Trek Across America Days 29-34 Creation to Columbia June 25, 2014

…And now, the rest of the story. We finally arrived in Columbia a week ago, but I have been unmotivated to do much of anything. I’ll back up and fill in the last week of our travels.

We left off in North Bend, Ohio where we stayed for two days. We found a small, local church in Petersburg, Kentucky where we worshipped and celebrated Father’s Day and then set off for a day of adventure at the Creation Museum. It was as wonderful as I had hoped it would be! I first learned of the Creation Museum several years ago when a creation astronomer came and spoke to our homeschool group in Lawton. I have been looking forward to this field trip ever since! I loved the beauty and detail of the gardens with the stones of Scripture placed carefully along the walkways. I loved the bridges, the animals, and the waterfalls. And that was all before ever going inside!

The Creation Museum does a wonderful job telling God’s story of creation using scientific evidence as well as the Bible. I loved when Mary and Joseph repeatedly said, “Hey! That picture is in my science book.” Or “That’s exactly what my science book said.” I loved how they were affirmed in their understanding of creation. Even when they have been presented with both models of the origins of the universe, they know and believe that the Bible’s account of creation makes the most sense alongside scientific data….besides the fact that the Bible is Truth! All in all the Creation Museum is a fantastic presentation of the creation of the universe as well as the story of God’s plan for the redemption of man…well worth the time and money to visit.

On a side note, Scott said that he was surprised at the number of people that were there on Sunday and Monday. I looked at him with surprise of my own and replied, “Scott….I don’t think you understand….the Creation Museum is to homeschoolers what Graceland is to Elvis fans!”

After finishing the zipline adventures and the camel ride, we left the area on Monday afternoon and drove to Milton, WV to spend the night and snatch yet another geo-cache. On the way to West Virginia, Scott noticed the truck running a little differently. As soon as he could, he found a place to fill up with gas and check the truck and camper. Sure enough, one of the tires on the camper had a broken belt. He immediately put on his coveralls and began changing the tire. After he finished and we got back on the road, he took a little time to talk to us about what had happened. He explained that this type of thing usually causes a blow-out which in turn may cause other serious damage or accident. He finished up by giving glory to God, “Kids, this is an example of how God has been answering our prayers and the prayers of our friends and family for safety. He allowed me to quickly notice a change in the driving. He provided a gas station with a large parking area within a few miles so that I could easily pull off and work. He gave me a dad who taught me how to take care of issues like this. Thanks be to God!”

And I praise God for giving me a man who has that kind of heart (and skill)! I love my man!

Tuesday was a long day of driving. We pulled into our campsite in South Carolina (just outside Columbia) fairly late in the evening, exhausted, but glad to have arrived.

On Wednesday, we decided to drive around the neighborhoods to try to find a place to live. We have been looking in a specific area to be near some of our very dear friends but were having no luck. We made at least 6 calls to various management companies, calling on houses that had For Rent signs in the yards. We finally gave up the search and went back to the camper for the night. I can’t say I was not disappointed, frustrated, a little anxious, and stressed. Besides having been on the road for a month, in close quarters, I am a girl who likes order. I think I’ve been doing a really good job of going with the flow, making the most of this adventure, but I needed a little assurance that order would soon be restored. I needed a little time by myself (which is impossible in a camper), so I decided to go to bed a little early so that I could read and pray. I tried to pray what I know to be true instead of just asking Him for stuff. “Lord, I know you have a place prepared for us. I trust your timing.” Those are really hard words to pray. I really wanted to say, “Lord, get a house for us! Help me! I need this…I need that…!” In the end, I just told God what was on my heart. I tried to be as open and honest as possible, laying my requests before the Lord with a heart of calm faith and trust. “calm faith”…. easier said than done but I am a work in progress.

On Thursday, we ditched the idea of more house-hunting and decided to check in at Fort Jackson. One of the first questions CH Tom Allen asked us was where we would be living. HA! After explanation, he introduced us to one of the guys in the office who also owns a property management company. That guy told us that, unfortunately, he did not have any properties available and that the market for rental properties in general for this summer is way down. Basically, no one has anything available right now. “But I’ll let you know if I hear anything.”

