I’m sure I’ve shared this before, and I know I will say it, again: Blessed are the flexible for they shall not be bent out of shape.

Case in point: I just typed this blog, saved it to my computer and closed it out so I could email it to Amanda, and it is gone. I really DON’T feel like being flexible right now. My brain says to me, “How will I ever replicate all of that?” sighs

I see now why my blog post disappeared. I wasn’t finished writing the story. So much has happened since I started writing that post five days ago.

We started out with leaving Albuquerque later than planned, so we made it to a campground that we stop at often as we travel through in Amarillo. We didn’t get very far before the first test came. And I am going to share our experience with you all. Or y’all. Or all y’all, since we were in Texas.

Sit back and relax, or sit on the edge of your seat, for here is the story of how God is working in our lives and wants us to be flexible when the curveballs come our way.

This is how I started the original blog post:

As I sit here, at a Love’s parking lot, waiting on the mobile mechanic working on our truck (yes, our truck, once again), I am learning a lesson on flexibility. We had a late start yesterday, so we didn’t get as far as we would have liked to. Today, I thought we could get more driving done than yesterday. This was not meant to be. As we were deciding on whether to get diesel “sooner rather than later,” I looked at our Open Roads app, and we decided “sooner” was better than “later,” as we could possibly run out of fuel before reaching the second option. It turns out that “sooner” was the best option, since we heard a loud pop as we were turning off the exit ramp and I smelled antifreeze as we turned into the gas station parking lot. I was really hoping it was someone else’s. We have put a lot into this truck over the last year.

Have you ever asked, “Why?” “Why is this happening now?” “Why is this happening to me?” Of course, you have! Sometimes we find out the answer, and sometimes we may not find out until the other side of heaven. We are learning to be flexible. Flexibility is a blessing. It is a whole lot better than being rigid, because when those curveballs come your way (and they WILL come your way!), frustration, disappointment and anger can get the best of us. I learned early in my homeschool days to not have a rigid schedule. It was inevitable that something would pop up during the day: a child gets sick, someone comes to visit, my parents may call, …

Sometimes, these interruptions can be God appointments. Maybe I was going to give a spelling test to one of our girls, but to her relief, Grandma called. Maybe the girls had writing assignments to work on, but now we need to go to the doctor because someone needs stitches. Who might God be placing in your path, today, unexpectedly? Someone who needs to talk? Someone who has never heard the Gospel before today? Or maybe just someone who needs an encouraging smile to get through the day. Who does God have in store for us to meet at a Love’s parking lot?

Today, while the mechanic poured a sealant into the leading radiator, Mike talked with his assistant. It turns out the assistant is a believer! They had good conversation that, hopefully, the mechanic listened to. A piece of the fan broke off for perhaps just that reason. Or perhaps there was more. Maybe we avoided being in the middle of an accident. We may never know.

Because of our late start in NM and the time we sat in TX, we didn’t get any further than OK, that day. The next day, guess what?? Our truck started overheating. When Mike pulled over, coolant was pouring out of the radiator, once again. Another piece of the fan had broken off. We limped to another Love’s station (isn’t it great there are so many along the interstates?). We went inside and had lunch, and then we started making phone calls. There was a mobile mechanic in Tulsa, but being that it was a Saturday, he wouldn’t come so far out of town. We found parts in autoparts stores, nearby, but no way to get there. We were out in the boonies. No uber or lyft. No taxis. Someone suggested checking with the mechanics at the truck stop, so we walked over there. After explaining our situation, the one guy offered his car to us. To us! Total strangers! So Mike gave him our truck key, and off we went in his little car. Is God taking care of us, or what? But wait! There’s more!

After getting back to our rig, Mike put some more sealant in the radiator. He bought a fan and a new radiator (for just in case), but he was having a hard time hearing the video on how to install the fan with all the trucks rumbling around us. We were near a camp we served at as a CWCf project a few times, so we called and received permission to go there to work on the truck. We never made it.

