Proverbs 3:5-6 - Trust in the
Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your
ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. (NASB)
After two weeks in Florida, USA, away from the winter,
with our only concern being how we were going to spend our sunny days, it was
time to think about the journey home. Knowing that the drive would take us
twenty-four hours, and having four drivers, we decided to make the trip without
an overnight stay. In the age of technology that we live in, it is very easy to
check the weather forecast for a twenty-four- to thirty-six-hour period. Having
done this and having seen no significant weather patterns, we planned our route
home. What we hadn't taken into account in our planning was the influence that
"lake effect snow" can and did have on our journey home.
We travelled uneventfully until we were about 500
miles from home. It was at this point that we had engine troubles, which slowed
our journey down as we limped slowly towards home. The next encounter was the
lake effect snow that we had to drive through for the last three hours of the
trip. Stopping was not really an option due to the engine troubles, and yet
going on seemed an impossible task also. Pressing on was what we did. Text
messages were sent out to people we knew to ask them to pray for us and for the
van to get us home. After thirty hours on the road, we arrived in the driveway
safe and sound, with the travel trailer backed in place and the canoe and kayak
safe and secure on the roof of the van. Text messages were then sent out to let
people know that we had arrived home, thanking them for their prayers. At the
end of the trip all the praise and glory was given to God, who had seen us
through the storm.
The next day, the van went in to the mechanic, who to
this day cannot explain how we drove the last 500 miles. The less technical
explanation of this is that the van needed a new engine, which has just been
installed.
It would have been so easy for us to focus on the bad
weather, the breakdown of the van, and the subsequent cost of having the van
repaired. In doing this, we would have missed the Lord's hand and His promises
in our lives and daily situations.
How many times have we Christians found ourselves in
the middle of the storms of life, or have run into such a storm, whether
prepared or unprepared for it? It is during these times that if we take it to
the Lord, then our faith increases. I am not saying that we won't doubt, but
instead, we aim toward knowing what to do with doubts when they do come at us.
Doubts should drive us back to God's promises and not cause us to back away from
Him.
Deuteronomy 31:8 - The Lord himself goes before you
and will be with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid;
do not be discouraged. (NIV)
Prayer: Dear Lord, thank You for the Word and Your
promises that we have through reading the Word. Thank You that we can call upon
others who will come to our aid in prayer. Lord, bring comfort to those who are
weak in their faith right now. In Jesus' name, we pray. Amen.
Julie Bowles
julieanni@rogers.com
Barrie, Ontario, Canada
Thanks to http://daily.presbycan.ca
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