The Respect hitmaker, 73, and her entourage were en route to Chicago when her bus suffered transmission issues and ground to a halt on the side of the Interstate 290 highway.

Her assistants were starting to get a little desperate as they struggled to find a local car service to pick the group up, but Franklin's prayers were answered moments later as the local police showed up and offered their help.

Authorities sent three cars from the Illinois State Police and three vehicles from the Illinois Department of Transportation to help get the superstar and her crew to their hotel, and Franklin has since expressed her thanks to the officers.

Her spokesman, Clarence Waldron, reveals the singer exclaimed, "Hallelujah!", upon cops' arrival and said, "God was right on time."