Epilogue

To be part of a trip that encompasses the touch of an Angel makes the rest of the trip somewhat anti-climatic. Yes, there were some young folks who accepted Christ as a result of the back-yard Bible studies. Yes, there were some of our kids who realized the call that God placed on their lives and they were moved to accept that call.

Just as important, there were young folks who were not called into special ministry by God, however, they are being used by Him in everyday life. Working; raising families while being responsible citizens is a special call on anybody’s life.

These young folks are no less important to God than those He has called for special ministry. To be a person with the anointing of the Holy Spirit on your life can accomplish as much as those who are up front leading churches and ministries across America.

It is to that end that knowing what could have happened on the side of the hill in Virginia going down Interstate 81 still leaves a queasy feeling in my stomach. I have even accepted the fact that there will be many restless nights remembering not what happened but visualizing what could have happened.

Yes, I know that God was and is in control. I also know that God is going to call me home one day and ready or not I am going. Does that make me want to leave any sooner than He has planned?

Not necessarily. More specifically, I do not wish to be behind the wheel should God decide to call me home with 46 kids, chaperons, and ministers trusting in me.

What I want is to be the best professional driver any charter coach company has on the road. To do that, I will have to abide by all the rules of the road; the DOT; and the company policies.

It is not as if it cannot be done – drivers do it all the time. I have just got to place my perspective in being one of those drivers.

The restless nights will subside; the queasiness will vanish; and you know what – God will still be in control! So I have decided to let Him be God. Just let Him be God! He is going to be anyway – who am I to think that I could make any kind of a dent in who He is.

Now regarding why I have decided to share this information with the general public? After leaving the professional ranks as a charter driver, I purchased a 1986 Model 10 Eagle motor coach for the ministry.

I converted it for the purpose we had for transporting drivers from hospitals home or to other medical facilities near their home. In the time span from the year 2000 to 2015, we helped over 100 drivers get home to their families when they had no other resource.

Carol and I were the drivers. Getting our patient home was as important to us as the kids who were on the choir. Many times, she and I would drive over 1,000 miles in one day so that we could get a driver home with as few days on the road as possible.

We did it switching out and taking turns. Many of the days, Carol would drive as many miles as I did. We usually started about 4:30 in the morning. I would drive until about 8 and then we would stop for breakfast.

Carol would take over at that point and drive until noon. She then prepared a meal for the coach while I fueled and made sure everything was as it should be on the outside.

I drove after lunch until around 4:30 or 5 when she again would take over and drive until early evening. She did not like driving after dark.

I finished off the day driving until 7:30 to 8:30 each evening. We could cover almost 2,000 miles in two days and usually get the patient to his or her front door by the second evening.

Yes, we would be tired. At the end of the day, when we laid down in the bedroom at the rear of the coach, we knew that we had done our duty to the best of our ability.

Our age finally caught up with us as both of us are approaching 74. We, after much prayerful consideration, decided that it was time to turn the coach over to younger drivers.

I placed the coach on the market and within a month we had a trucker’s charity in Illinois that was interested in adding the service to their organization. The deal was made and the coach left our yard for good.

I am not now nor will I ever be a full time driver of a motor coach. I am not interested in getting behind the wheel of any motor coach period.

We enjoyed our work through TransAlive. We do conduct the services that we had before, just not the coach services. One can go to http://www.transalive.com to see the services that we still offer for the transportation industry.

We still offer the AmCoach service on our website. It is, however, understood that any calls we get for the service will be directed to Truckers Charity for completion.

Being completely removed from the responsibilities of driving, I can now share how God responded for the choir tour to be saved on that fateful night in Virginia. God, how I praise Him for what He did.

You see, I come from the transportation industry and I know the statistics on accidents; death; the loss of life and limb. I have been preparing safety tips for drivers for 30 years. There are over 500,000 copies of my safety tips in print each month across America.

Those tips currently are being published in the print media and with web site providers. Trucking companies copy the tips for their local company newsletter.

I research, script, and record the safety tips. The tips were played back on the Bill Mack Trucking Show for over 20 years. Mack’s trucking show aired during the early morning hours 5 nights a week.

Ironic that after nearly losing a coach with 46 lives in the early morning hours in Virginia, now I am recording and playing back safety tips for drivers who are driving at the same hours as I did in 1986. I trust that they are benefiting from my mistakes.

Regarding the balance of the choir trip for First Baptist Church Euless, it went off without a glitch. The kids seemed more energized each and every day; the back-yard Bible studies went great; and the choir presentations were on target each and every night.

We made it back to Euless according to the time schedule pre-decided and the parents were glad to see their kids come home. I watched as each parent ran to their child and hugged them with great love. In the back of my mind, I could not help but think, “How it could have been …?”

The final choir presentation in the home church was the grand finale event of the summer. The kids were beaming with pride and their expressions of appreciation for their church making it possible for them to travel. It was a great end to a great summer.

Before closing this book, I would like to give an opportunity for those that would like to accept Christ as their personal Savior. It is as simple as ABC and can be done right now in the quietness of your home between you and a loving God.

Just follow the simple instructions and Christ is waiting at the altar for you. His arms are open for you.

After praying this simple but profound prayer, find someone you can share your decision. Let them help you find a Bible believing church. You will know it is a Bible believing church when as the pastor begins to speak, he opens God’s Word.

You may also call 800-USA-HURT for more information or my personal cell phone 817-320-0567 24/7/365. God bless…