I am looking over the horizon watching a wall of snow heading towards our neighborhood. It is an amazing sight. Weather is such a magnificent display sometimes. It is very cold in our area right now, the weather forecast says it is -25 degrees with the wind chill. My garage doors actually froze shut over the weekend. Yes, you heard me correctly. They froze shut. That's a new level of cold, honey.
My car is in the shop this week. Actually both my son's car and my car have had issues. Cold makes a significant impact on our beater cars. I am driving a loaner vehicle around right now. When I took my car in for repairs, the woman behind the counter told me they were running short on loaner vehicles. She said it would be nearly a half hour wait while they waited for the vehicle they were going to give me to be cleaned. "I have nothing else," she said, "so I have to give you an SUV".
Some people would be excited by this news, but when you've been labeled a "Curb Killer" in your high school driver's education course, you prefer to drive smaller cars. I simply thanked her. I felt slightly annoyed that I had to wait a half hour on the vehicle. After all, I am a frequently returning customer since my car is always on the fritz. But, I rarely check the weather, so little did I know that a severe winter storm was going to move in. Frigid temperatures combined with heavy snowfall were going to make getting anywhere a huge challenge this week.
Isn't it crazy that I was lucky enough to have a four-wheel drive vehicle during the exact week we experienced a serious winger storm? Perhaps my half hour wait on the loaner vehicle wasn't just an inconvenience. Perhaps it was divine intervention.
I've been thinking a lot about how God takes care of us in so many ways, but so often we don't notice. I drove through the city in my oversized SUV this week watching the smaller cars slide on ice, some even sliding off the road, and my SUV didn't slide once. I know I am not simply lucky. God taking care of me, loving me even when I don't see Him. Even when I don't notice Him. He lined this up long before I walked into the repair shop.
He is so meticulous with his care.
He is so meticulous with his love.
He gets my struggles. He knows how crappy my car is. He intervenes in the most amazing ways, and I just can't help but be enamored by all of the creative ways He loves me. He makes me laugh, He makes me cry, and He makes me love Him more.
Lamentations 3:22–23 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.
The next day, I was sat work when I got a text from my daughter. She and my son were stranded on the side of the road. We have a flat tire, the text said, and we tried to make it home but we couldn't. We're on the side of the highway.
Panic immediately set in. I don't know how to change a tire. When I was married, this was an easy answer. Call your Dad. But it isn't that way anymore. So, my kids were sitting on the side of the road in -20 degree weather, and as I got ready to pick them up, I knew I wasn't going to offer much help on the tire.
I started to look up whether my insurance covered roadside assistance when I received a call from my daughter. "You won't believe it," she said, "a police officer pulled up behind us and he is changing our tire." And, sure enough, a kind-hearted officer changed their tire in absolutely frigid temperatures.
Soon, my kids were on their way again, and they made a beeline to the tire shop to get their tire repaired. I never had to leave the house. God took care of my kids, in the form of a kind officer who was willing to help.
All of this happened within a matter of a few days, and once again, I am in awe of often God does things like this and I completely miss it. I forget to thank Him, and I go about my life as if these things are no big deal.
But, they are a big deal. We have a big God who goes before us and helps us.
Thank you Lord, for your faithfulness through the storm.
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