Two hours later, this same man called Scott. “CH Dennis, the strangest thing has just happened. I have a house that just came available today after an unusual set of circumstances. It’s a nice 4 bedroom with a fence for your dog. It’s in a nice neighborhood. It’s available next week. Are you interested in looking at it?” Oh my! Are we interested?! Would you believe it is two streets away from our dear friends, in the exact neighborhood?! Of course, you would believe it…God is great that way! We scheduled an appointment to go look at the house later in the afternoon and then made our way to Red Robin for lunch (YUUUMMM). Once again, my wonderful husband took the time to use this situation to teach our kids about God and His provision. Of course, they have been hearing much of the conversation about housing since we’ve been doing the looking and calling while on the road, so he pointed out to them that God provided a home, in the exact neighborhood, with the exact specs we wanted, in the budget. They knew that this was a “God-thing.” But besides giving God glory for this situation where things seemingly worked out exactly according to our needs/wants, he took it a step further, explaining to them that God always provides, maybe not in the way we expect, but always in His perfect way. Then he told them one of my favorite stories.

Years ago, Scott and I moved to a small town in the panhandle of Texas where he served as Associate Pastor at FBC. We were living in a rent house there but owned two other homes elsewhere in Texas…a townhome in Garland and another house in Sherman. We had renters in the townhome and a FOR SALE sign at the other house. Things were tight as we were still paying medical bills from Mary’s birth, but we were doing okay…until our renters moved out, leaving us with 3 house payments! We quickly switched the plan and got renters for the house and put the townhome on the market. Sparing some of the details, let me just say, things got really tight then. It took over a year, maybe closer to two years, to get both of those properties sold. Looking at the situation, it would be easy to question God’s provision and His “perfect timing.” But during that time, God DID provide in wonderful ways! One family came to our doorstep with bags and bags of meat and corn. They said, “We just slaughtered a cow for this year, but we have too much left over from last year to fit in our freezer. Would you be willing to take the rest of last year’s meat for us? Oh, and we had an abundant sweet corn crop this year. We thought you might like some.”

Another family (and several others) came to our door with bags and bags of like-new baby girl clothing….just Mary’s size saying, “Our daughter has out-grown all of these so quickly. I don’t think she’s even been able to wear everything in here. Would Mary be able to use these?”

Our doctor, when trying to pay some medical bills, informed us that he provides his services free (after insurance) to ministers and their families.

During those two years of financial strain, we did not buy one package of beef other than ground meat. We did not buy one stitch of clothing or shoes for Mary because she had a wardrobe too big for her closet. We paid very little, if any, for new doctor’s visits and medications.

God definitely provided! And we learned some very valuable lessons along the way.

…Receiving from others is not only a blessing for you, but also a blessing for the giver. Don’t deny a blessing to the person trying to bless you by refusing to accept a gift. Learn to accept help with a grateful and humble heart.
…You don’t need everything you think you need.
…Just because things don’t work out ABC with all the i’s dotted and all the t’s crossed doesn’t mean you are not exactly where God wants you to be.
…God provides in ways that don’t always fit the picture of provision in your mind.

We have been on both sides of that coin. Like now, the housing situation has worked out with i’s dotted and t’s crossed. God has provided! Blessed be the name of the Lord! Like then, the housing situation was not working out, the stress almost unbearable. God provided! Blessed be the name of the Lord!

I loved hearing Scott share that story with the kids. I hope you have been blessed by it as well.

So finally, our travels (well…at least this set of travels) have come to a close. 31 days of travel, 20 states, 28 states now completed on our geo-cache list. Still camping, but we signed a lease agreement last Friday…should be moving in and receiving our household goods in the next two weeks. Thank you so much for your prayers for us along this journey. They were answered with safety and provision for our family.

