafeteria, we had just
gotten our food and was looking for a table when
we spotted a couple we knew, R. D. and his wife
attended the same church that we were attending
while in Jacksonville. They asked us to eat with
them and while we were eating, the Lord prompted
me to pay for their meal. This time I did not argue
with the Lord. As we finished eating, I took their
ticket and headed to the cashier before they had
time to refuse our offer.
    After we paid their ticket, R. D. and his wife
were waiting outside for us. He objected that I did
not have to pay for their meal, but I insisted that the
Lord had impressed it upon my heart. They thanked
us, and Linda and I went home.
    Upon arriving home I checked the mail. There
was a letter from a church. The letter read, “The
Lord has impressed upon our hearts to send you this
small love offering of two hundred dollars.” My
wife and I talked about the two times we had blessed
someone at the cafeteria and marveled, “Isn’t that
like our Lord?”
    When we are a blessing to someone else, He
blesses us tenfold in return. We have never been
able to outgive God!

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 44 - The Check Is in the Mail

“Every man according as he purposeth in his heart,
so let him give;…”

—2 Corinthians 9:7

We were on furlough as missionaries to

Belize. On a Wednesday night, we were off
to our home church, which at this time was located
in Welcome, North Carolina. We were especially
excited about this night because missionaries from
South Africa were going to be there to give an
update about their work.
    We arrived early in order to be able to speak to
the missionaries before the service. We had a tremendous
fellowship, and then it was time to begin.
Pastor Surratt opened the service in prayer. Next,
we sang songs, and the church took up an offering.
It was time for the Mercers, missionaries to South
Africa, to share their ministry. Brother Mercer
showed slides and spoke of his work in that land.
Because of our fifteen years of serving in Africa, we
could relate to everything he said.
    Brother Mercer preached a good sermon, and
while he was preaching, the Lord impressed upon
my heart to give twenty dollars to him and each
member of his family. I didn’t have a lot of money
and I was a little hesitant at first. I wanted to be
sure the Lord was speaking to me. Brother Mercer
finished his message and Pastor Surratt closed the
service. Still, I could not escape the Lord’s leading
to give this offering to the Mercers.
    After everyone had greeted the Mercers, I
walked over with my wife and children and gave
each one in the Mercer family a twenty-dollar bill. I
enjoyed being able to do this. They thanked me with
big smiles, and we headed out to our vehicle. As we
were walking out, I was thinking about what had
transpired, and the Lord impressed upon me that He
was going to give me back much more than I had
given to the Mercers. He did not say when or how,
but that He was going to do it.
    With eager anticipation, I waited and wondered
for days, excited about what God was going to do.
Eleven days later the pastor of a local church in
Lexington, North Carolina, called and said, “This
past Sunday I was impressed by the Lord to take up
an offering for you and your family.”
    Surprised, I said, “You were?” and “You did?”
Laughing, he replied, “Yes, we did, and the check
will be in the mail.”
    I couldn’t help asking, “Pastor how much is that
check going to be?”
    “The love offering was $1, 600,” he said.
    All I could say was “Praise the Lord!” Then the
Lord reminded me of the twenty dollars that I had
given each member of the Mercer family eleven
days earlier. Can we ever outgive the Lord?

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 43 - Enough Is Enough!

…When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the

Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against
him.”

