Master’s Mechanics: Driven to Serve
“Their ministry has blessed me beyond measure because I don’t have the budget to set aside for car repairs,” says Pam Shipley, 68, a part-time caregiver and member of the church who recently lost her previous source of income.
Shipley’s 2016 Chrysler Town and Country van has received oil changes and other fixes from the group, who donate all labor and, at times, parts. Shipley was even rescued by one of the guys when her granddaughter’s car wouldn’t start in sub-freezing temperatures.
The small-group-with-a-purpose began in 2021 under the church’s larger initiative, Serve Columbus, which helps to multiply the church’s broader community assistance efforts. Chad Behrman, who worked for the Rolls Royce Corporation in Indianapolis for 23 years as a design specialist for jet engine gearboxes, drew on his mechanical background and pulled together guys with the same desire to serve. Columbus is also home to the Cummins engine factory, and a number of Cummins employees attend Columbus First AG.
“Lori and I wanted to be the hands and feet of Christ to those around us, to find things we could focus on and do relatively well,” Behrman says. “We said, ‘Let’s start where we’re at, look around us and see what the need is.’”
Their first repair project was on a 1984 Vanagon for a traveling minister. That effort created a core of men which then began helping widows, the elderly, and those in serious need. They meet in the Behrmans’ large pole barn which is equipped with two repair bays and a vehicle lift.
“We’ve done rack and pinion changes and I-don’t-know-how-many brake changes,” Behrman says. “We never put a limit on what we’ll work on. We say, ‘God, if you want us to get this done, make it available talent-wise and experience-wise.’”
If someone’s car is inoperable, the guys go pick it up. Lori provides snacks, and the group’s members bond while tackling car problems.
“That’s the small group aspect,” says Behrman. “So many people say, ‘How can we get men engaged?’ I say, ‘Hey, we have a small group meeting for four years that’s pretty tight. Just do stuff together and do it for the long haul.’”
The men often pray together and at times have shed tears with one of the members who was going through a tough situation. Car-repair skills are not required to join, and Behrman and the more-experienced brethren “coach” guys who come in without automotive repair experience.
Associate pastor Daniel B. Reynolds says the need in the church and beyond for mechanical assistance is acute.
“One lady’s engine was running badly, and they had the whole head off a few months ago,” he recalls. “Another lady’s vehicle was getting dangerous for her to drive. If Chad and his team weren’t able to step in, I don’t know what she would have done getting to work, doctor’s visits and things. For her it was a huge relief and blessing.”
Recently, a single mother of two young children saw her car light come on and prayed, “God, you’ve got to get me to a man who knows what’s going on.” She was referred to Behrman’s team who diagnosed a problem other mechanics had overlooked because the Master’s Mechanics team had encountered the same problem on another car six months earlier.
“We got everything done that night and it purred like a kitten,” Behrman says.
Shipley says her financial circumstance has been “extremely difficult,” and she scrambles to pay the bills. So when a repair light came on earlier this year and her brakes started vibrating severely when used even at low speeds, she knew she needed help. Master’s Mechanics solved the problem which “absolutely gives me peace of mind,” she says. “It means more than words can say.”
Behrman says leading the ministry is a simple act of obedience.
“It came back to two things,” he says. “If you know the good you ought to do and don’t do it, you’re sinning. Second, the Lord gives you talents and if you’re not using them then he’s going to take them away from you. Our talent is to work on cars. If you see something you can do, there’s no reason not to help someone out.”
