“A miracle of Jesus” – Missionary who broke down in Vicksburg feels blessed; “I’m very proud of my deputies” – Sheriff Pace

A church group traveling from Camden, Arkansas, to southern Louisiana on a mission trip broke down while passing through Vicksburg.

The group from Camden left Arkansas earlier this morning for the six-hour journey, which comes right through Vicksburg. While on Highway 27 near Warriors Trail, their van experienced a mechanical failure, leaving them on the side of the road. “We were all in the van singing ‘Honey in the Rock,’ singing and praying for a miracle when my husband said, ‘Oh no!’ and we pulled to the side of the road, broke down,” said Joyce Tillery, one of the mission organizers.

The group and their disabled van.

A former detention officer at the Warren County Jail, Jessie Harris, stopped to check on them and called dispatch to report them broken down on a dangerous part of Highway 27. Deputy Chreka Clark was dispatched to the call to assist the stranded missionaries. “She was so nice,” noted Tillery about Deputy Clark, who was recently named Deputy of the Year by the Vicksburg Homecoming Benevolent Club.

While waiting for repairs, the group decided to walk to the Texaco just north of them on Highway 27. Deputy Clark escorted the group in her marked unit, with lights flashing, as they walked to an area gas station. “We felt like royalty! She kept us safe and cautioned drivers to slow down as we walked. We’ve never been treated like that,” said Tillery.

Deputy Daniel Thomas arrived on the scene and stayed at the location to assist them however he could. Shortly after that, Owens Diesel on 61 North told the group the repair to their vehicle would require a mechanic to travel to Jackson to get a part. That news prompted Deputy Thomas to find a way to get the missionaries off the side of the road. “We checked with several area churches, but we couldn’t get the right combination of them having a bus and driver,” said T. Claude Parker, a friend of Deputy Thomas. “As I was driving my SUV to their location, I remembered my friend, Martha Thomas, who has a limousine. So I called her, and she said, ‘Come on!”

Parker grabbed the limo from its location on Military Avenue and took it to the side of the road to transport the church group to Cracker Barrel. “A miracle of Jesus,” said Tillery. “Everyone was so nice to us and we got a limo ride to Cracker Barrel!”

Tillery said that the van they were riding in was from Calvary Baptist Church in Arkansas, and it broke down near Calvary Baptist Church in Vicksburg. She jokingly told the group, “We made it to our destination.”

This is the tenth year Tillery has been a part of the mission to visit Global Maritime Ministries, a ministry for seafarers in South Louisiana. “We play games, eat, and just, you know, fellowship with them. They are out on the water sometimes for a year at a time. They get permission to come on shore to the church, and we try to make them feel welcome and maybe bring them to Jesus.” This year, the group includes six alumni and missionaries from age 12 to age 71.

The group at Cracker Barrel, just getting out of the limousine.

“I’ve never encountered such nice people. They stayed with us. The limo driver told us he was on standby if they needed anything else while they waited on repairs,” said Tillery

Sheriff Martin Pace said of his deputies, “Community-based law enforcement is all about helping people. I’m very proud of Deputy Clark, Deputy Thomas, and retired Jailer Harris. It’s our job to help people, and I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

Tillery said, “When we had our first meeting for our mission trip, I told this team, the same I tell every team: The keyword to being a missionary is FLEXIBILITY. God is teaching us every day.”

The group organizer reminded us of 1st Corinthians 15:58, “Therefore, my dear brothers and sisters, stand firm. Let nothing move you. Always give yourselves fully to the work of the Lord because you know that your labor in the Lord is not in vain.”

Tillery works for the Arkansas Baptist State Convention as the Baptist Collegiate Ministry campus minister on the campus of Southern Arkansas University Tech.