The above picture is our car’s dead engine.
Abiding in Christ is hard work, especially when encountering challenging issues. Two weeks ago, I noticed our car was having some issues. It rattled more than usual, so I brought it in for the mechanic to take a look. He told me that the engine was not good. Uh-oh.
We had the car inspected before we bought it. The mechanic was the same mechanic who checked the car. He said the previous owner probably fixed the engine well enough to sell it. So what’s the solution? It is to replace the whole engine.
That sounds serious. My Tanzanian friend informed me that it is common for them to replace the engine here. An engine isn’t cheap. It is about 1,700 Singapore/Canadian dollars. It is ‘new’ but not new. I asked, ‘What if the engine they brought in doesn’t work?’ The reply was that they would bring another one in.
Looking at the situation, I feel like I am going down a rabbit hole. There are so many unknowns and what-ifs, so many potential issues along the way. Anyway, the current engine is not working well, and we must replace it. We just purchased the car two months ago, and it doesn’t make sense to get another car. So here we go.
So, last week, they brought an engine over, and the mechanic started doing his work. Every day, we patiently waited for him to say when it was ready. Oh, it will only take a day to replace. Your car will be as good as new.
Yesterday, the mechanic told us in Swahili that he was ready for today. But my friend checked on him and found out that the new engine had problems.
Our hearts just sank.
What’s going on? Is the mechanic ripping us off? Did the guy who brought the engine off rip us off? Why did he say it is ready for tomorrow when it is not?
Living in Tanzania, there are a lot of uncertainties.
The ‘new’ engine is ten years old. Maybe it already has issues. Also, he didn’t want to disappoint us, so maybe that’s why he kept saying tomorrow. Maybe the mechanic discovered issues at the last minute. Or maybe he knew our Swahili was not good, so he couldn’t explain the situation.
So now, the mechanic is talking with the shop about bringing in another engine (without charging us extra). If a big if, everything goes smoothly, that will probably take a week before we get our car back.
If you were in my shoes, you may wonder, where is God in all this? Isn’t He our provider and our protector? I spent so much money on the car. How can I abide in Christ in such a time like this?
How I learned to abide in Christ when I face storms
Today, I read this quote from Oswald Chambers:
There is no condition of life in which we cannot abide in Jesus. We have to learn to abide in Him wherever we are placed.
Despite my disappointment, I think about what it means to abide in Jesus now. I don’t know when I will get my car back. What if the next engine also has issues? What if the next engine falls off when they bring it over? There are so many possibilities that things can go wrong; if I keep dwelling on them, I will go insane.
I give thanks at this time. For one, I am thankful that for the past week and a half, when we have no car, we can still go places. I am thankful God protected us even right now. None of us is seriously ill. These days, we take a bajaji, also known as a tuk-tuk, in Asia. It is a three-wheel auto rickshaw. It is a way to get around, but it is highly dangerous when a bus whizzes by you going full speed.
I am learning to abide in Christ in whatever circumstances. In this case, I really don’t know when I will get our car or if it will work again. The only thing I can do is pray and see.
Here, prayer becomes very important because there is nothing certain I can rely on. Whenever we brought the girls to school in the morning in a bajaji, I prayed hard for protection and safety.
Abiding in Christ does not mean ignoring problems and issues. It is in these uncertainties that we learn to abide in Christ.
So, to answer the questions I posted earlier, where is God in all of this? Our girls were on school holidays the first week when our car was in the garage. Despite not having a car, we had a good time together as a family. Second, God provided another car for us to rent (if needed). Third, God protected us while we travelled in a bajiji. Fourth, our bajiji driver is reliable, and we can call him to come whenever we need.
Despite not having a car, God is still with us and protecting us. At church, we often sing God is all we need. Haha, now God is all I need because He is all I have.
One Response
Hi Cliff I have been there many times and somehow, I went through it all. I know about being stuck deep in Africa I lived in Malawi and know how bad the mechanics are. We nearly did not get back home from Malawi to South Africa at that time SA was still incredibly good not like knowing where it tended to become a third-world country. I have learned that you have to believe with a pinch of salt and time doesn’t mean much there. God taught me patience and longsuffering while being a missionary in Africa. I will pray for you and believe that your car will be ready and back soon. My advice to you is don’t believe everything that you are told and a person has to stay with your car while they are working on it otherwise you might lose it altogether. We learned that the hard way. Africa is a challenge but I am grateful for all I’ve learned and that I had the opportunity to go through all of that. It has changed me forever. Missing it every day. Regards. Jean