My paternal grandmother, Fern (Hurd) Williams, grew up in a family in which she was one of 12 siblings. As was quite typical at that time, families were large, and incomes were small. Her father, Ray Hurd, worked at whatever jobs he could find to keep food on the table. At the time of this story they lived in Saint Helena, California. And just about a quarter of a mile (400 meters) down the street lived a wonderful elderly woman by the name of Ellen White.
Now, Sister White was in the custom of taking buggy rides to get out in the fresh air and sunshine each afternoon. This also gave her the chance to stop in and check on people she knew and worried about. She had a particular concern for the Hurd family because of their family’s size and income level. On a number of occasions she employed Great-grandpa Ray to prune her orchard and do other odd jobs around her place. Quite often she would simply pop in to see how they were doing. My grandma was a small child then, but later in life she spoke of her fond memories of Sister White’s visits.
The Beneficiary
Fast-forward a number of decades. World War II ended, and a huge building boom began occurring in the United States. Sawmills sprang up all over the Pacific Northwest, bringing with them many jobs. At least two of my grandma’s brothers became truckers, hauling lumber from sawmills in northern California to wherever it was needed.
One of her brothers, the youngest, entered a truck dealership in Santa Rosa, California, looking to buy a lumber truck. The demand at the time was huge. The owner of the establishment agreed to sell him a truck with financing through their establishment. Everything went well for some time, and then there was a downturn in the demand for lumber. Finances started getting tight, and he started worrying as to whether he would be able to keep up with his truck payments. Being conscientious and trying to do the right thing, he decided to go to the dealership and let the owner know that if he couldn’t make all the payments, he would repay the owner as soon as he possibly could after work picked back up again.
After he shared his situation with the owner, the man seemed to take it quite calmly and simply said, “Mr. Hurd, don’t worry about a thing! I will take care of it.”
Within a couple weeks a letter arrived in the mail from the truck dealership. He opened it and scanned the document in front of him in disbelief! There, on the front of the original title document for his truck, it read “PAID IN FULL.” As soon as he could, he made his way back to the dealership to clear up an obvious error.
After informing the owner of the reason for his visit, the man leaned back in his chair and said; “Mr. Hurd, I need to tell you a story.”
The Deposit
“When I was a small boy, I lived not too far from where your family lived. In fact, I knew who your family was. A time came,” he continued, “when, one by one, each member of my family fell ill, until I was the only one who could still do anything, and even I was starting to feel bad. I was doing everything I could to care for the rest of my family, but as a small child, I didn’t know what to really do to nurse them back to health. At that critical moment, when the lives of our entire family hung in the balance, there was a knock at the door, and when I opened it, an elderly woman by the name of Mrs. White was standing there and wanted to know how our family was doing.”
“After entering and evaluating our plight,” he said, “she excused herself with the promise that she would go get supplies and return. She was soon back and never left our sides until every one of us had regained our health. What an angel of a woman she was.”
The store owner continued, “I have done very well financially, and for quite some time now I have been convicted that I should do something, for someone, to pay forward the great gift that woman gave to us. Our whole family, no doubt, owed our lives to her. I don’t think any of us would be alive today if she hadn’t arrived at just the right time to save us. I knew that she was a Seventh-day Adventist, and I know that you are a Seventh-day Adventist, so the thought occurred to me, Who better to give a helping hand to than someone from her same faith? So, no, there has been no mistake on your truck’s title. Your loan is paid in full, and I can sleep well, knowing that I was finally able to pay forward that gift we received so long ago!”
My great-uncle went home that day praising God and so thankful that not only did Mrs. White demonstrate that God’s healing principles work, but she showed, by her actions, that she practiced what she preached, in love for others and in following God’s health principles.