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)