Eunice.

Meet Eunice.

Eunice has quite the story. Now clearly, this is not my car, but it looks just like her. I figured for where we will both be within 2 weeks, the palm trees were an appropriate background.

This blog may be kind of long (I mean, most of mine are) but she has an incredible story, which is worth your time to read. This will be a story within a story. How the idea of even getting her came about, me purchasing her, and then how the name Eunice was just the perfect fit.

Before I went to India, God told me to sell my car to help pay for the trip. So I did.

Then while I was on my DTS and realizing that I would be back in Pismo to be on staff, I would probably need a car because of the ministry that I want to do outside of just the Pismo area and the ways that I can help serve the DTS and having a small group and lalala...it goes on. So I began to pray for a car, knowing that I did NOT have the money to buy one. 

Jesus told me that He would give me one. Ok, awesome Jesus! He told me to pray for the people that would give it to me, that they would encounter His love in new and refreshing ways through the situation. He told me to pray, and pray until something happened. 

So as I got home this summer and began to support raise, and a car just looked so unlikely. About 2 weeks ago, His faithfulness once again blew me away. I literally just sat back and watched Him touch everything and be in everyone I encountered. It was incredible.

My mom had the idea of having a garage sale and to put that towards my move to Pismo. During the week before the garage sale I had been car searching, and just trusting with crazy things to happen, like I usually do. The garage sale came, with so many people donating to it. My mom, my grandma, and I threw together a garage sale in 2 days. I raised over $1000. Yes. WHAT?! That number figure will be important later on in the story.

3 days before the garage sale, I had called a dealership because I wanted to ask about their car. 

Here is how this first conversation went:

Me: "Hi, I was wondering if this car is still available"

Dan: "Umm...hold on let me check..."

(I was looking at the car online and realized in mid conversation it was a manual. crap. I can't drive that!)

Dan: "Yes! It's still available!"

Me: "Ok thanks! Bye!" 

And I hung up.

Then here is where it gets humorous. Dan (the dealer) called back and told me he had never quite had a phone call like that. He asked me if I had questions about the car or wanted to come out and test drive it? I began to laugh and told him the manual thing was going to be a problem. He started laughing, and told me he can't drive manual either, but turns out its actually an automatic and was just listed wrong. I knew this was good from the start. 

I made the drive, about 45 minutes away, to check it out.

On the drive there I was praying for discernment because car dealers can be....well dishonest. I am a young girl and gullible. Jesus told me to tell Dan (the dealer) what my job is. My thought was... seriously? SUCH a pity card. "umm hi, i'm a missionary, pity me cause clearly I have no money."

He was persistent. So I obeyed.

I pulled up in my incredible white mini van that my grandparents were so gracious to let me use for the summer. He came around the corner as I was walking up to the door and he just started laughing. 

He said, "Sweet mini van!" 

"Ok, buddy, listen. My grandparents were so gracious to let me use it this summer, hence why I am here to buy a new car!"

Then right away he asked me what I do.

There it was. This was my perfect segue to give him my job description.

So I told him, and his jaw dropped. He had this grin on his face and he came over and gave me a hug. He just had the genuine heart that radiated Jesus and was so excited to see young people pursue Jesus.

I walked around the car and we were just talking details. We had a few mishaps where I got the seatbelt stuck in the door and then couldn't get it open. It was just a time full of laughter as he was in awe that I even knew what to ask or look for. I love the joy of Jesus!

We get in the car to test drive it and he forgets to tell me the brakes are sensitive. So I hit the brakes and then our heads got a little joggle. We laugh and precede to the highway. 

The cruise control was our next tackle. Eunice has some odd quirks about her. We were laughing because neither of us could figure out the cruise. We almost hit a few things as both of us had our hands  on the wheel and me trying to hit the cruise while going about 45 on the highway... 

Then I look over and on the right passenger side window there was a white ghost sticker? He said it was there when they bought the car and he just HAD to leave it. He said it reminds us that the Spirit is always with us haha. Throughout the whole car ride we just talked about the goodness of Jesus and how faithful He is, and about our families...they are both quite large. Not your average car dealer. I knew I instantly made a friend.

We get back to the dealership and I just told him, bottom line, its out of my price range. He said, we'll talk, we will make this work. And he wasn't lying, him and his dad began to do everything they could to help me.

Come to find out after sitting down and talking with him and his dad, he graduated from Texas A&M (WHOOP!) and also started a missions organization while he was there. No wonder the missions part was important for me to mention.

I brought back my dad to check out the car a few days later. He loved it. We all got in the car (me, dad, and Dan) and just talked about Jesus and family and life. My dad loved the guy! 

We then sat down to talk numbers. Dan crunched numbers for like 20 minutes and he looks up at me with tears in his eyes saying there is just no way. There is no way if the dealership is going to make a profit, that he can come to my price. 

I had to say no. I had to walk away because I just literally didn't have the money.

On the drive home I just cried and told my dad that I felt so uneasy from walking away. Just defeated, because it was more than just a car but I had started to build trust in these guys. I just knew I was supposed to buy this car.

Then Dan sent me a text saying, "I wanted to tell you how awesome you and your dad are. You exude God's presence. I'm blessed to know you"

Done. I'm sold.

I knew that my God is not defined by a dollar bill. So I knew I just had to trust. I knew that I could NOT deny a story of God's incredible faithfulness because of money. I decided that I was going to call him back in the morning and just tell him that I am trusting Jesus and I want to be able to tell this story to everyone that comes in my car.

Before I had a chance, that morning he called me at work and told me that he talked to his dad (he's had this dealership for 38 years) and they were going to take my price because it was their way of supporting me in what I'm doing! They liked me and wanted to be apart of me getting to California.

EEEEEEKKKK!

We went back and picked up my car the next day. The money made from the garage sale paid the EXACT amount for the down payment. 

There is many more small stories of funny run ins with this dealership and stories that make this friendship between our family and theirs, but you can ask if you are really interested.

Now i'm just trusting that Jesus will provide the rest. Cause this story just exudes Him as a loving Father.

I am no where near paying it off, but I got a jump start through my grandparents giving me the mini van to sell. It sold within 2 days!!! God is so faithful.

I love Eunice because she gets to be a constant reminder and instrument of Jesus' love and faithfulness. We have so much potential together.

And yes, the ghost sticker is still there. Dan signed it.

Now if anyone, or even you, ever ride in Eunice, you are riding in a car that shows that the faith we have in Jesus is REAL. That He is a God that loves and is so faithful to His promises.

This is already really long, so in the next blog i'll explain the name :)

LOVE each of you dearly. I'm impressed if you made it to the bottom of this blog, cause it's long...