Updated : 28/05/2005

Rolling On The Highway
By Ellance Tsu

I come from a traditional Chinese family deeply entrenched in ancestral worship and Chinese beliefs. When one has troubles or is seeking a fortune, the advice of many Chinese mediums in temples are sought to the extent of seeking them in various parts of the country. Nevertheless, the end result was still no blessings or peace!

Then in the 1980s, I went into business with others and was involved in various types of investment including the manufacturing of plastic moulding products.

In 1988, among others, the company ventured into the restaurant business and held the inaugural opening of a seafood restaurant on 8 August. What an auspicious day but the future turned out to be otherwise. Business was poor, and soon was taking its toll on the capital. The other businesses within the group were also losing money. As time went by, the group suffered even greater financial difficulties. It was further complicated by staff and labour shortage problems. We could not collect money from our debtors. Our creditors were literally breathing down our necks. Our bankers demanded that we regularized our accounts. In short, we were broke and started to liquidate some of our assets and eventually closed down some businesses. Before long, my life was in a mess.

My family began to give me lots of problems too. Because of my business failures, my parents and siblings lost confidence in me. They were very unhappy over the mess and the ‘shame’ I had brought to the family. On top of that, my wife was very angry at how useless and worthless I had become. I could not sleep most nights. I became a zombie. Going to my office was a difficult task. I was in a dilemma; the whole episode was a great mental torture to me. I felt my mind went blank and was not functioning normally. I was incapable of simple tasks like driving my car. I could not drive for even a short distance without swerving towards oncoming traffic or the drain on my left. My right hand shivered when I used the chopsticks at mealtimes and also incapable of logical thinking and reasoning. I had lost my will to live and many times contemplated suicide as the easiest way left for me to get out of my depression.

At the lowest ebb of my life when all hope had gone, God sent a Christian lady to work in my plastic moulding factory. She shared the love of God with me. How true the saying, “No God – No Peace; Know God – Know Peace,” for indeed I felt the peace. Months later, on 22 November 1988, I accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Saviour and Lord. From then on, Jesus gave me hope to live on with a brand new beginning. He also gave me the peace that literally no one or nothing else on earth can give. I can now sleep peacefully. There is also tremendous joy and happiness though life then after was ups and downs. To know Jesus is to love Him; to love Him is to find the answers to all questions that fill the troubled mind. Apart from Him, chaos is the norm; with Him the hungers of the mind and heart find their fulfillment.

Financially, things turned for the better as I continued to put my trust in the Lord. He showered me with wisdom in my business dealings. My relationship with my loved ones also took a turn for the better.

Looking back, I thank the Lord for restoring my life and healing me of my hurts and anger. The trials I underwent with God’s help made me better, not bitter. I praise the Lord for what he has done in my life. No one is hopeless whose hope is in God. Only God can turn a mess into a message, a test into a testimony, a trial into triumph and a victim into a victor!

Years ago, I completed my university examinations in the UK and made plans to work and later travel to Europe. I secured a job as a driver at the Hertz Car Rental branch at Marble Arch, London, as I was familiar with the local roads. It was the beginning of summer, and tourists were flocking in by the droves. The demand for car rental was reaching its peak, and drivers for moving cars around were in short supply at times.

During the weekdays, because I was a fresh driver I normally did two eight-hour shifts. It was a routine job without much excitement. During the weekends, the wage was too attractive a bait for me not to bite. On Saturdays the pay was raised by half on top of the usual rate per hour, and on Sundays the remuneration was triple-fold. Though an inexperienced driver, I was given the opportunity to drive because of the shortage of drivers.

It was a marvelous stint of work which allowed me to drive cars of different makes ranging from compacts to luxury models. During this 'nice' period of my life, God was the last thing on my mind.

One Sunday, 25 June, I had completed the early morning and evening shifts as usual without any untoward event. We huddled into the office lounge around 7.40pm at the dispatch room for the late shift. We were briefed that we would be delivering seven new cars to Manchester airport up north. Two other drivers were to accompany the convoy as ‘runners’ and they would send all the drivers back to the London base, after the drop-off.

