To Snow, or Not To Snow...

Oh my, I did wait a long time before posting this story. Sorry!

Our trip up the Northwest to Vancouver was one of those we will remember for a while! I think the Lord was trying our patience a teensey bit, just to see if it was still there.

We piled in the van and started out in good time early in the morning, and ran into a little snow in Northern California. The roads were nice and clear, so we weren't worried. Well, the snow started to thin out and go away, but there were signs all over the road saying we would be turned back at the border if we didn't get snow chains, so we stopped in Yreka and got them. (Note, these were chains that must be cut to fit the car, and the place was really busy and didn't do it.)

At the border, sure enough, there were cars parked everywhere putting on their chains and stop and go traffic through it all. We stopped and then Ryan realized the chain problem. He put them on and drove a little, and the chains were crashing against the van, so he stopped again and took them off. When we got to the border, we were turned back, and the guard told Ryan to loop the extra chain through the rubber central band. (Sorry, I don't know the technical speak for it!) He did, but after driving for thirty seconds, the chain cut through the band and it snapped. So we stopped again and then took them off, then waited in the line again. This time when we got to the border they just waved everyone through. "There's no snow, you can go!"

Whew! Four hours behind schedule, but LET's GO right? Well a couple hours later, the front of the van said, "SNAP! PING! CLANK!" and under the van, "CLANK CLANK CLANK!" A pully system just flew off and into the road! Now we stopped, in the dark and I said, "Ryan, I think our patience is being tested!" He agreed.

That all said, it was amazing just how God took care of our every need. I could have been desperately worried, I suppose, wondering how we were going to afford this, what are we going to do, where are we going to stay, etc. But that would just be so ungrateful and ungracious to the Lord! He never let us down before, and sure enough, God provided for what we needed and more. We got a comfortable night's sleep and were on the road the next day, with the van in better working order than before.

While my husband came down with a ferocious cold shortly after and we are all a little puney, we are sure counting our blessings! Don't we serve a wonderful Saviour?