—Isaiah 59:19

The Lord had blessed us with a 1990 International

short bus, which we desperately needed for the
church in Belize. Now we needed to get it to Belize.
We loaded the bus in anticipation of our journey but
took it for a test drive before leaving. As I looked
underneath the bus after the test drive, my heart sank
when I spotted an oil leak. I immediately called the
seller, and he instructed me to take the vehicle to a
bus shop; he would take care of the bill. At the shop
they discovered the back main seal was leaking and
had it repaired by five that afternoon, However, it
was too late to set out for Mexico.
     We spent the night in the mission apartment of
a local church and headed out the next morning.
However, when we stopped to eat, we discovered
that the back main seal was leaking again. It was
back to the garage and again was repaired by five
o’clock. But just like the day before, it was too late
to leave. Back we went to the mission apartment for
another night.
    That evening we received a call from Barbie
Montgomery of Kentucky. She was driving her car
to Belize while her husband, Ken, was flying down.
She asked if she could follow us. That was fine with
me, because if we had trouble on the road, at least
we would not be stranded. We met Barbie at the
appointed place and again checked for an oil leak.
Much to our dismay, it was leaking from the same
place.
    Now enough is enough! It was Saturday the
day before Easter. The mechanic was at the garage
when I called and agreed to check it again on
Easter Monday morning. Our money was now running
short from having to stay in Houston longer
than expected and from having discovered that the
duty to get the bus into Belize would be higher
than expected. That night Linda and I counted our
money and calculated that we were short by $1,250.
We decided to pray about this need for funds while
enjoying the holiday to celebrate the resurrection of
our Lord.
    The following morning we arrived for Sunday
School a little early, and I enjoyed fellowshipping
with some of the men of the class. When they learned
we were missionaries to Belize, they suggested I
ask Brother Rick, the teacher, if I could share that
morning about our work. Rick agreed, and we had
a great time in Sunday School. During the course
of my presentation, I happened to mention that we
needed $1,250 to get to Belize and to pay the duty on
the bus. I noticed Brother Rick and his wife smiling
at each other, and I suspected something was up.
    After the morning service, we had lunch at the
church. The pastor invited us to come back that
afternoon at two o’clock for songs and testimonies.
As we walked into the church, Brother Rick handed
me a check for $1,250, the exact amount that his
wife had recently inherited. Rick said that when
I mentioned our need, both he and his wife knew
they were to give us the money rather than invest
it. What a blessing! What a great God we serve! We
then had a great time of making melody to the Lord
and sharing testimonies with one another.
    Monday morning came and we were back at
the repair shop. This time the mechanic replaced
the seal and everything around it, which he had not
done previously, and promised we would not have to
return. I responded with, “Praise the Lord! It’s getting
to be costly hanging around Houston.” By one
o’clock, the bus was ready. We were not charged for
the repairs, even though the cost was five hundred
dollars for just the initial work.
    At long last we were off for Brownsville, Texas,
at the Mexican border. Thankfully, we experienced
no further oil leaks. We arrived at Brother Jack
Henderson’s place about midnight and rested until
eight o’clock the next morning. Then we had breakfast
and headed for the border. Getting our necessary
papers, insurance, and visas to travel through
Mexico took until eight thirty that evening. We were
tired and decided to spend the night in Matamoras,
Mexico. We slept well; it had been a long, hard day.
    The next morning we had breakfast and drove
into the interior of Mexico. At a gas and rest stop, I
discovered one of the dual tires on the rear of the bus
was flat. I had it repaired, and we were on our way
again. What else can happen? I thought. We spent
that night in Poza Rico at a Best Western motel.
     The next morning about four hours into our trip
the bus started vibrating. Stopping at a Pemex gas
station, I discovered that the bolts had come out of
the center drive-shaft support. I was able to make
the repair, and we were on our way again. We
arrived at Villahermosa, rented room, went out to
eat, and had a good night’s rest after another long,
hard day’s drive.
    The next morning we headed off for the last leg
of our journey to Belize. About two hours later, we
heard a loud boom. A rear tire had blown. We drove
into town and had a man remove the tire from the
rim before putting just the rim back on. Now we
were driving with only one tire on that side.
We were physically and mentally worn-out
from all the problems, but we had just four hours
remaining. I was praying that nothing else would
happen, but soon we suffered another blowout
in one of the rear tires. This time it was the new
Goodyear tire that the dealer had put on.
    Borrowing Barbie’s car, I drove to the next
town to get a repairman. He took off the tire and
replaced the rim, as had been done prior. Now we
had only two tires remaining of the original four in
the rear. We dropped off the repairman at his town,
and praise the Lord, we made it to the Belize border
about three o’clock p.m. We hired a broker to fill out
the necessary paperwork, paid the duty on the bus,
and headed for Orange Walk Town. We thanked the
Lord that we had arrived home safely. Our God is
faithful!

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)

Chapter 42 - Have You Given God Your Best?

“And this they did, not as we hoped, but first gave

their own selves to the Lord, and unto us by the will
of God.”

