Barry Meguiar 00:03
Okay, hi everybody welcome to Ignite you probably never have an experience like we’re about to give you this is a podcast like no other podcast how many times you have an amazing faith sharing experience and then be able to months later have both sides of that experience expressed IV is this right? You don’t my best friend Dan. I just Dan I just I just got your name. I said okay. How do I introduce you? I don’t know your last name. I have no my phone Dan.
Dan Bathe 00:35
Cracker Barrel.
Barry Meguiar 00:38
But I know your last name is not Cracker Barrel. So it’s Bathe,
Dan Bathe 00:41
Bathe.
Barry Meguiar 00:42
Okay, Dad Bathe. All right. You understand the humor to that in a moment. But you know, the face sharing one on one is and we’re probably gonna go a little longer with this podcast is lowering because it’s this there’s so much we want to tell you. But face sharing one on one is when we’re whenever we are being served by somebody, particularly in a restaurant. And Karen, I do that not all the time. But we certainly do it 75% of the time, maybe more than you you get engaged with the server and you develop a relationship you can do that quite quickly. And when they’ve taken that last piece of the order, okay, you want your first fries crispy or whatever it is. They say, Oh, I have one more question. We always ask every server is there anything we can pray for you about and we get the most interesting responses back we find more than half the time people have real needs and we’re going to be praying anyway so if you have a real need we will be happy to pray for you and it let me go back on this Amis even goes back before the God direction steps okay. Any directs the steps of everybody head directs all of our steps, not just us. So Gary and I go to Springfield, Missouri in January All right, we’re going for George Woods funeral. Dr. George Boyd who was the former is the former General Superintendent essentially got a very close personal friend we arrived at about one o’clock in the afternoon the viewing is at five o’clock and the funerals the next day so we arrived at what did I get this situation? So before going to the hotel without Rob we’re hoping we might go somewhere to eat so first thing was we’ve been to Springfield a lot that’s mecca for the assembly. See God so we know a lot of restaurants. We could have gotten anywhere but we chose the Cracker Barrel. So number one god forced us to say directed our staff to Cracker Barrel we go inside. And you mostly have been to cracker where you go up in the in the the host of there says Where would you like to sit? Well, we always say, I’d like to go with the window, please. I don’t know why. We just like the window seat. There’s no view. You’re looking at a parking lot or freeway. But no, really. She says, okay, but Karen says, Wait a minute, wait a minute, it’s seven degrees outside, I don’t want to be cold. And she says, You know, it’s okay. I have a window table with a heater right beside it. So God gets us to this specific table got that funnel of itself. So then the server comes up and he was brandy. And we banter with Brandon. She brings us water, he goes out we’re getting our order together. She gets back takes her order. When we asked her the question, you know, oh, by the way, brand, is there anything we can pray for you about? And she tears up? And she’s Oh, my Yes. As she begin to tell this story about how her husband is a trucker and her best friend is a trucker. And Dan will tell this part of the story in a moment. But the way she explained to me was he was a couple of states out and receive this horrible call a nightmare for any dad that his only daughter, 23 year old daughter was found unconscious in the back of a truck and was at a terrible straits, it gets Gorder that no need to go into all the details of it. But it was that good. And by the time he gets back to her, he’s only were there for about 20 minutes and she dies. That can tell you folks, this is where telling your life story, or having points to your gospel presentation doesn’t work in real life. Those are bad, sounds good. But in real life situations, you just let the Holy Spirit speak to you speak through you I be there’s no way we could have been prepared for that. That comment, I mean that the situation she presented us. And I always say okay, God just helped me and His Holy Spirit. Always, always, always, always. You’ll give me the words. In this case, I never give up my phone number. But I felt prompted to do that. So I said, Okay, here’s my name and my phone number. And give it to your friend Dan. It happens that we lost our daughter several years ago and there may be something that we can say to him to be of encouragement. She said Well, thank you very much. We prayed with her prayed for Dan. The next morning Dan call Okay, there’s my version. Now here, we can hear your version too. My version is, he got it. Mr. Meguiar, this is Dan and you spoke with my best friend at the Cracker Barrel yesterday. And let me first tell you, I’m a Christian. Okay, it’s first thing you told me was it’s you’re Christian i Okay, there’s a good we can talk. I don’t have to worry about that part, right? You’re a Christian in distress. And so then he goes on to say, you know, I’m a car guy. And I watched your TV shows for years. I feel like I know you. I mean, we go way back. And then I follow you on social media. And I know that you’re involved in ministry, and I even know you lost your daughter. And then he says, can you possibly understand what it meant to me? A few minutes ago when my best friend says you want me to call you? I broke out laughing. I broke out laughing I did day. I don’t need to say a word. God, you already know that God is speaking to you. He’s right there with you. And he’s gonna walk you through that. And you said it’s true. I I hadn’t really thought about that. That’s true. God’s right here. That was that was the beginning of our bonding, right.
