It was early in the summer of 1974 - A Sunday. Mark and Sharon had just left for their first summer camp, and Judy, Barbara and I were still standing outside the church in Oak Park, Illinois. One of the pastors came over to us and asked if we knew of anybody who could deliver a pallet of Spanish Bibles to the Spanish World Gospel Mission in Winona Lake, Indiana. It would be an overnight trip, and it would be best if whoever went could leave that afternoon to return the next day. The pallet of Bibles would easily fit in the church minibus.
We agreed that we could do it if my boss could let me off from work on Monday. I was a student at the Moody Bible Institute in Chicago, and was working part-time for Buildings and Grounds. We went home, and I called my supervisor. He gave his OK, so, we called a fellow married student in Winona Lake to arrange to spend the night with them, and packed a few items for an overnight road trip.
Then we went back to the church, loaded the Bibles in the minibus, and the three of us started off. We arrived at the Spanish World Gospel Mission headquarters at about 10:00 that Sunday night. One of the men there came out and helped us to unload the Bibles and stack them on the floor in the mission headquarters.
After we had unloaded all of the Bibles, this gentleman invited us to have breakfast with them in the morning. He told us that the head and founder of the mission, Reverend Florent Toirac, was in Wisconsin speaking at some Churches, and would be back late that night. He said that Reverend Toirac would want to meet us and visit over breakfast. So we agreed, and left for our friend's home to get some sleep.
The next morning, we returned to the headquarters and met Reverend Toirac. During breakfast, he told us an amazing story – a story in which we had unknowingly played a part in God answering a prayer - even before it was prayed.
Reverend Toirac told us that the previous evening, he had been speaking at a church in Racine, Wisconsin. When he was finished, the pastor of that church had given him an envelope, which he said contained a special offering that the church had taken to help support the work of the Spanish World Gospel Mission. Reverend Toirac put the envelope in his pocket, eventually said his goodbyes, and got in his car. Before driving away, he was prompted to open the envelope. Inside there was a check. As Reverend Toirac looked at the check, he recognized that the amount of the check was exactly what he needed to pay for some Bibles that he had ordered.
Reverend Toirac was so excited about God's provision that he was praising God all the way from Racine, down through Chicago, and across to Winona lake. As I recall, Reverend Toirac told us that he needed those Bibles in time to be able to mail them in response to requests from listeners to a radio broadcast that had already been scheduled. And God had miraculously provided the funds to pay for those Bibles - what a wonderful God.
Now, as he drove back to Winona Lake, he prayed to God, asking Him to provide a way to have these Bibles delivered to his office.
A little after midnight, that Sunday night, as Reverend Toirac related to us over breakfast the next morning, he arrived back at the Spanish World Gospel Mission headquarters, parked his car, got out, walked into the building, and turned on the light – what did he see? – – The pallet full of Bibles about which he had been praying to God!
We have a wonderful and faithful God. He gave our family the privilege of seeing first-hand that He is a God who can answer prayer even before we ask.
Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, Creator and Savior. For you alone are worthy to receive all glory and honor and praise.
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