Sometimes encouragement comes from places we do not expect.
Not from a sermon.
Not from a conference.
Not from a planned moment of reflection.
Sometimes it comes while standing at the front counter of an auto repair shop.
That is what happened to me.
What should have been a simple trip to the mechanic became one of those small moments God used to remind me that faith does not have to be hidden, and that a simple act of boldness from one business owner can encourage another person walking through a storm.
At the time, I did not realize how much I needed that reminder.
But looking back, I believe God used that moment to help revive my boldness in faith.
A Season That Stretched Our Family
Starting in early 2025, our family entered one of the hardest seasons we have walked through.
An immediate family member was diagnosed with cancer. Later that year, our life and business were shaken as Tanya stepped away from work to serve as a primary caregiver through hospice until the holidays and the loss of a loved one.
Then came New Year’s Eve.
Our daughter, who had just graduated college, fell and suffered a serious knee injury that required surgery to rebuild the knee, followed by months of being bedridden and going through rehab.
During that time, Tanya hurt herself while helping care for our daughter. Tanya is petite, and the heavy lifting and caregiving took a toll on her body. Eventually, she needed surgery of her own and six weeks of rehab.
We are so grateful to God that Tanya returned to work on July 6, 2026.
But that season was heavy.
Family illness.
Hospice.
Loss.
Surgery.
Rehab.
Business pressure.
Trying to keep showing up when life felt uncertain.
Many small business owners understand this. Life does not stop because the business needs you. Customers still need help. Orders still need to go out. Vendors still need answers. Bills still arrive.
And in the middle of it all, you try to keep walking.
A Simple Trip to the Mechanic
During that season, I took our daughter’s car to the mechanic for some minor repairs.
At first, nothing seemed unusual.
I walked in, looked around, and noticed a sanitizer sign on the front counter. During COVID, we all grew accustomed to seeing sanitizer stations and signs everywhere, but they are not as common now.
Then I looked a little closer.
Under the sign was an open Bible, resting on a stand.
The sanitizer sign had another line of text that said something along the lines of:
Sanitizer cleans your body, but Scripture cleanses your mind and soul.
I stood there and took it in.
It was simple.
It was quiet.
It was not flashy.
But it was bold.
Here was a typical small business, doing everyday work, repairing cars, serving customers — and they were also willing to openly acknowledge their faith.
That stayed with me.
A Business That Was Not Hiding Its Faith
We live in the birthplace of Chick-fil-A, one of the most well-known Christian-based businesses in the country.
So the idea of faith and business is not completely foreign around here.
But this felt different.
This was not a national brand.
This was not a polished corporate message.
This was a local business.
A repair shop.
A place where people come in for oil changes, brakes, repairs, and the everyday problems of life.
And there, on the counter, was an open Bible.
It was not forced.
It was not complicated.
It was simply there.
A quiet witness.
A reminder.
A small act of boldness.
And for reasons I did not fully understand in that moment, it encouraged me.
The Radio Station I Needed
After leaving the mechanic, I got back in the car.
Normally, I listen to audiobooks while driving. That is my usual habit.
But that afternoon, I turned the book off and started channel surfing the radio.
After a few minutes, I came across 93.3 The Joy FM.
The DJ’s voice sounded familiar, and I am fairly certain that station had been playing in the customer service area at the mechanic shop.
I left it on.
Then I kept leaving it on.
For several days during my commute, instead of listening to my usual audiobooks, I listened to Christian music and encouragement.
In a season where I was tired, stretched, and trying to carry a lot, that simple change began to minister to me.
It created space.
It quieted some of the noise.
It reminded me to pray.
It reminded me that God was present.
And it made me think about that open Bible on the mechanic’s counter.
Timid Steps Toward Boldness
During that season, I began to feel a nudge.
Not to be loud.
Not to be performative.
Not to turn faith into a marketing tactic.
But to stop being so timid about acknowledging the role faith plays in our lives and in KolorMatrix.
At first, I started small.
A mention here.
A hint there.
A sentence about prayer.
A line about God’s goodness.
A little more openness in how we talked about our foundation.
And something unexpected happened.
As I became more willing to acknowledge our faith, I also became more aware of the ways God was already sending encouragement.
Customers reached out.
Some visited.
Some sent kind messages.
Vendors sent emails offering various types of assistance and support.
Business emails arrived that included prayers.
Some people ended messages with their favorite Scripture.