Trek Across America Days 22-28 Taking our Time and Taking it Easy June 15, 2014

Camping, driving, and playing….that’s basically what we’ve done this week. We ended up spending 3 days and 4 nights at Jellystone Park in Wisconsin trying to wait out the rain in the Chicago area. While at Jellystone, we had NO AT&T service….check out the AT&T service map. Jellystone is located in the one small area at the corners of Minnesota, Iowa, and Wisconsin that has no coverage. It was actually kinda nice. But, alas, we need to find a place to live, so we drove into Dubuque, Iowa on Tuesday for cell service and an Iowa geo-cache. Luckily for us, we happened upon the Mississippi River Museum and Aquarium. It was a wonderful place! The kids and I had a great time on what I considered a bonus field trip. (Scott napped in the car with Libby “since she wouldn’t like being in the truck by herself.”) On the way back to the campsite, we stopped at a cheese packaging company in Beetown, WI, and bought our first (and probably only) package of squeaky cheese curds.

From Jellystone, we drove across Wisconsin to Gurnee, Illinois, the home of Six Flags Great America! Thursday and Friday were spent riding roller coasters and squealing like little girls…Scott and Joseph doing most of the squealing 😉 Scott’s cousin, James, is an executive with the Six Flags Corporation and, as scheduling would have it, was actually at this park on Friday afternoon and Saturday supervising the production of a commercial for the new GOLIATH roller coaster. We were able to spend a little time with him, catching up on all the latest with his family. What a wonderful blessing it was to see him, although it makes the ache of missing family a little stronger.

We left Gurnee on Saturday morning and drove ALL day, finally stopping in North Bend, Ohio. We ended up collecting three more geo-caches, Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, bringing our total number of states to 24.

On a spiritual note…spending two days at Six Flags waiting in lines for the rides gives a lot of time for people watching. I was once again reminded that people are searching…searching for something to fill the void…searching for acceptance, for approval, for love. I tried to watch with the eyes of Jesus, praying for these young men and women who so desperately need Him.

Matthew 9:36-38 says, “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

My prayer is that I, too, would look at the crowds with compassion, not contempt, that I would be His worker, ready to go into the field wherever and whenever He calls me.

This coming week, we will make our final trek to South Carolina. Please continue to pray for safety as we travel but also pray that God would provide just the right place for us to live.

Until next week…

Trek Across America Days 15-21 The Wild West to The Mighty Mississippi June 7, 2014

We spent this last week traveling from Yellowstone, WY, to Jellystone, WI. (I’m not kidding. We are camped at Jellystone Park Campground in Bagley, WI. I can see Yogi and the Ranger Station from the camper window.) This week has been full of driving across miles and miles of farmland with some history mixed in the middle. From Yellowstone, we went to Cody, WY, and spent a day and a half learning all about Buffalo Bill and the Wild West. We even spent an evening at the chuck wagon followed by a night of rodeo. From Cody, we drove to Keystone, SD where we spent time at Mt. Rushmore and the Crazy Horse Memorial. I had prepared myself to be under-whelmed by Rushmore for a couple of reasons. One, I was afraid Hollywood and other media might have made Rushmore seem much bigger than it is in real life, and two, I had a friend tell me that her experience driving by the monument was less than stellar. I prepped the kids that the real thing might be really far off. We might not be able to get as close up as we would like. It might be a lot smaller than we’ve imagined. For once, I am so glad I was wrong! Mt. Rushmore is amazing! The planning, the execution, the detail is spectacular! Our National Park System has done a wonderful job with the museum and exhibit area, and we all thoroughly enjoyed reading about Borglum and his work. We also enjoyed revisiting the history lessons from the time period of the presidents represented. The beautiful weather and yummy ice cream topped off the adventure. Did you know that Thomas Jefferson is credited with the first known recipe of ice cream recorded by an American? It is a very good recipe indeed.

The Crazy Horse Memorial is also wonderful…lots of history, talent, and dedication. It is still a work in progress and for very good reason. The sculptor commissioned to do the work believed in private enterprise and did not want to give control of the project to the government just for money. He and his family committed to do the work, raising funds along the way. Entrance fees, gift shop souvenirs, and Native American arts and crafts sold at the museum fund the ongoing project. Impressive considering $10,000,000 from the government has been turned down twice over the last 60 years!

