What Ted Lacey Did With the Pain Life Threw His Way
By Mo Hodge
He was taken in by his grandparents. Times were tough. The depression hit. And his grandpa had a stroke. His grandma took care of his grandpa, bedridden. And Teddy took over the farm work. At age 12. Oh, and when he was a little tike, he fell and broke his arm. And the doctor failed to set it correctly. So his arm grew crooked, and weak. So there was that, too.
Eventually the bank took the farm. And Teddy was sent off to his aunt’s house in a distant town. One of their friends there owned a service station, back when they did more than pump gas. He let Teddy come to the station and sweep the floor and put away the tools. And he quickly learned to change the oil and do repair work.
He soaked up everything he could during his service station years. And he eventually became a master mechanic. He and his partner owned their own successful auto repair business for over 40 years . . . L & S Auto Repair. Maybe your dad or your grandpa depended on Ted to keep their cars running.
But the best was yet to come. I don’t know how he did it, but he landed Sallie Coble as his wife. She was definitely from the other side of the tracks, the sophisticated side. And he was, well, a little rough around the edges. Together they made a formidable duo. Sallie sold real estate and managed the books and Ted and Harold, his partner, built their business.
And they had two children. The oldest, Nancy, loved her first grade teacher so much that she wanted to become one. And she did. And the youngest, Bryan, loved engineering. So he went off to Purdue and became one. And Nancy and Bryan married and provided Ted and Sallie with 4 grandchildren. And oh how he loved his family. Maybe because he never really had one. And Jesus. His children loved Jesus. And eventually he did too.
So my point is two-fold. One is that I love and respect my father-in-law Ted. For many reasons, not the least of which was that he gave me my sweetheart, his daughter, Nancy, for my wife and the mother of our two children. But second is that I want you to know that you probably aren’t going to face near the trouble in your life that Ted Lacey did. And that what doesn’t kill you can make you stronger. But how can that happen?
I never once heard him complain about his worthless dad. Or losing his sweet mother. Or being shifted from one home to another. Or having to work the farm at age 12. Or having to sweep the floor of a garage. Or having a crippled arm. Instead he used the pain he faced and built something great on it. The kind of pain that destroys some people made him stronger. And they can for you.
As founding Pastor of The Bridge Community Church and Executive Director of Mo Hodge Ministries, Mo resources Pastors and Leaders in the area of leadership development. He enables Pastors and leaders in the following areas: Developing Teams, Church Growth, Church Planting, Discipleship Multiplication, Nonprofit Organizational Management, Multi-site Church Development, Public Speaking, Capital Campaigns, and Sr. Pastor Succession. … Mo and his wife, Nancy, live in Anderson, IN with their children and grandchildren. Though retired, Mo is still active in ministry, preaching, teaching, and planting new churches wherever the Lord leads. You can follow him on LinkedIn or through his Newsletter.
Feature photo is used by permission and is the property of Mo Hodge.
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