Testimony
of Warren A Johnson
26
Dec 2023
For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall
be saved.” Romans 10:13 NKJV
My Christian walk hasn’t always been sinless, but
my New York pastor of thirty-five years, Robert Engelhardt, brought me to my knees
in repentance. My prayer life grew and my confidence in faith solidified. Here
in Spartanburg, Pastor Rich Butler of Hope Church, and God’s other servants,
encourage the same lifestyle. I ride, blessed knowing who my God is, and He
inhabits my being.
May I tell you a story?
On November 8th, the sunshine fills a
cloudless sky. Perfect for a weekday motorcycle ride after a summer of
mechanical issues preventing such things. Traffic barely exists, and the leaves
drop, but the fair breeze cleans the roads of their litter. Route 276 winds up
the mountainside with hairpin turns and short radius bends around the rock
outcrops to the Caesar’s Head State Park in North Carolina. The bike I’ve owned
for fifty years performs flawlessly. My heart overflows with joy.
After a brief stop at the state park and a photo
op, I enjoy the downhill run to Brevard, where I have lunch, fill up my gas
tank, and head for home on the back road to Hendersonville. I approach a T
intersection coming from the left, where light traffic enters my path of
travel. My clear road surface shows no obstacles and I observe the entering
cars to be sure they won’t collide with me. In that same stretch in front of me
is a hard right turn marked at 30 mph. I’m confident with the bike and my
mountain experience, and lean the bike over to take the right-hand curve past
the new road construction at the intersection.
The Romans verse comes within the context of Paul
explaining faith and the living under it. As my bible says, “They (the
teachings) answer questions on how to be delivered from sin, how to live a
balanced life under grace, and how to live in the power of the Holy Spirit.” I
was about to experience this in real life.
Halfway around this curve in Brevard, out of
sight because of the terrain and the flora growing on the inside of the bend, I
discover an unmarked railroad track crossing at an impossibly oblique angle to
my travel path. Iron rails mean disaster.
With oncoming traffic, the options flee. I jerk
the bike upright so I can brake and hope to maintain enough control to avoid
certain death in a head-on collision. The bike steering is out of control and I
bear into the oncoming lane. A mere split second before smashing into the first
car, I realize all my efforts will be for naught, and I remember Who is with
me. I say one word. “Jesus.”
The responding paramedic came up to me to ensure
I was the victim and there were no passengers with me. I stood calmly alongside
the road where two young men assisted me to my feet. I knew my injuries weren’t
significant, other than my hands hurt. After doing a quick assessment of me,
looking at the bike and car, and back at me, the experienced medic says, “I’ve
never seen anybody get up and walk away from an accident like this.”
I stand here today as a living testimony God’s
grace exceeds man’s expectations. But you also need to understand even if your
life isn’t Biblically perfect, the regular immersion in God’s Word, through the
Holy Spirit within you, and under the corporate teaching of a dedicated church
group, you have access to God’s redeeming grace.
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