From this area, we drove back to Rapid City for a taste of real Tex-Mex from On the Border. It’s been a long 3 years without good salsa and freshly made tortillas from someone else’s kitchen. But this is where we said goodbye to my mom and dad. As we continued east, they took their turn south to head for home. Hopefully, our next visit will be sooner rather than later.

We finally made our way to the other side of the state after miles and miles of farmlands and a stop at the world’s only Corn Palace. We clipped the corner of North Dakota to snag another geo-cache and then found our way to Minneapolis, MN to see a friend of mine. We were actually neighbors when we were babies…until I was about 2 years old. Then in second grade, after a family vacation, we became pen pals, writing (the old-fashioned way) for years! I went to visit her my sophomore year of high school, and she returned the trip during my sophomore year of college. Unfortunately, we haven’t seen each other since then but have been able to reconnect through FB in the last few years. It was such a joy and a blessing to spend a few hours with her! She is a beautiful, artistic, creative woman, and I am so thankful we had the opportunity to hug and catch up.

Finally, today we drove through the corner of Iowa, stopping in at one of Laura Ingalls Wilder’s childhood homes in Burr Oak. Mary and I enjoyed the tour while the boys took a brief nap.

All in all, it has been a great week of travel. We’ve seen in person some things we’ve only read about in history. We’ve made up silly songs about our adventures, and we’ve been able to see how God has blessed our nation with all kinds of people and histories…from the Native Americans to the cowboys of the Wild West to the farmers who work tirelessly from season to season, providing for the rest of the nation what we often take for granted, the very food on our plates. We’ve seen the purple mountain majesties and the fruited plain, and we give glory to God for without Him, everything that we’ve seen…everything we’ve experienced…is meaningless.

“Blessed be the name of God forever and ever,
to whom belong wisdom and might.
He changes times and seasons;
he removes kings and sets up kings;
he gives wisdom to the wise
and knowledge to those who have understanding;
he reveals deep and hidden things;
he knows what is in the darkness,
and the light dwells with him.
To you, O God of my fathers,
I give thanks and praise.” Daniel 2:20-23

Trek Across America Days 9-14 Yellowstone National Park June 1, 2014

We traveled from Arco, Idaho to Yellowstone National Park on Day 9 of our adventure across America. Beautiful, lush farmlands on one side of the road and the Snake River on the other led us most of the way to Wyoming and the Grand Tetons and finally into our camping spot in Yellowstone. After we set up camp, we decided to take our time to settle in, rest up, and get ready for a week of touring and hiking.

And tour and hike, we did! We were able to cover all of the major areas of Yellowstone that were open, seeing wildlife, geysers, hot springs, travertine, and amazing waterfalls.

Experiencing the wonders of the earth, my thoughts could not help but be drawn to the Creator. Romans 1:20 says, “By taking a long and thoughtful look at what God has created, people have always been able to see what their eyes as such can’t see: eternal power, for instance, and the mystery of his divine being. So nobody has a good excuse.” (MSG) I am so thankful that God made Himself known to man through His mighty works and the wonders of His hands. I am thankful that, by faith, I can understand that the universe was formed at a God’s command so that what is seen was not made out of what is visible.

The highlight of the week was the arrival of my parents from China Spring. They drove up and met us on Thursday and will travel with us for a few days before heading home later this week. It has been over a year since we have been able to spend time together, so this part of our trip is very meaningful.

Finally, I must tell you that in our travels, God has brought to mind many, many people from throughout our lives. The farmlands in Idaho brought to mind our friends from Perryton, Texas…the memories and blessings of our time spent serving there. The hike up some of the trails at Yellowstone reminded me of our great hike up Mt. Elbert with the youth group from Austin, Texas and the experiences we had…Mary’s first teachers and some fellow ministers whom we love and miss dearly. While I’m taking pictures and turning everything into one big educational field trip, I am making notes of homeschooling friends and families that might benefit from any info I could pass along. Of course, every different license plate reminds me of people we know from our Army adventures. And the list goes on….people that God has brought into our lives, who have made a difference, who have found a place in our hearts. Know that when your name crossed my mind, I was thanking God for you!