Keeping your faith on the road: A trucker’s struggle to make time for worship
Being on the road most of your adult life is a taxing situation any way you look at. For truckers who want to stay true to their faith, it can be additionally troubling with their lack of social interaction.
As a goal, a trucker will try to get 500-600 miles a day because many of them work at a "by-the-mile" payment plan for their company. If that trucker gets caught in a large traffic jam then they may only get 50 miles and that makes for a bad day of work and weighs on the mind.
Being away from family and spouses for this amount of time can also tax moral obligations. Temptations seem to rise and become unbearable. The ugly shadows of drugs, alcohol and prostitution can hang over their heads like beckoning beacons of escape. Surrounded by sin, it may be difficult for the light of
love to shine.
So how does a spiritual mack truck driver stay in touch with that side of themselves? Being in a different state, city, or town from day to day doesn’t make it easy to be regular members of any one congregation or meeting group. A life without the uplifting words of God can quickly form moments of weakness causing truckers to do things that they are not proud of.
But there is an answer: traveling mobile chapels. Set in the back of trailers and amid diners and diesel pumps, it is a prospect that truckers are familiar with and feel comfortable attending.
The Pennsylvania Transport of the
Ministry of Christ is currently operating 40 of these mobile chapels
with volunteer chaplains holding services during the week and
weekends. They have Bibles available as well as water bottles
customized with scripture readings on them. A large radio will
usually take the place of a church choir and the worship service can quickly take shape. However, the services are non-denominational to make all feel welcome.
Tony Pierzchala, a chaplain for one of the units, points out the immense solitude that truckers can feel. "A
lot of guys come in and just want to talk because they’re alone all
day," Pierzchala says.
In many instances when troubles at home take shape, these truckers will not have a social support network to help deal with them. They are forced to sit for mile after mile, hour after hour just turning their concerns over and over in their minds. There is no release and no one to vent to and help work things out during the most somber of times.
Many chaplains note that this is a large motivator and attraction of the chapels. Besides being able to stay in touch spiritually, truckers will have someone to talk to and it is not uncommon for chaplains to sit and have coffee after the services with truck drivers.
While it’s hard to replace the comforts of home and your normal place of worship, when making a living means taking to the road full-time, you must make do with what you have. In the eyes of the Lord, He isn’t judging where your prayers are coming from,- He is hearing them as loud and clear as ever, no matter where you roam.
Lee Anderson is a contributing writer for TruckertoTrucker.com.
He writes on a variety of issues truckers face during their adventures on the road.
