Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles.

Well, last night I alluded to a situation where the Lord was truly protecting me. I just love creating an air of suspense! What a cliff hanger, were you drawn back, hoping I'd elaborate? *giggle*

The Lord is truly my protector, I will trust in HIM, and him alone.

Kraig took my Suburban to the auto shop on base to get the oil changed. It has been about 5,000 miles since my oil change in Durham, NC, and it was time to prepare for the last push south and west to home. He called shortly after taking the truck in to ask "synthetic or regular". Hmmm. Whatever was done last time, I don't know. Only a few minutes later, he calls again. I watch Jenn's face as she listens, and responds to what she is hearing. I soon learn that the oil cap had been left off when I had the oil changed in North Carolina, and I've driven all over the country without it.

At the moment, this doesn't mean too much to me. But as I talk with Jenn, and later to Kraig, I learn that without the oil cap, usually the oil will spurt out, causing a large mess under the hood and over the engine, often resulting in the oil burning on the hot engine, causing smoke and sometimes a fire. Of course, if I lost too much oil, the engine could seize, and I'd need a new engine. However, the engine was clean, and apparently I had not lost any oil. WOW! Also, the technician found the oil cap sitting in the fender well, just hanging around waiting to do its job.

Now, I am not a rough driver, but there have been some pretty good bumps along the way. Michigan roads are extremely rough, most campgrounds are not paved, and I do recall one large bump that caused a corelle plate to leap off the shelf and shatter on the floor. How in the world did the oil cap manage to stay in the fender well?

I've done some further research and this article gives a good explanation of what could happen without an oil cap. How awesome is it to be able to see the hand of God in this? Jenn and I have been chuckling as we envision an angel sitting on my engine block, one hand over the oil cap, keeping it in place, and the other on top of the open hole to contain the oil. I have prayed for God to put a hedge of protection around the girls and I as we drive, to provide his angels to guide and protect us. He has done that, and more. What an awesome God I serve!!!

This trip has been an amazing journey for me. I have been so blessed by friends, strangers, sights and experiences along the way. God has given me such a sense of peace over this trip. I have a bad habit of telling God "OK, here's the plan, here's what I'm going to do, please bless it." And I was a bit concerned that I hadn't gone to Him enough in prayer, and was hoping that I hadn't gone off on my own as I began to plan the trip. God filled me with his peace, there has been no fear involved in this trip, just excitement and wonder at the honor he has given the girls and I. What a privilege it has been to travel through so much of this country, to reunite with friends (and meet new ones through the blog), and to be face to face everyday with God's intimate desire to be a part of my life. Every experience through this journey has pointed me to Him. One of my prayers when we began this trek was that the Lord would please use this excursion to point others to Him. I never knew he would use it to draw me closer to Him as well.

I am in awe at the Lord's creativity, creation, protection, and His strong desire for me to know him. Pray that He will continue to teach me, and that I will continue to listen and learn!