Dan Bathe 06:14
Just the beginning
Barry Meguiar 06:15
and just the beginning. And then we went on and had this wonderful conversation, many conversations. But let me back up a minute now and let you enter in from your viewpoint of up to up to that point. Can we can we do that?
Dan Bathe 06:27
We can do that. Well, this is Barry Meguiar. We got back. Anyway. I was in Texas, when I got the phone call.
Barry Meguiar 06:39
And you live in?
Dan Bathe 06:40
I live in Humans Ville, Missouri.
Barry Meguiar 06:42
Yeah. Yeah, there’s only one umans ville city named Humans Ville.
Dan Bathe 06:46
In the higher United States. Kind of like having the last name Bathe the it’s just not up there.
Barry Meguiar 06:53
It’s not up there. Beside it’s Bathe from Humans Ville. Okay.
Dan Bathe 06:57
I’m in rush hour traffic in Dallas. And if anybody knows rush hour traffic in Dallas, Texas, it’s fun.
Barry Meguiar 07:05
And you’re home, home on the load.
Dan Bathe 07:07
I got load on. And I was working for a different company than I am now. And I got this phone call and it was my ex wife. And she started beating around the bush about Danielle and I’m like, listen, just tell me. She told me I was a govern truck. But it went pretty quick. And long story short, I made it to the hospital. I was in no condition. But I made it to the hospital. Mark and brandy have always been there. For my wife and I, when I say best friends, I mean best friends. And so they knew immediately what was going on. And, you know, we made it up to the Kansas City Hospital out there and all transpired and I’ve never felt pain like that before. And I felt a lot of pain in my life. But then, the story of you meeting me was behind the scenes. Because, you know, we talked about our wives and how they are our rock. They’re everything to us. My wife is everything to me.
Barry Meguiar 08:53
She is so precious.
Dan Bathe 08:56
And so there was a lot going on on the scenes behind and I didn’t know about because Brandy would not confront me because it only been two days since Danielle’s passing and she passed in my arms. So I was
Barry Meguiar 09:20
you were holding her?
Dan Bathe 09:22
Yes. Yes, I watched the life pass from her mouth as it happened. Her daughter and so people who know me know that I’m a really funny laid back individual. People who really know me know not to make me mad. Brandi did not want to make me mad. So she went to Laurie and she explained the meeting of you to Lori. Well, Laurie knew who you were. Lori’s a Car Guy. Yeah. I mean, you know, she married me. I’m still trying to figure that one out. But long story short. She has a picture of you on her phone. We’re sitting on the couch. And she turns the phone to me and says, Do you know who this is? I’m like, Well, yeah, I know who it is, duh. You know, it’s Barry Meguiar. Who don’t know Barry Meguiar. Well, he wants to talk to you. Ah ah. Why does Barry Meguiar, want to talk to me? Wow, who am I am nobody why but wow, he lost his daughter. I know. Oh. So then the backstory?
Barry Meguiar 11:00
Yeah. Okay,
Dan Bathe 11:01
because I’m calling brandy. Okay, I’m okay. I’m gonna find out what’s going on.
Barry Meguiar 11:05
Right? This? I don’t know.
Dan Bathe 11:08
No, you have no idea. And please plant yourself because the Holy Spirit she’s gonna knock you fairly well.
Barry Meguiar 11:16
This is how God works.
Dan Bathe 11:17
So I call Brandy. And brandy was hesitant. And as you know, she wasn’t about to give my phone number up. It just that standard report we had
Barry Meguiar 11:29
Yes. Yes.
Dan Bathe 11:30
And she I respect that immensely. And she chewed on it. Do I tell him Do I not tell him
Barry Meguiar 11:43
really, really?
Dan Bathe 11:45
And one of the Bible verses that you always go back to is
Barry Meguiar 11:55
Romans 8:28 Every conversation
Dan Bathe 11:59
okay. okay So Brandi goes to pick her daughter Destiny up from school. And she’s struggling whether or not to tell me what to do. And that is what her daughter has on her arm. When she picks her up from school. Roman Romans 8:28
Barry Meguiar 12:27
What you can’t see here’s our urge. She used it with a with a felt tip pen.
