California, here I come!

Well, I leave tomorrow for California! I'm very excited!

First, it'll be great to share with new people who live outside of my usual travel area!

Second, it's CALIFORNIA!

I'll drive from the airport to Antioch Wesleyan, outside of San Francisco. After that I'll be sharing with a few churches in Sacramento and then, one in Stockton, south of Sacramento. Lord willing, I'll be speaking at 4 churches altogther and making contacts with a few others! It's been clear that God has been the One putting this trip together and I'm really excited to see how He's going to continue to work it all out! Please continue to pray for traveling mercies and that God would move in people's hearts as they hear about Czech!

Red Robin, Red Robin!

I had an amazing weekend! I always enjoy the weekends that I travel to Ohio! It's like going back home! I was able to spend some time with friends from West Chester and then traveled north to Clearfork Valley Wesleyan. Then, it worked out for me to go to the evening service at West Chester Wesleyan, which I haven't done for awhile. It was so special to meet new friends and supporters at the first church and have reunions with ones I've known for years at West Chester! Both churches were incredibly generous and I was humbled by seeing God's love work through so many people. It reminded me once again that God is in control of my preparations to go to Czech and I need to trust Him and He'll work it all out. Even if it's taking longer than I had planned.

And finally, to top my weekend off, I got to go with some great friends and eat at my favorite restaurant...Red Robin!

Corydon, Indiana - my very close friend

Yes, I spent more time than I'd intended (or wanted) in the little town of Corydon, IN, just west of Louisville, KY. It is one of the very few stops on I-64 between Evansville and Louisville and I know it well. The story starts as I was coming home from sharing at churches in Greenwood, IN and Westport, IN. Just after I started the trip, I heard about the bad storms ripping through northern KY and realized shortly that they were coming my way. So, as the rains came down and winds blew hard, I decided to make my way to Corydon, IN. At first, I stopped at the gas station I always stop at on my trips that direction, but realized that sitting in my car next to other people in other cars in the parking lot (because the gas station had shut down for the storm) was not the safest place to be. The weather guy on the radio said that some of the winds could get up to 80 mph. I did see a few ditches, but I was hoping it wouldn't come to that. Then, I saw a beautiful sign across the street and made a run (or drive, I guess) for it.

WAL-MART!

As is true with all Wal-Marts around the country at any hour of the day, the parking lot was quite full. So, I went in and heard the storm from the safety of the aisles of America's great retailer. After I'd been there about 20-30 minutes, they announced that the danger was over, but still, due to the storm, they were closing down. Later, I found out that this very Wal-Mart that was my refuge had roof damage because of the storm. So, I ran out to my car and made my way to the second half of this adventure.

Yes, we're just halfway done.

The rain had just about stopped but there was talk of more storms in the area. I had just gotten back onto I-64 and then I stopped...along with everyone else who had been hiding in Corydon, IN. Apparently there were power lines down who-know's-how-far-ahead of us and we were stopped in the middle of the interstate for about an hour and a half. It wasn't long before I turned my car off and of course, it was dark and I realized how little there is to do when you are stuck in your car at night on the interstate for long periods of time. Finally, the road was cleared and I finished off what could have been a 3 hour trip in about 5.5 hours.

I guess this is just one more time where God shows us that He is the one in control of the weather and everything around us. That's a good lesson to learn because there are many times when I forget that and I need reminders like this from time to time to learn my lessons. Thanks, God.