Dependability

Frank Oresnik knows a dependable truck when he sees one. Back in 1996, he bought a 1991 Chevrolet Silverado pickup with 41000 miles on it. Mr. Oresnik is in the business of distributing seafood and steaks in the upper Midwest and he planned to use the truck as his delivery vehicle. Twelve years later, he is still driving the same truck. What is even more impressive is that, on February 8, the odometer on the truck passed the one million mile mark. Yes, you read that right – one million miles on the same vehicle. Oresnik reports that the truck has been through 4 radiators, 3 gas tanks, 5 transmissions, and 6 water pumps, but the engine has never been overhauled. He credits regular maintenance and a bit of luck for helping his Chevrolet to last so long. He now plans to retire his trusty Silverado. Apparently both General Motors and Shell Oil are interested in taking it off of his hands.

So what is the moral of this story? Run out and buy a Chevrolet, right? No, even if I had stock in General Motors (which I do not), I would not be interested in influencing your transportation choices. But all of us admire dependability, don’t we? We applaud when we run across products that live up to their hype – that meet and exceed our expectations. In an increasingly disposable society, perhaps we are even more impressed when we stumble across something that lasts.

Reading the news articles about Mr. Oresnik’s truck did get me to thinking about the dependability of our God. It is not something that can be measured in miles. Perhaps it is best gauged in experience. How did the young shepherd David know he could depend on God to help him defeat Goliath? Because God had been dependable in the past! “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine…” (1 Samuel 17:37). Even Chevrolet can’t match God for dependability!

God loves you!

Mike