Dan Bathe 12:36
Yeah,
Barry Meguiar 12:36
she just had put her
Dan Bathe 12:37
she just put it on there.
Barry Meguiar 12:39
Okay.
Dan Bathe 12:42
Brandi started bawling and praying immediately.
Barry Meguiar 12:45
See that? That’s a that’s at the heart of what we’re talking about right now. There are two dads have lost their daughters. You know, most marriages don’t. survive. And they certainly don’t have joy. But we know Romans 8:28
Dan Bathe 13:05
That’s that’s the thing
Barry Meguiar 13:08
that she confirmed that she so why did she put that on her arm? Or what was the what was the prompting of that?
Dan Bathe 13:15
We will probably never know
Barry Meguiar 13:17
we’re gonna say
Dan Bathe 13:20
we will probably never know. Brandy is looking for one of those statues at the Cracker Barrel you know how they have the statues to Cracker Barrel to try and present to me to tell me you know, hey, I hope it works out with Barry I you know, and she found a she didn’t find one that fit the situation. So she got a plaque a wooden plaque
Barry Meguiar 13:48
Okay.
Dan Bathe 13:51
When the people threw my daughter into an abandoned van nobody knew who she was because there was no identification at all. They took her phone they took everything they identified my daughter via a feather tattoo on her side that was unique. That’s how they identified my daughter. Brandi didn’t know that. Brandi didn’t know that Psalms was Danielle’s go to Bible verse. Brandy brought me a plaque with a feather and the Psalms.
Barry Meguiar 14:46
That specific chapter
Dan Bathe 14:51
if you cannot see God’s footsteps in this, you are I don’t know it just and then to call you and I’m thinking to myself,
Barry Meguiar 15:04
go back for a sec. How did brandy become our waitress?
Dan Bathe 15:08
Oh, Brandi became your waitress because it was slow. A way to man brandy only works at Cracker Barrel, one day a week. Thursday. One day,
Barry Meguiar 15:21
we just have to go in on the one day, one day how God works these things. I mean, we have lots of stories that are hard to see your waitress. Yeah,
Dan Bathe 15:32
they were slow. They sent everybody else the majority of them home. So brandy had had to be your waitress. you were stuck with brandy or brandy was stuck with you no matter what
Barry Meguiar 15:35
was it going to take any chances?
Dan Bathe 15:48
So brandy only works one day a week.
Barry Meguiar 15:51
Wow. Wow,
Dan Bathe 15:52
you do not live in Springfield, Missouri. You do not frequent Cracker Barrel on in Springfield. So the writing’s on the wall?
Barry Meguiar 16:03
It probably been two years since we’ve been to that Cracker Barrel.
Dan Bathe 16:07
I can’t say that. But I mean, it’s I’m only hesitant when I don’t see the steps.
Barry Meguiar 16:18
Yeah. yeah
Dan Bathe 16:20
But when the steps are presented to you. You can’t ignore it again. And I’ve learned that as I’ve slid down the wall of life, God, God puts stuff in my life. He puts people in my life.
Barry Meguiar 16:35
It’s so incredible.
Dan Bathe 16:36
I’ve never thought in a million years that I’d be sitting next to Barry Meguiar looking at my shelf on telly over there and, and not knowing
Barry Meguiar 16:45
only God
Dan Bathe 16:46
only God can do that
Barry Meguiar 16:47
is a sense of humor.
Dan Bathe 16:48
I am completely powered.
Barry Meguiar 16:50
There’s a podcast and they’re supposed to be short. The longer it goes, the less people watch this.
Dan Bathe 16:55
I’m done.
Barry Meguiar 16:56
So well. No, you’re not done. It’s just the beginning. But we talked. And you were not in a good situation in that first first phone call at all.
Dan Bathe 17:07
No, no, I could barely breathe without crying.
Barry Meguiar 17:09
Yeah, yeah. You were just just, you know, I did most of the talking. I could.
