In January 2022, an extreme cold spell had settled over the mountain states. Temperatures were well below zero, and Linda and I were preparing to move from northeastern Colorado to Newcastle, Wyoming.
Most of our belongings had already been sent ahead. All that remained were the things we would need when we arrived. Linda drove the car, which was packed full. I drove my old truck and pulled a stock trailer loaded with furniture, household items, and canned goods.
By midmorning, the papers for the sale of our house were signed, and we were on our way. We hoped to reach Newcastle before the temperature dropped even lower after dark.
We made it to Scottsbluff, Nebraska, about halfway through the trip. As I drove along the bypass, I heard a noise coming from the truck’s engine. Thankfully, there was a wide place where I could pull the truck and trailer safely off the road.
When I opened the hood, the problem was clear. The water pump had gone out.
I needed help, but I did not know anyone in Scottsbluff. Linda stayed with the truck while I took the car and went looking for someone who might know a mechanic.
There was a concrete company nearby, so I stopped there. Two women inside listened as I explained our situation. They gave me the name and telephone number of a mechanic they trusted.
I called and told him what had happened. It was a family-owned shop run by a father and his two sons.
I had barely returned to the truck when one of the mechanics arrived. After looking at the engine, he told me a tow truck was already on its way. While we waited, we unhooked the trailer and attached it to his truck so he could pull it to the shop.
By the time we finished, the tow truck had arrived.
At the shop, the owner told us the repair would take about three hours. Linda and I found somewhere to eat and then drove around town to pass the time.
I could not understand why this was happening. We had planned the trip carefully, but now we were stranded far from home while the temperature continued to fall.
After a couple of hours, we returned to the shop to wait. When we arrived, the men were already pulling our truck outside and hooking the trailer back to it. They had finished the repair an hour sooner than expected.
When I paid the bill, I noticed that they had given me a generous discount because I was a veteran. They had also connected the trailer and checked that all its lights were working.
We thanked them and started the final part of our journey. The breakdown had delayed us about four hours, and darkness was settling in quickly.
A few miles outside Scottsbluff, Linda flashed her headlights at me. I pulled over, and she stopped behind me.
All the lights on the trailer had gone out.
I checked the fuse and found that it had blown. I replaced it, but it blew again. Somewhere in the trailer wiring was a short. In the darkness and bitter cold, there was no way to find it.
We could not stay beside the highway all night, and we could not leave the loaded trailer behind. Our only choice was to keep going.
I told Linda to follow close enough for her headlights to light the back of the trailer. She also needed to leave enough room for another vehicle to pass between us if necessary.
As I pulled back onto the highway, questions filled my mind.
“God, why are You putting us through this? Why haven’t You protected us from all these troubles?”
Driving a trailer without lights at night was dangerous. We still had about 120 miles to travel on a major highway.
Yet during those 120 miles, not one car or truck came up behind us.
Not one.
We reached Newcastle close to midnight. Linda and I were physically and emotionally exhausted. We unloaded nothing. We had booked a motel room in advance, and we checked into our room. We went inside, found our bed, and collapsed.
During the days that followed, I thought and prayed about everything that had happened. I felt that God was showing me how completely He could care for us.
He had not kept trouble from coming, but He had provided help at every step. There was a safe place to pull over. Two women helped me find a mechanic. The mechanic arrived quickly. The repair was finished early. We received a discount when we needed it. And when we had to travel 120 miles with no trailer lights, no vehicle came up behind us.
God had not abandoned us in our trouble. He had carried us through it.
“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10).
“Trust in the LORD with all your heart And do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He will make your paths straight” (Proverbs 3:5–6).