I do not believe those blessings suddenly appeared out of nowhere.
I think many of them were there because God was already working through people.
But I may have missed them if my heart had not been opened by a simple moment at a mechanic shop.
Blessings in the Middle of the Storm
What should have been one of the most stressful times of my life was also full of blessings.
That does not mean it was easy.
It was not.
There were hard days.
There were tired days.
There were days when the weight of family, business, caregiving, and uncertainty felt heavy.
But there were also reminders of God’s presence.
There were moments of grace.
There were people who encouraged us.
There were customers who showed patience.
There were vendors who offered support.
There were prayers sent in emails.
There were Scriptures shared at just the right time.
There were small moments that reminded me we were not walking alone.
And one of the sparks that helped me see it was an open Bible sitting on the counter of an auto repair shop.
Faith in Business Is Not a Marketing Stunt
This is important to say clearly.
We do not share our faith as a marketing stunt.
We do not do it because it is a branding strategy.
We do not do it because we think it makes us better than anyone else.
We share our faith because God is good.
We share our faith because He has been faithful to us in seasons when we did not have the strength to carry ourselves.
We share our faith because business is not separate from who we are.
KolorMatrix is not perfect because we are faith-based.
We are not perfect people.
We make mistakes.
We have hard days.
We get tired.
We fall short.
But faith reminds us who we are trying to become.
It reminds us to serve.
It reminds us to tell the truth.
It reminds us to treat customers like people, not transactions.
It reminds us to be a blessing when we can.
It reminds us that the business belongs to God before it belongs to us.
A Quiet Witness Can Matter
One of the lessons I took from that mechanic shop is that we do not always know who needs encouragement.
That open Bible may have been placed there as a simple statement of faith.
But to me, it became a reminder.
A reminder that faith can be present in ordinary work.
A reminder that small businesses can honor God in quiet ways.
A reminder that someone else’s boldness can strengthen another person’s courage.
The owner or team at that shop may never know how much that moment mattered to me.
But it did.
And that makes me wonder how many small moments we all miss.
A Scripture in an email.
A prayer offered at the right time.
A kind word from a customer.
A song on the radio.
A Bible on a counter.
A reminder that God is near.
Sometimes the smallest witnesses carry more weight than we realize.
Sharing Faith During Real Life
It is easy to talk about faith when life is going well.
It is harder when the valley is real.
When there is illness.
When there is loss.
When there is surgery.
When there is exhaustion.
When the business is under pressure.
When the people you love are hurting.
But maybe that is when faith matters most.
Not as a polished statement.
Not as a social media caption.
Not as a slogan.
But as a lifeline.
Faith does not mean we never hurt.
It does not mean we never worry.
It does not mean we never cry.
It means we know where to turn when we do.
It means we are not walking through the valley alone.
Why We Are Becoming More Open
Over time, I have felt more conviction that we should be more open about the foundation behind KolorMatrix.
Not everyone will understand that.
Not everyone will agree with it.
That is okay.
The goal is not to force faith on anyone.
The goal is to be honest about who we are.
For us, faith shapes how we try to do business.
It shapes how we think about customers.
It shapes how we think about service.
It shapes how we think about education.
It shapes how we think about being a blessing to others.
And if one person, walking through their own storm, sees something we share and is reminded that they are not alone, then it is worth it.
Someone Else May Need the Reminder
That is what this story is really about.
A mechanic shop did not know what our family had been walking through.
They did not know what kind of season we were in.
They did not know that a simple open Bible on a counter would stay with me.
But God knew.
And maybe that is why sharing faith matters.
Not because we always see the result.
Not because we always know who is listening.
Not because every person will respond.
But because someone may need the reminder.
Someone may be carrying fear.
Someone may be exhausted.
Someone may be trying to keep a business running while their family is hurting.
Someone may be quietly praying for strength.
Someone may need to see that another business owner still believes God is good.
Final Thoughts
What started as a simple trip to the mechanic became more than a car repair.
It became a reminder.
A reminder that faith does not have to be hidden.
A reminder that small businesses can be used by God in quiet ways.
A reminder that boldness does not always have to be loud.
A reminder that someone else’s courage can help revive our own.
So yes, we share our faith.
Not as a marketing stunt.
Not as a way to impress anyone.
But because God is good.
And because one day, someone else may be facing a storm and need to be reminded that they are not alone.
God is with us when we dance on the mountaintops.
And He is still with us when we cry our way through the valley.