Arizona to California: Day 3

So much has happened in the last 24 hours that it is difficult to put into full context!  When I last left off I was at a KOA campground in Flagstaff, Arizona and was planning to camp overnight in my tent.  I got things set up nicely including my new inflatable air mattress (I have toughed out camping on hard ground enough;  I'm proud to compromise on "the experience" at this time in my life) and climbed into the tent.  Soon after that the wind really picked up.  Apparently the winter storm to the north was causing the wind speed to pick up in my area, so suddenly I was dealing with 30-40 mph wind gusts which were strong enough to blow my tent down on top of me.  I laid down thinking that it would either slow down or I would fall asleep, but neither happened.  The wind picked up even more and it was NOISY.  From the tent flapping to the trees blowing around, you couldn't hear yourself think.  At 10:45 I had had enough and decided to try out the motel F-250.  After moving my stuff around I and folding the back seats up, I discovered that I had enough room to lay my sleeping bag on the floor, which I did.  I crawled in, closed the doors, and slept like a baby in my truck through the night.  It was quiet and fairly comfortable.   Don't judge me.

Prior to laying down I spent a lot of time checking the weather.  I was concerned about the major snowstorm to the north and wanted to avoid it at all costs since I'm towing a trailer with me.  After waking up and checking the weather one last time, I nearly decided to go through Las Vegas and travel to Reno, Nevada.  The forecast said that there would be some snow but they were not sure how much.  However, then I attempted to start my truck.  It was 25 degrees when I woke up and I had to crank it about 4 times to get it to start.  Diesel engines are notoriously hard to start in the cold, but it got me thinking.  The low in Reno on Wednesday morning was forecast to be 0!  If I was having this much trouble at 25 degrees, I'd probably be stranded in Reno.  I prayed about it and felt comfortable heading instead to California.  This added a good 150 miles but was decidedly safe.  This turned out to be a good move since Reno got absolutely dumped on with snow today.  It is likely the roads were all closed down as a result.

I traveled from Flagstaff to Sacramento, California during the day today.  I went right through the Mojave Desert for about 200 miles and was in awe of the desolation out there.  There were no people other than the cars on the road.  

When I finally emerged on the other side, I was in Barstow, California. This place is not pretty at all.  In fact, I think it makes Odessa, Texas, where my wife is from, look pretty.  That's a stretch.

I then wound my way west and gradually north, passing through Bakersfield and experiencing an irrigated desert where much of the fresh produce in the U.S. is grown.  Once the road pointed north I passed through a number of cities that back up to the mountains, all of which are agricultural communities.  When the day was over I had traveled a whopping 761 miles.  I might have missed my calling as a truck driver!!!

Sunset over California. 

Here's what the Lord had to say today:

Mark 12:29-31

Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this:‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. ’ The second is equally important:‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ’ No other commandment is greater than these.”

2 Peter 2:19-20

They promise freedom, but they themselves are slaves of sin and corruption. For you are a slave to whatever controls you. And when people escape from the wickedness of the world by knowing our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and then get tangled up and enslaved by sin again, they are worse off than before.

These are reminders of the work that we are going to Everett to do.  At its simplest, our job as Christians is to love the Lord and love our neighbors, which I have covered in other postings.  This is all of the time and everywhere and is not optional.  We as Christians should be concerned with setting free those who are enslaved to sin.  Francis Chan commented that America, though free, is a nation of slaves because we have so many things that ultimately control us.  Money, sex, power, etc seem to pervade the society and have literally put many into bondage that they cannot escape from.  Our job is to be the light to these individuals, to live lives in Christ that are so enticing that they draw others in and make them want to have the same thing.  This is more than just being nice or doing good deeds.  This is literally extending love and grace to everyone you encounter during the day.  They will recognize The Light that is within us and the freedom that He has given us from sin and will want the same.  This is the daily work of the church, not sitting in a pew on Sunday so we can consume more knowledge while letting the ministers minister throughout the week.  That's our job.

John 8:35-36

A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.