Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Rachelle's Baptism Miracle


One weekend in December, we were preparing to hold a baptismal service for three converts. As the Elders were on their way to check on those who were to be baptized they saw one of them, Rachelle, in a nearby park. They stopped and told her the Senior Missionaries would be right back to pick her up, and they proceeded to her family’s flat (apartment). Elder McKnight and I picked up the other two and went back to pick Rachelle up at the park.
We couldn’t find her there, so we drove to the Church with the other two so they could be interviewed and change into baptismal clothes. At the Church her grandmother agreed to go back with Elder Collet and me to see if we could find her. When we arrived at the family flat her mother informed us that Rachelle had left over 15 minutes earlier, in a red car, and was headed “out bush” to an area that was over 100 K away. As we disappointedly got back into the car, Elder Collet turned to me and said “Pray for a miracle”.
We looked for the red car as we headed back to the church. As we drove through the traffic, the three of us were in kind of a reflective mood, and very little was being said. Suddenly a red car some 200 yards ahead caught my attention. I had never seen the car before, but I immediately blurted out, “There’s a red car. Is that them?”
Elder Collet, looked for a second or two, and said “I think it might be.”
He then turned to Sister Ilene Bird and asked her. She looked up ahead and said, “Yes, that’s them. Go stop them.”
I caught up to them and honked several times until they pulled over to see what we wanted. Elder Collet had asked us to pray for a miracle and it looked like we had one. They should have been several miles away, heading out bush, but in a city of 26,000 there they were.
After we stopped them, and Rachelle's grandmother visited with her for a few minutes, she decided to be baptized before going out bush, but she wanted to bring the friend she was traveling with and go back to get her mother. Of course we agreed and got into the car to leave. As they made a U-turn, one of the wheels on the car began wobbling dangerously, so we waved them over again to see what was wrong. The driver got out, took off the hubcap, and discovered 4 of the five lug-nuts had broken off, and the fifth one was extremely loose. Elder Collet and I were in kind of a state of shock as we walked around that dilapidated old car and imagined what could easily have happened if we had not stopped them and discovered the problem that exposed itself when they made a U-turn. Instead, they would have proceeded another few blocks to Stuart Highway, and been traveling at speeds in excess of 110 K/hour (70 mph).
As it turned out, we had the privilege of baptizing Rachelle that evening, along with two other members of her family. That was a miracle, but an even greater miracle occurred that scorching hot day, with an old red car, and its nine occupants, without seatbelts, that never entered the Stuart Highway. Because we were listening to the Spirit, and following His promptings, we were instrumental in helping nine people’s lives be protected. They were saved from potential physical harm or death, and we saw a beautiful young girl baptized.
This is a marvelous example of how God is mindful of all His children and how much He loves them.

9 comments:

Lisa said...

What a great story! How lucky for Rachelle and evryone elso in the car that you were listening to the spirit and that God was watching over them!

Arah Debra said...

Sounds like you had more than one miracle that day. What a wonderful experience!

Christin said...

I'm glad I found you. Thanks for sharing your wonderful experiences.

Christin

Lisa said...

Hello?? We'd like to hear what's going on please!

Anonymous said...

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Anonymous said...

How blessed you are to have those precious Elders and the dear Sister to serve with. They in turn are so blessed to have you there! You are always in my prayers.

Luv,

Mom

Unknown said...

Happy belated V-day! You two found the right valentine...each other! What a combination. You're in our prayers.

Love,

Mom G

Unknown said...

We are having a problem with Mom's password. That is why it was posted by me, but she wrote it. I think you kind of an O. K. couple too:)

Unknown said...

You know... I actually can spell :)