Yes, there were angels in Indiana that long-ago December. And they all hung out at the Big Wheel truck stop. In September 1960, I woke up one morning with six hungry babies and just 75 cents in my pocket. Their father was gone. The boys ranged from three months to seven years; their sister was two. Their Dad had never been much more than a presence they feared. Whenever they heard his tires crunch on the gravel driveway they would scramble to hide under their beds. He did manage to leave 15 dollars a week to buy groceries. Now that he had decided to leave, there would be no more beatings, but no food either. If there was a welfare system in effect in southern Indiana at that time, I certainly knew nothing about it. I scrubbed the kids until they looked brand new and then put on my best homemade dress. I loaded them into the rusty old 51 Chevy and drove off to find a job. The seven of us went to every factory, store and restaurant in our small town. No luck. The kids stayed, crammed into the car and tried to be quiet while I tried to convince whomever would listen that I was willing to learn or do anything. I had to have a job. Still no luck. The last place we went to, just a few miles out of town, was an old Root Beer Barrel drive-in that had been converted to a truck stop. It was called the Big Wheel. An old lady named Granny owned the place and she peeked out of the window from time to time at all those kids. She needed someone on the graveyard shift, 11 at night until seven in the morning. She paid 65 cents an hour and I could start that night. I raced home and called the teenager down the street that baby-sat for people. I bargained with her to come and sleep on my sofa for a dollar a night. She could arrive with her pajamas on and the kids would already be asleep. This seemed like a good arrangement to her, so we made a deal. That night when the little ones and I knelt to say our prayers, we all thanked God for finding Mommy a job. And so I started at the Big Wheel. When I got home in the mornings I woke the baby-sitter up and sent her home with one dollar of my tip money–fully half of what I averaged every night. As the weeks went by, heating bills added another strain to my meager wage. The tires on the old Chevy had the consistency of penny balloons and began to leak. I had to fill them with air on the way to work and again every morning before I could go home. One bleak fall morning, I dragged myself to the car to go home and found four tires in the back seat. New tires! There was no note, no nothing, just those beautiful brand new tires. Had angels taken up residence in Indiana? I wondered. I made a deal with the owner of the local service station. In exchange for his mounting the new tires, I would clean up his office. I remember,,, See ANGELS- page 16 When most people think of Thanksgiving, they think of a day we celebrate by having a Turkey dinner with all the fixings and have all the family over to our house. They may not know what we are celebrating or some may know it’s remembering when the Pilgrims came from England, discovered America, and had a feast with the Indians who lived nearby. We have many things to be thankful for. First of all, for Christians, we are thankful for a wonderful heavenly Father who loves us unconditionally and has given us all things that pertain to life and godliness. 2 Pet. 1:3. We are thankful that we have a promise of life eternal with Him in Heaven. He has given us abundant promises that cover everything we could possibly need or want, and He has given us His Word to lead, guide, and direct us in every step we take. 1 Thess. 5:18 says, “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.” In other words, live in a state of gratitude to God. Be thankful to Him for being with you no matter how bad things look or how bad you feel. Things are subject to change. When you spend time studying your Bible, you will find God has made a way for you to come out of the darkness of this world and live in the Light of Jesus. God has revealed Himself to us as provider, healer, peace, shepherd, righteousness, victory, and everything else we need in this life in order for us to overcome everything we encounter. God wants us to live a totally victorious life depending on Him. In the end, nothing can separate us from the love of God. Rom. 8:38-39, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life . . . nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God” . . . We need to have a listening ear so that we can hear Him as He directs our steps on a moment-by-moment basis. He promises to give us a fulfilled life until we are satisfied and then we get to go home to Heaven to live with Him for all eternity. How wonderful is that? I say, “Thank you Lord for everything you have done for me. Thank you for being my wonderful, loving Father in whom there is no guile, no pretense, no evil – only love, devotion, faithfulness, and promise. Join me in being thankful to our wonderful Father God on this Thanksgiving Holiday.u DECEMBER 2024 GLAD TIDINGS PEGGY CLARK Pearl River, LA MARRIAGE FROM HEAVEN AN INTERNET CONNECTION by CHRISTIAN AUTHOR PEGGY ROTH CLARK Publisher Zulon Press One Christian Widow and One Christian Widower’s parallel Journey of Faith A true testimony of Godʼs faithfulness Can Be Purchased: Christian Book Stores Amazon.com & Barnes & Noble.com Author: prclark7@gmail.com Delightful and Inspiring! Tomorrow’s Best Seller Today! 6 IN EVERYTHING GIVE THANKS Angels in Indiana Rejoice always, pray continually, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus. - 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 NIV
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