Broken Wires

While we were on vacation two cars remained in our driveway.
My husband’s car and the car my youngest daughter uses were parked there all week.
My husband went back to work the day after we returned.
The other car remained in the driveway for a few days.

By mid-week, my daughter needed to use the car.
It may not start up right away, since it has been sitting there all week.
After a few minutes, she came back inside.
You’re right, Mom. It won’t start, she announced as she walked through the kitchen.
She went to find her dad.

This was more than an older car not starting up right away.
She drove the minivan while my husband worked on the car to figure out the problem.
He came back in and told me that the ignition was not getting a spark.
That meant nothing to me!

The car needed to be towed to the service station.
After a whole day in the busy shop, they determined that a connector was needed.
The wire was detached, frayed, and the connector looked like it had been chewed.

They said that it is difficult to get this particular part for a ten-year-old car.
Perhaps a junkyard may have what we needed.
As an alternative, they could make the part themselves.

After almost a week of searching, the part could not be found.
If purchased from the dealer, all sorts of re-wiring would have to be done.
It was an exorbitant price for a small part that just has to be out there somewhere.
My engineer husband, and the mechanic discussed the alternative way to fix the problem.

My husband gave them permission to take things apart and try to do the repair.
As they moved the things they needed to move in order to do the work, they saw that a small sensor was causing the problem.

Easy problem…easy solution.
THAT part was available in the shop.

After being in the shop for the whole week, my daughter was finally able to drive home.
We each pulled into the driveway.
Mom, the air conditioner is not working!

Another problem…or part of the same problem?

We took the car back to the shop the next morning.
They were busy, and since we didn’t have an appointment, the car sat there all day.
The shop called my husband and he stopped there on his way home from work.
They told him they wanted to show him what they found.

Two separate problems were caused by the same thing.
A mouse or a squirrel had gotten into the engine and chewed the connector and the wires.
One piece of wire was totally missing.

The shop could not believe that all this happened while we were on vacation.
The owner told me a few unforgettable mice and squirrel stories from other customers.
The car works, but it does not have air conditioning.
Everything should be repaired by the end of the week, once the new part comes in.

The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of a cobra, and the young child will put his hand into the viper’s nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all My holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea.  In that day the Root of Jesse will stand as a banner for the peoples; the nations will rally to Him, and His place of rest will be glorious. (Isaiah 11:6-10)

What would make a mouse or a squirrel climb into an engine in the heat of summer?
Are wires and connectors really that tasty?

Like the mouse, we are not where we should be.
We were created for so much more.
We were created for pure fellowship with God.

If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world. (C. S. Lewis)

When sin entered the world, death entered the world.
Creation that was made beautiful and complete was now broken because of sin.
Our relationship with God was severed.

That severed relationship is restored through faith in Jesus Christ…alone.
Jesus, the Son of God was born, died on the cross, and rose again three days later.
Jesus is the Bridge, the Narrow Road, and the Way back to the Father.

That severed engine wire reminded me of the broken connection we ALL have with God.
Nothing we can do on our own will repair the brokenness.
Only belief in Jesus’ finished work on the cross will restore us to the Father.
Jesus is our Connector.

One day the lion will lie down with the lamb.
One day mice will not chew on non-edible things.
One day, we will be like Him…and see Him as He really is.

Hallelujah!