Hi, all! Just a thought.

Donuts (doughnuts) are some of my favorite things. I very much enjoy the national chain varieties, especially those that turn on the “Hot” light when the fresh ones come out of the oven. There are also some extremely good local varieties within driving distance of where we live, and I’ve eaten some of them all. Donuts really are wonderful. However …

Wife and I had gotten up much earlier than we normally do. We left home before the roosters had even thought of crowing, and we headed out of town to be present at the hospital when Relative was to have serious surgery. Wife had her tote bag prepared with reading material, snacks, and several of her ever-present water bottles. Radio was set to one of those play-the-same-songs-over-and-over-every-day Christian music stations, and we hit the road.

I heard the odd noise and felt the strange thump that made me think I had run over something. But before we even left our town, I had stopped twice to look, found nothing out of the ordinary, and off we went. Barely 20 miles later, the dreaded dashboard light was blinking at me, off the interstate exit I went, and we pulled up at the nearby truck stop. The time was now 5:30 a.m., long before any regular tire repair businesses of any kind would think of opening their doors.

I “just happened” to be right at that particular exit, “just happened” to be merely yards from the large national chain truck stop, “just happened” to pull up right in front of the semi-truck tire repair business as my tire went completely flat, and there “just happened” to be an employee walking my direction. No doubt, the Lord had put us exactly where we needed to be at the precise time we were to be there. The kind gentleman was a great help in getting the flat tire off the car and replacing it with the manufacturer-included “donut” tire that had previously been hidden in the bowels of my car. After spending his time crawling around on the cold pavement, changing my tire, and getting us prepared to go, the same kind gentleman refused any payment, and simply said, “Just be safe on the road.”

I promised I would. I set the cruise control to the recommended maximum speed for a donut tire, made the trek back home, swapped vehicles, and again we were on our way.

We left home that second time two hours later than we originally had. We arrived at the out-of-town hospital as Relative’s successful surgery was completed. We were late, and we had missed it all.

That “donut” of a tire, as of my writing this, has been returned to its rightful spot in my car. Our donut experience made for a longer day than we expected, but I’m grateful that the Lord provided the donut (and all of those other details) exactly when they were needed.

Trust the Lord to provide for you the exact remedies to your needs this week! It may seem as if your plans are thwarted and rearranged, but He provides the right needs for the right times. 

God bless donuts!

Just a thought. ’Til later.

Brad Campbell can be reached at mastah.pastah@yahoo.com.