—2 Corinthians 8:5

The local church in Orange Walk Town was

growing and the van we owned was getting
too small to transport everyone to and from church.
Linda and I were in Texas trying to raise additional
support when our daughter Angie called and
informed us that we needed to bring a bus back to
Belize.
    We were lodging courtesy of a local church in
Houston. Pastor Campbell had a modular home that
any missionary preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ
was welcome to use. As we started looking for a
bus, we discovered a dealer nearby who had two
short buses that would be perfect for our ministry
in Belize. Questioning an employee, we determined
which bus was better and headed for the office. The
owner provided me with information about the bus
and said the price was $5,050. I told him I would
pray about it and then left.
    Linda and I had no money: therefore, began
praying. “What were you thinking, trying to buy a
bus without any money?” one might ask. But we
believed God was going to supply our need. On
the third morning after we had seen the bus, I was
shaving when the Lord spoke to my heart and said,
“Go tell the owner that I said to give you that bus to
use in Belize.”
    I stopped shaving, looked at myself in the mirror,
and said, “Self, did you hear what I heard?” Then
“Self” said, “Yes, I did hear the same thing you
heard.”
    I had never experienced anything like this. When
I finished shaving, I decided to pray about it. The
impression remained, so I went to see the owner of
the bus. Greeting me, he called out, “Preacher, you
come to buy that bus?”
   “No,” I answered slowly, “but I have a message
from God for you.”
    The owner said nothing for a while. Then
after about a minute, he asked, “Well, what is the
message?”
    I replied, “God wants you to give us that bus for
our work in Belize.”
    Neither one of us said another word. I had
nothing else to say, and he didn’t know what to
say as we stood looking at each other. As he turned
toward his office, he remarked, “I might just do that.
Come back and see me on Saturday morning.” I left
that place praising the Lord for the good response.
    Two days later on Saturday morning, I was at his
office at nine o’clock. His brother was also in the
office; I immediately sensed that things were going
to go downhill. I introduced myself to the brother,
who quickly said, “We cannot give you that bus, but
we have one in the back that you can have.”
    The man to whom I had given God’s message
then took me to the back to show me the bus. “You
can have this one,” he said, gesturing to a bus with
no headlights, no batteries, some of the windows
missing, and a floorboard gone in half of the vehicle.
I thought incredulously, “Is this really a Bus?” and
then turned to the man and calmly stated, “God
cannot use this bus.” I thanked him and walked
away.
     I left the dealership feeling somewhat discouraged.
Lord, I thought You impressed me to tell
this man to give me that bus. That man must have
thought I was crazy, going over there and telling him
that You said to give me his bus. Now I am feeling
like I was crazy, but I was only trying to obey what
I thought You had impressed upon my heart to do.
    That very day Pastor Campbell asked if Linda
and I would like to attend a preachers’ fellowship
next week. He said there would be food, and he
would take us out for a Mexican meal the last night
of the fellowship. The day arrived for the fellow
ship, and I was promised five minutes to give my
testimony. I didn’t get my five minutes that day, but
we did enjoy some good food. On the last day of the
fellowship, however, I was given time to speak. I
tried to pack a lifetime of ministry into five minutes,
and felt I had done a good job.
    It was now Friday night, and we were off to the
Mexican restaurant, along with Pastor Campbell
and his wife, and Pastor Hill and his wife of Sugar
Land, Texas, the hosts of the fellowship. After the
meal, Pastor Hill asked, “Brother Ayers, would
you like to present your ministry at my church on
Sunday night?” I surely did and thanked him for the
opportunity.
    Back at our lodging place, I still had the bus on
my mind. We continued praying that the Lord would
somehow, give it to us. Sunday evening arrived, and
we were warmly greeted at Pastor Hill’s church. I
showed slides of the work in Belize and preached a
message entitled “Have You Given God Your Best?”
I shared about the man at the dealership who tried
to give God a piece of junk that nobody wanted in
place of the bus that God wanted him to give. God
had wanted him to give his best, but he wanted to
give God junk. I ended the sermon with a question,
“Have you given God your best?” The pastor then
took up a love offering and asked Linda and I to
stand at the entrance to shake hands with people.
Many remarked they had enjoyed the preaching of
God’s Word.
    We loaded our equipment into our vehicle,
and Pastor Hill and his wife invited us to Sweet
Mesquite for supper. Lord, bless those dear friends
for their kind hospitality. As we were returning to
our lodging, my cell phone rang. It was Pastor Hill.
He said he had some good news.
    I love good news; I immediately asked Pastor
Hill what the good news was. He answered that a
lady in his church had called him and said she had
inherited some money. The Lord had spoken to her
heart during my presentation, and she wanted to
buy us the bus. By this time, I was speechless, not
knowing what to say.
    The pastor asked, “Brother Ayers, are you still
there?”
    I managed to get out, “Yes, Pastor, I’m still here.
I’m just trying to get hold of myself.”
    He laughed and told me to go to the dealer and
make the best deal that I could. Then I was to go by
his office and he would write a check for the bus. I
said I would be at the church by noon, and we said
good-bye. Linda and I were blessing the Lord all the
way home.
    The next morning I worked out an agreement
with the first man that I had talked to at the dealership.
He offered to add a few things, such as new seat
covers, a new tire, and a good cleaning. I agreed and
said I would return with the money in the evening.
    Arriving at the church, I told Pastor Hill the
price, $5,050, and he gave us a check. We thanked
him and also obtained the name and address of the
people who had bought the bus for us in order that
we could thank them properly. We cashed the check
at the bank and bought that bus. When I explained
to the owner what had happened, he said that his
brother was part owner of the business and had not
wanted to give the bus to us. I commented, “Well,
the woman that bought us the bus will receive the
blessing that you would have received if you had
done what the Lord had asked you to do.”

(Copyright by Jay B Ayers)