The convoy included two Fiats, six Ford Cortinas and one Ford Granada. The two Fiats, driven by experienced drivers, were to shepherd the group, just in case, "anyone should decide to get lost" during the journey. We were each assigned a vehicle and I was to drive a brand new Ford Cortina with only 28 miles on the odometer.

I remember saying a short prayer for journey mercies, as I usually did when I started on a trip. It was something I did, more out of habit than from any firm "religious conviction". I considered myself a nominal Christian because I hardly read the Bible and therefore never had a real relationship with Christ.

I strapped the seat belt firmly across me and turned on the ignition. The lead car, a dark maroon Fiat, signalled a short horn and drove into the evening traffic followed by the rest of us.

The lead car was driven fast. I was driving in position number 5 in the convoy, and I was aware that I had to make an effort to keep the cars in front of me in view, especially when we passed various junctions and turn-offs along the motorway.

At one point the road gently dipped into a valley, with high embankments on the left and right. I recalled seeing windsock indicators by the roadside, but they did not register in my mind as being connected to the highway.

We were travelling in the fast lane, easily in excess of 120 mph on the three-lane motorway when suddenly I felt the car ‘float’ over the white line towards the middle, almost hitting the central barrier. I pulled the steering wheel to the left and at the same moment I must have also stepped on the brakes. (Later the driver of the car behind me said that was a fatal mistake!) The car spun thrice and rolled over five times down a steep slope. It then smashed through a row of horse fencing and finally came to rest with the front end facing upwards towards the direction we had come from. The engine was flung into the field nearby!

Still strapped in the front seat, I struggled for some deep breaths. After lying there for a while, I managed to release the seat belt and crawled out through the rear right window. I felt "a pair of hands" lifted and pulled me away from the car and drop me onto the cold damp ground. The car, roof almost flattened, was a complete wreck!

All glass on the vehicle was smashed, including the watch I was wearing. However, I was miraculously alive, not conscious of any pain or cut, and could move my body!

No blood was spilled at all. I was also remarkably steady on my feet, considering what I had just been through! Only then did I see people coming down the slope to inspect the wreck. I felt embarrassed, yet thankful to be in good condition!

The police arrived in their flashing blue patrol cars. I was led to a couple of cops, who put me into the back of their smart-looking Jaguar patrol car. I was terrified and thought I was under arrest! Instead, I was given a small cup of coffee to drink. I was questioned about the accident and answered the best I could while fearing the worst. When the questioning was all over, I was free to go.

The stretch of highway where the accident occurred had witnessed several similar incidents before. It was suspected, and the "blame" was put on the strong gusts of wind passing through the valley, hitting unsuspecting motorists. Hence the presence of the windsocks! Due to my inexperience, I did not know or appreciate the indicated dangers and had thought that windsocks indicated a small airfield nearby!

Today I have finally come to terms that I am still alive not because of ‘fluke or chance’. It is not even because of the seatbelt that I had on! Even less is to be credited to my driving ability during the incident. I replayed the events many, many times over in my mind, thinking how I could have escaped injury or even death. The small blue-black bruise I had sustained on my ankle and my smashed watch quickly reminded me how violent the accident was. That I had survived in the ‘melee of the tumbling car’, amidst the destructive forces strong enough to totally destroy the car, was simply because of ‘something or someone’ who protected me. Who had pulled me from that car? I don’t know the answer to that either, because no one could have been there so soon after the crash. I have tried to deny credit for my life to the right person for far too long.

I’m alive today simply because I had prayed prior to the start of my journey. At that time I did not appreciate the power of prayer. I had prayed in simple faith, even shallow understanding, knowing only that I felt it was ... “the right thing to do!”

God in His mercy had heard and answered and spared my life. Because of His mercy, I am alive today. In His mercy I have grown to be more conscious of His omniscient presence. I am very conscious of this "second chance" every day, even as I continue to struggle with my weaknesses daily. Boasting excluded, pride lowered, I am only a sinner, saved by grace.