“Do not be afraid or discouraged, for the LORD will personally go ahead of you. He will be with you; he will neither fail you nor abandon you.”¹

Last weekend our family took a trip to Sequoia National Park. Our children had never been up there, so we thought it would be nice to take them to see the beautiful trees in the Giant Forest and enjoy God’s creation away from the city and electronics. It was about 108°F on the way up the mountain, but once we reached the top of the mountain, it was only about 86°F which was a blessing since we were planning on hiking. Being Labor Day weekend, traffic was moderate, and the park was filled with explorers with the same plans as us.

When we arrived at our destination, we were met by a Ranger informing us that the parking lot was full. We were then given a few nearby alternatives where we could park and still be close to hiking trails. On the way to the next parking lot, we decided to make a bathroom stop. When we got ready to head to the parking lot, our car would not start! My husband is an automotive technician by trade, and immediately started pulling out tools to figure out what was going on. After several minutes, he found it was our starter that had gone bad. We had no cell phone service, and although there was a nearby pay phone, it did not work. There were no Rangers in sight, so my husband decided to try and find a way to override the starter and get our car running again. We have three young children (one of which is a two-month-old infant), so I prepared our picnic lunch and took the kids for a walk around a nearby meadow. We saw deer in the meadow, saw many other little critters, and explored some old buildings that had not been used for over 10 years. Although it was a hot day, the weather at that moment was beautiful.

As we arrived back at the car, my husband was “miraculously” able to start the car, but was not able to turn it off anymore, so we quickly loaded up and started heading down the mountain. On our way down, traffic came to a complete stop due to a car that had broken down. We had a towing strap in the back of our suburban, so we offered to pull the car up to a nearby parking lot. We then continued our trip back home (approximately a 5-hour trip) and made it safe and sound.

This may sound like it could have been a stressful situation, but it was all the contrary. We agreed that this had been the best adventure we had experienced in a long time! We recalled today’s verse and were able to name tangible ways we saw God at work. For starters, we broke down under a shady tree in front of bathrooms. If you have young children, you know why this is so important. Secondly, God has gifted my husband in mechanics, so he was able to get us going again. Third, if we had not been heading down the mountain earlier than expected, we would not have had the opportunity to help the family in need of towing.

Although our trip did not go according to our plans, we had an unexpected adventure God’s way. We were reminded that even in unexpected circumstances, God is still there and working His Will. The next time you come across unexpected “adventures”, I encourage you to intentionally look for the blessings in the midst of it. God is personally going ahead of us and will never leave us nor fail us.

Suggested prayer: “Dear God, allow me to see the blessings in the unexpected adventures. Thank you for going before me in every situation and for never abandoning me. I praise you for your faithfulness and provision for me. Thank you for your incomparable love. Gratefully, in Jesus’ name, amen.

1. Deuteronomy 31:8 (NLT).