Dan Bathe 17:14
Yeah. And the one thing
Barry Meguiar 17:15
I could feel your pain over the phone
Dan Bathe 17:18
the one thing you said the first phone call was never lose your joy. I’m thinking to myself, What does this guy know? Never lose your joy. I just lost my one and only child. Okay, you were right. Never lose your joy. And
Barry Meguiar 17:38
well, I had it on speakerphone. Because I want Karen a part of this. So we can pray together for you in order to hear every word. When we got through. She said you left out something. I said what’s that? She said? Anybody going through what he’s gone through so wrong has have some anger brewing. Very wise. And she says and you know our situation you can we’ve learned you can’t have anger. You can’t have joy and anger. We’d like to sometimes we can languish in that anger. Boy, it feels so good. But we can’t then a lot of people did bad things there and very easy to have anger towards them. So I called you a few days later. And you answered kind of monotone me. And I said Dan, it’s Barry, and you broke out laughing. Do you remember what you said to me? You said within within the last minute. I’m sitting here with Laurie. And within the last minute we’ve been talking about how you said never lose your joy. Folks, never lose your joy never let anything lose your joy. God’s in everything is horrible, as is Harris, who’s two dads that have lost their daughters. I mean, we’ve been there okay, we’re not speaking academically that we’re speaking real life. And whatever this world throws at you God is it we can’t begin to know all the whys and wherefores but we know God is God and we know he’s in control. And and if we let if if if that was a really bad thing horrible the horrors of all that would be multiplied if that poor became a part of your life for the rest of your life.
Dan Bathe 19:29
I wasn’t gonna allow it
Barry Meguiar 19:30
No, you’re allowed.
Dan Bathe 19:32
God was not gonna allow it
Barry Meguiar 19:34
gonna let you go
Dan Bathe 19:35
I’m powerless without God.
Barry Meguiar 19:36
But he’s got to but look at what’s happened now now. It’s your testimony.
Dan Bathe 19:41
It is
Barry Meguiar 19:41
look at the people that didn’t mean we both have this opportunity now to share how would you go through the storm? I heard this country song the other day is actually you the country gospel song. Oh, I like country. Oh, I got some country. I’m a beach bum but I do have some hope. back. But this gospel song gospel Khatri saw you said, God is good when it’s good and he’s better when is bad.
Dan Bathe 20:09
Amen.
Barry Meguiar 20:09
Wow. Isn’t that true? So Dan, you can
Dan Bathe 20:16
And we live it. That’s that’s the whole thing is you can’t What do people say? You just can’t make it out? You can’t? You just can’t make it up.
Barry Meguiar 20:29
So we work and we both do the same thing.
Dan Bathe 20:32
Okay.
Barry Meguiar 20:34
We both have our phones. And we both have our, our daughter on our phones. Our daughter’s on her phone she and I got the call smiley there and daddy smile. There’s a as happy as you were, then you’re a whole lot happier now. Oh, my goodness, I can’t imagine how happier and if you’re happy, why should I be unhappy?
Dan Bathe 20:57
Exactly.
Barry Meguiar 20:57
You know, I mean, that would just didn’t make any sense. I talked with people and they’ve lost their son or daughter years ago. And it’s like it happened yesterday. And they’re still tearing up. And you and I both tear up a lot. I Miss Nicole Oh, do I miss Nicole. But I miss her. But I’m happy for her because she’s there. And we’re gonna spend eternity. And, you know, we ended up having 1000 People with Nicole’s celebration of life and, and it was a celebration time for her life and an ultra called the end and people got saved. Over 11,000 people have watched her celebration life service, you go to YouTube to go Nicole Meguiar Celebration of Life service. And people when they watch it, they tell other people to watch it to now over 11 Who goes who likes us a funeral that happened three years ago. You know, they’re still watching it. But the point is that we need to know that God is there. When when when when it’s not good. That he’s really there. He’s better in the bad times. Yes. And we’re both
Dan Bathe 22:11
If your eyes are open.
Barry Meguiar 22:12
Yeah.
Dan Bathe 22:13
And our eyes are open.
Barry Meguiar 22:14
So I mean, the best thing happens I get it. I checked my messages. And every week or so there’s what Hey, Mary’s down. boy have I got a story to tell you and you just you light my life. Every every time you light my life, and I thank God for my new best friend buddy. Truck driver from Missouri. Humans Ville,
Dan Bathe 22:42
Humans Ville, Missouri
Barry Meguiar 22:43
Humans, Ville, Missouri, that that were soulmates. Now, because we got through this together, we’re living proof. Just folks just understand. God’s always there. He never leaves you here for six he never forsake you. He’s there particularly in the bad times. If you’re struggling right now. And you think well, nobody knows the troubles I’ve seen. And that’s fine for Barry but he’s always having fun. And Dan, he gets to do live his life large and driving. How many miles this year? Have you driven
Dan Bathe 23:14
93,000 miles?
