Along Life's Way: Volume 1

By Jack White

During my life's journey, these various stories were told to me; and the Lord had me use them in my books--all four volumes of them. It is my hope and prayer that these stories will help others to see that He will help them too.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christian Faith Publishing, Inc.
• Release date: Oct 20, 2021
• ISBN: 9781639033799

Book preview

What If?

CA group of teenagers from their church were visiting in another church during a weeklong revival. They went only one night because of school. I was sitting on the left side of the auditorium, the second seat from the front, and on the left end. What is not remembered about the service that night is the day of the week, the message or topic, or the evangelist’s name. What is remembered is this…

The evangelist was bringing the night’s service to a close and was leading the congregation into the invitation. As they stood to their feet with eyes closed and heads bowed, I received an impressionable thought from an unseen force:

If you should die tonight or the Lord come back, would you be ready?

Within my own mind, I had this response: "I was saved recently. There is nothing between my Lord and I.

The impressionable thought was persistent. What if?…

After a moment or two of hesitation, I stepped out onto the aisle and went forward. As I did so, I felt a warm wave of reassurance that only the Lord can give. As I reached and knelt down at the altar, two things happened.

One, I noticed, out of the corner of my right eye, a young girl of around fifteen years old also knelt at the right end of the altar. Other than noticing her, I thought nothing else about her.

Two, I found myself thanking the Lord of His reassurance for my salvation.

A few minutes later, when the invitation and the service was over, I was standing in the middle aisle talking with my friends. I felt someone take hold of my left elbow. As I looked to see who it was, I recognized the person to be the young girl who had knelt at the far end of the altar from me.

What she said to me has stayed with me through the years.

I want to thank you for going first. Because if you had not gone first, I would not have gone at all.

I’d never seen this girl before, nor have I seen her since. Years later, and as far as I know, she’s still serving the Lord. No doubt, she’s married like Craig and has a family.

Perhaps some of you are saying, Our God is not a God of confusion. And you are right. However, He is a God of purpose. Consider this verse found in Isaiah 55:11 (KJV):

So shall my word be that goeth forth out my mouth: It shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

When I have reflected back on what happened that night, I have come to realize that God was working a type or form of confusion in my heart and soul because as was stated earlier, I no sooner had stepped out when the Lord had already began His reassurance of His salvation. I am convinced that because of my obedience, the Lord instantly reassured me, and He caused me to notice that young girl at the time we both were kneeling.

I have also come to this realization: What if I’d not gone forward?

She would’ve still gone down on her own, some of you dear readers, no doubt, would say. I differ with you. Remember, after the service, she approached me and stated that had I not gone first, she would not have gone at all. I would not care to tell you that has scared me somewhat to know what could have happened instead of what did happen!

Through the years, I have often wondered about her. What has she done with her life? I assume she has married and has a family of her own. And even though I’ve not seen her since that night, my thoughts and prayers are with her and her loved ones.

I am thankful that I was able to lead one that night to an altar of prayer. However, there are thoughts that still nag. What if I had not been there that night? What if I had not gone down to the altar? Then would someone else have gone first to open up the way for her to follow? Possibly.

However, what if?…

This true story closes with this challenge: If you had been there that night, what would you have done? Would you have done what I did? Or would you have ignored going down only to find out later you could have led some soul to the Lord by not understanding how He was working at the time? As the preacher said years ago, Mind your God.

What if you’d been there? What would’ve been your response?

Think about it. What if?…

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.

—Matthew 6:33

Chapter Two

The Radiator: A Lesson in Priorities

I am persuaded to believe that the Holy Scriptures (or what we call the Bible today) has stood the test through the corridors of time. And I know that in some way, it proves itself each day. And because I was obedient, it proved itself in a very special way. Having grown up in a Christian home, I know the Lord still finds ways to help—if not, to intervene—for His children. In the following story, truth be told, some would say it was coincidence. I choose to believe it was God that helped me. After reading this, what do you say, dear reader?

I had received the phone call from my wife shortly after I had arrived at work one Wednesday morning in January 1991. The radiator in the car she was driving started leaking. I told her to back the car into the garage and that I would look at it later.

When I looked at it at lunchtime, I saw that the neck or the opening where the antifreeze is put in was leaking. My initial thought at the time was, Have it welded, and that will fix it. As you will see, that was not the case.

When I got off work that afternoon, I began working on the car to take the radiator out. At this point, let me say this. I don’t mean to set up an auto mechanics class, but I believe it is relevant that I explain how this went.

There is a two-piece fan cover that also extends back over the radiator to help hold it in place. I removed the top half without any problems. I was also able to remove the top radiator hose. Since this car has an automatic transmission, there are two lines connecting it to a separate cooling chamber in the radiator. One line brings the fluid into the radiator for cooling, and the other takes it back to the transmission.

Any mechanic will tell you breaking these lines free at the radiator isn’t always easy. There are exceptions. I drenched the top and bottom connections with a lubricant. After