Monday, October 24, 2011

Catching a Reflection of God in the Rearview Mirror

I am a homebody; I love hanging out at home and living my everyday life. It’s comforting, but at the same time, too much of a routine can lead to complacency and our spiritual eyesight can become dull. Sometimes, a change of scenery brings a fresh jolt from the Spirit, which causes us to sit up and take notice. Everyone needs a ‘pop’ in our faith journey and this week on Kingdom Bloggers we are writing about a time when God met us on a road trip.

This week, we also welcome Dave Tvedt . For those that have been reading Kingdom Bloggers for a long time will remember him. I’ve recently met him online and from the excitement that Joyce and Tony express, I’m looking forward to getting to know him more. As for now, I just think of him like his caricature – short, bald and a big head.

We have a guest writer this week. Her name is Linda Maynard and she’ll be contributing on Thursday, please welcome her and make her feel rewarded for taking the time to contribute.

We welcome Dave, but say good-bye (at least for a while) to Tracy Chiara. Tracy is a sensitive, thought-provoking writer but her non-virtual life has been overwhelming for the past while and it’s necessary for us to release her with grace and loving-kindness and wish her God’s blessing and providence. You can keep up with her, on her personal blog, Abundant Living.

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My Man’s family has property on the west coast of Vancouver Island. Bamfield is a remote fishing village, which is its best feature and its worst feature. You can travel by the mail boat, which limits you to Tuesday, Thursday or Saturday or you can drive on a gravel logging road for 2+ hours and then take a short boat ride across the inlet.

The road to Bamfield is marked with many deaths and at the very least, the majority of travellers have punctured a tire. Many of the locals carry their own compressor to fix and inflate their flat tires on the road. We spend some time there every summer. Our first trip was more memorable than any other. On the way there, we got a flat tire and I was moderately excited. I’d never had a flat tire and I thought it was exciting because it would make a good story.

The tire story fell flat, though, in comparison to our journey home (pun intended). We’ve driven off a cliff and lived to tell about it – which I attest to the protection of the Lord. The road twists and turns a lot, and although we were not speeding or being reckless, the newly fixed tires caught some loose gravel and fishtailed. My Man tried to correct the tires but overcompensated as the car aimed straight for the log embankment. “Prepare for impact,” my brain instructed. As soon as I had thought that, I realized our car sailed right over the embankment and we were headed to the bottom of the creek bed straight below. Again, my brain told me to prepare for impact because we were going to hit a tree and I was sure we’d start to flip. No sooner had I thought that, did I realize we were riding on the tree tops.

The trees rested us gently on a pile of rock boulders, roughly 30-40ft into the creek and 30-40ft straight down from the road above. We were unhurt and stunned.

We got out of the vehicle and assessed what had just happened. Then we began to wonder how we would get help. Moments later, a voice called up from the top, through the trees, “Is anyone down there? Are you hurt? Do you need help?” A couple from Washington were on returning from a fishing holiday and had arrived on the scene, less than five minutes. The timing was perfect because had it been longer, the dust from the road would have settled over our tracks and no one would have known we were down there. They had a rope, which helped us to climb to the top because it was almost a 90° drop and they gave us a ride into the nearest town, where an aunt and an uncle lived.

The Lord was with us that day, and I’m certain the angels carried us on the tree tops to gently set up upon dry rocks in the middle of the creek. Yep, I caught a reflection of him in the rearview mirror.

Why not share your story when God showed up while you were on vacation.

3 comments:

David-FireAndGrace said...

I am going on vacation, and I ma not hoping for a story like that!

I take my middle daughter to the mountains during foliage season each year. We ride up, climb the mountain, have lunch, and drive back. It is a full day, but always wonderful. As a teenager, it was hard to get her to talk. On the way back, we rounded a corner and there was an amazing scene; a placid lake, the reflection of falls magnificent colors, and a peacefulness beyond words. She began to cry, and so did I. I pulled over as we inhaled God's presence and beauty.

Due to her work schedule, this is the first year we will have missed in over 8 years. :(

Joyce said...

The guest writers name is LINDA Maynard not Tracy. She likes to go by Lin. She hopefully will be joining us on a regular basis so please make her welcome.
Good to have Dave Tvedt back!!! Welcomeback!

Tony C said...

Wow...those pictures bring your story home Andrea.

For those who don't believe miracles still do happen, look no further.

I hope both Tracy and David come back to KB after their needed hiatus. Having new writers is also awesome too, after all, God is a very big God with billions of personal stories to share. Hallelujah!