Barry Meguiar 23:16
93,000 miles, whatever you are. You’re a trucker man. You are. But but let your your
Dan Bathe 23:25
Your see that’s the other part of my story.
Barry Meguiar 23:27
Yeah, go ahead.
Dan Bathe 23:28
That job that I had,
Barry Meguiar 23:31
yeah.
Dan Bathe 23:32
They thought that their load was more important than my daughter.
Barry Meguiar 23:35
Oh, they didn’t even want to let you go back home.
Dan Bathe 23:37
No.
Barry Meguiar 23:38
Oh, my goodness. Can you believe that?
Dan Bathe 23:40
so, I took it back. They fired me. I said thank you very much. And I left. The person I drive for now. We cried and prayed together. My interview lasted three hours. Because we were busy talking praying laughing sharing the love of Jesus.
Barry Meguiar 24:03
God oh my God.
Dan Bathe 24:06
He has the footsteps you follow the footsteps?
Barry Meguiar 24:08
Yeah,
Dan Bathe 24:09
I mean, that’s that’s just people like Derrick the guy I work for their God given Barry is God given you know that. I don’t take my gifts slightly. And you know that that was God saying you do want to work for these people. You want to work for these people?
Barry Meguiar 24:32
Yeah. Okay. bottom bottom line is we sign off here. You have a final thought looked at there’s people out there that are hurting badly right now. very distraught, having horrible things happen. Your daughter was so wronged. And, and you only want to think about what she went through. And she died in your heart. You watched her lips turn blue. You went through that. And yet you sit here with the joy of the Lord had you? How’s that possible?
Dan Bathe 25:05
A friend of mine who is what Jesus taught me when I was a young man. He used to tell me all the time when I didn’t believe in myself. He said, Dan, you’re a miracle. Somebody lit a candle for you. Don’t blow it out. Don’t quit five minutes before the miracle happens.
Barry Meguiar 25:29
Oh, well.
Dan Bathe 25:32
And that’s how I live my life. That’s all I gotta say, you know, that’s how I live.
Barry Meguiar 25:38
Yeah. Well, you do.
Dan Bathe 25:40
I don’t quit
Barry Meguiar 25:40
and you join me on this. Everybody we’re with. We let our light shine.
Dan Bathe 25:45
Yeah, it’s, and that’s what I got to tell everybody just don’t quit.
Barry Meguiar 25:50
It gives Satan a black guy. I mean, he meant this, to get Danny and he meant this to get you a minute. But we turn around and we use it for good. We give him a black guy. And now you and I both have a testimony of God’s faithfulness, like few other people have. And that’s pretty cool. It’s pretty cool. I hope you get a you know, a hint of what’s going on in the lives of these two guys. We were buddies, we’re where our lives are so different. But we went to dinner a couple nights ago,
Dan Bathe 26:25
we’re the same.
Barry Meguiar 26:25
And it’s like you live out for 400 acres in the middle of nowhere. You drive and haul cattle all over the country. And I’m polishing cars and making on shed. And we came and we said we’re exactly the same. You know why? Because when we focus on God and not ourselves, we come closer and closer and closer to God. As we come closer to God, we come closer to each other, and we become one. That’s what we’ve experienced here. And that’s what he wants for all of us. When we when we honor him. We live love him. We just do everything we can to bring ourselves closer to Him and live our lives for his purpose to bring everybody we can closer to him every day. It’s so simple, but it’s profound. And we’re living proof of that.Thank you Dan
Dan Bathe 27:16
living breathing proof.
Barry Meguiar 27:17
It was a miracle even that you’re here. We’re gonna be doing these podcasts anyway today and you just he’s just Hey, Barry covered there. Phoenix I think, you know, we could can we get together, we get another miracle I thought of a man. It’s a miracle. You and I are here.
Dan Bathe 27:33
There’s so many we don’t. We didn’t talk about because there’s so many. I mean, you know.
Barry Meguiar 27:39
So anyway, that’s all the key there, all of it. And the model. The mantra for everything is if you want to have joy in the worst of times as well as the best of times. Just move everybody take you the sum total of your life. The good stuff, and particularly the bad stuff. Use it for God’s glory move everybody, every day closer to Jesus. Okay. See you next time.