On our way, the truck started overheating, again, so Mike pulled over so the truck could cool off. Once again, coolant started pouring out of the radiator, so Mike decided to put the new radiator in along the side of the road. While he is doing this, a side-by-side pulls up to us from the property we were parked in front of. THESE GUYS WERE DIESEL MECHANICS! We found out later that friends in NM were praying that we would find someone to help us about the same time the mechanics came. How good is our God that he would have us stopped there, in front of the home of a father & son duo? They not only offered help, but they offered for us to pull into their property to get off the highway and to plug in so we could get our fridge and AC running. Such friendly people, and they ended up being believers, as well! How encouraging to run into so many fellow believers along the way. They are planning to open an RV park on their property. Guess where we’ll be sure to stay sometime in the future?

Anyway, Dale & Mike worked on pulling the fan and radiator out that night, and the next morning, they went to buy the fan we needed and got that installed. By midafternoon, we were on the road, once more.

We finally made it through OK, and into MO. We thought everything was good. The next day, we stopped at Walmart for a few items, and… the truck wouldn’t start. The starter had started grinding occasionally a couple days before that. Mike had just installed this remanufactured one when we were in Florida, this past winter. Thankfully, it has a lifetime warranty! So that afternoon was spent with Mike under the truck, once again. And the cicadas! You all, I mean, y’all know about those, right? They are so loud in MO, right now. You can barely hear anything else over them.

So the starter is in, and off we go. Once again, all is good. Until… something seems off with the trailer. We get to a Buc-cee’s for supper, and Mike asked me to watch the camper hitch. Sure enough, the slider isn’t locked in position, anymore. My handy husband wraps it with a heavy chain many times, so it will stay put. It worked! One more night in MO, and we finally make it into Indiana—we actually made it through two states in one day!

The next day, we notice the truck sounds different. It’s running fine, but it doesn’t sound the same. As the day wears on, the louder it runs. I was thinking it, but Mike actually said it: “I think there is a hole in the exhaust.” So we rumble into a KOA in Ohio. Oh, and did I mention, the chain bent the slide, and it’s sliding again. Everytime, we would stop, the toyhauler would slide a little and slam into the hitch actually moving the truck a little.

A worker here at the KOA graciously offered a ride to Mike (his name happens to be Mike, too!) to the auto parts store. They ended up at a hardware store to find what was needed. Don’t ask me all the names, but a round collar-like thing (I think it is a clamp) lost a bolt, and they are having a hard time finding the right size. They just left again for a longer one. It is now six days since we left NM. I had really thought we’d be in NY two to three days ago. I am not finishing this post yet, as we haven’t made it to our destination.

Bolt in place, sliding hitch locked into place, and we got on the road! The truck is much quieter than it was yesterday.  Mike noticed a tire on the Cyclone is wearing funny on the inside—something else to keep an eye on. One more day of traveling, and we should make it to our destination.

We stopped for the night at a campground in the Allegheny Mountains in NY. What a beautiful country we live in! God has supplied all we need to know there is a Creator just by looking around us at the creation. Before leaving for the last leg of our trip, Mike changed the tire. It was a good thing, because belts were showing when he got off.

And now, we are in upstate NY at Camp Pinnacle. We arrived a few days ago and have been settling in and seeing kids and grandkids. Such a blessing to be able to serve the Lord and see our children across the country!

We have met some interesting people along the way on this trip! The mobile mechanic and his assistant, the guys at the truck stop, Butch & Dale and families, Mike and Chris at the KOA, the campground owner in NY,…

Have we learned to be flexible? sighs

I don’t know that I will ever totally accomplish that. Do I wish we could have been in NY sooner? Yes! We have things to do and people to see! But apparently God has things for us to do and people for us to see that we didn’t plan on. Is it worth getting frustrated and worked up about these delays? No. Have I been eating more dark chocolate? Yes! But we are making memories, and some day we can look back and laugh remembering this trip. But maybe not today.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Isaiah 55:8-9