The Pastormobile

My husband's church call came with a car; yes, really! It's a Subaru Forester, which can get out to the remote family burial grounds on the reservation when necessary. It can take the pastor to hospitals (40-130 miles one way), even in the snow. That's all we really thought about when we found out that Brad would have "The Pastormobile," as we've dubbed it.

But in the past couple of weeks, The Pastormobile has provided a unique way for my husband to minister to the community beyond our church congregation. It might not make sense in some settings, but in this place, graciously giving someone a ride home or to a distant location (the town, though small, is very spread out) is ministering. And since my husband has done this a couple of times, he has been asked a few more times.

When a stranger comes to our door in the evening, like this evening, through the grace of God I am able to give them a friendly greeting, not feeling like they are intruding at all. Truly. It's an amazing gift from God, because I wouldn't have felt this way in many situations in the past. Tonight, the woman started to explain that she was trying to bring home her friend from the bar because she'd had too much to drink, but her friend wasn't able to walk home. She asked, "Could the father give us a ride to her house?"

I asked her in, but she stayed outside to care for her friend. Our almost-7-year-old and her overnight guest were quite curious, peeking out the window. My husband fired up The Pastormobile, loaded up the friends and their big dog, and took them home. As they drove off, my daughter's friend asked, "What was wrong with that lady?"

Taking a deep breath, I said, "She drank too much alcohol."

"Oh," came the answer. "When I grow up, I'm not going to drink alcohol." Sigh of relief from me. And our daughter chimed in, "Me, neither."

And so we minister here in Dulce, New Mexico. We give rides home. We refuse to give rides to the bar. And we risk honesty with young children.

And we are so very deeply blessed to be here. We thank God for the opportunity to serve in this way.