In most American families, there is someone who knows how to fix things. The
resurrector of dead kitchen appliances. The Dear Abby of all the neighborhood's problems.
Everyone is talented at fixing something. Maybe we can do no more than heal a child's
boo-boo by slapping on a bandage, but in the eyes of the sobbing child, that's an awesome
power.
My husband, Ralph, is a doctor of mechanics. He actually knows what he's doing when he
takes the car apart. Many wives envy me for this. I say there's a sacrifice to pay.
When we were dating, Ralph worked at a service station. He took me out after hours,
smelling as lovely as an oil can.
We'd go out for burgers and I'd have to watch him eat with grease-black hands.
"Aren't you going to wash first?" I asked.
"I did."
After we got married, our Datsun's engine went ka-chunk. Because we lived in an
apartment with no garage, Ralph brought the engine into our living room. Since its
presence became a conversation piece for our friends, I considered putting a board across
it and calling it an art deco coffee table.
A decade later, my Toyota's transmission has cried out in pain -- louder and louder. So
Doctor Ralph is at it again. This time he has a garage to work in. But when he comes to
dinner, once more I smell that Odor de Transmission cologne.
Now he's trying to pass his fix-it skills on to our son. David is more interested in
using the bearings and bolts as toys. At age nine, he doesn't realize that someday he'll
have his own car that he can't afford to have a professional fix.
God, of course, is the master Mr. Fix-it. He repaired mankind's broken transmission by
sending his Son. Before Jesus mended our relationship with God by going to the cross, he
told us not to worry about things, promising that if we put God first in our lives, He
will help us out.
God has fix-it skills He wants to pass on to us to help our lives run smoother. But how
well do we listen? I don't know about you, but I'd rather play with life's parts and see
what I can do with them by myself
Sometimes, I don't realize, I can't fix things without first learning from God.
