A wonder filled weekend


It was the last part of November, 2005. My wife and I decided to go on a little get away weekend. We made reservations at a bed and breakfast in Arcadia, Michigan. On the way up I hit a patch of black ice on the interstate highway. It was very very spooky. I was going around 70 m.p.h. and the temperature was just a little above freezing. I noticed a light rain that started to freeze on the windshield. Just a minute or two later we went across an overpass and my little pickup truck started to careen wildly all over the road. There was lots of traffic, but I regained control of the truck without crashing into anyone or going off the road.
It happened so quickly that I really cannot remember praying for God's protection or anything like that, but afterwards my wife and I surely thanked Him many many times for protecting us and keeping us from a terrible crash.

I love to take wildlife pictures. One of my goals on this trip was to get some good pictures of swans. Every day of the four days that we were gone, we took little car trips and looked for swans, which are abundant in the area, to take pictures of. We saw many swans, but there was always something wrong with the shot. The birds were too far away. The water was too rough. The light was bad. Nonetheless, my wife and I had a wonderful time.
We headed back for home late Sunday morning. I had planned on taking the major roads back after my spooky incident on the way up. I figured that the main highways might be better maintained than the little state roads, but as I came to a turnoff to a less traveled road I really felt a compulsion to take that route. It wasn't a voice or anything like that, just an overpowering feeling that I needed to take that road home. We had gone a number of miles when I saw a sign for a public access to a lake. I had never been in this area before and knew nothing about it, but I turned off the state highway and followed the signs on the little county roads for two or three miles.

We came around a little curve to the waters edge of a quiet little bay, on I think it was Pickerel lake and in this bay were two beautiful swans just at the edge of the water. They were feeding quietly. They weren't disturbed at all by our presence. My wife and I took pictures for almost an hour. It was just a special, spiritual, and holy time. The lighting was perfect. The water was quiet and there were large evergreen trees casting shadows on the far shore making the water appear very dark, almost black.

If you know Michigan, there are lakes everywhere. I mean you cannot go more than a very few miles without passing access sites and boat docks, etc. We were led to this spot. One of my favorite verses are:

Proverbs 3:5-6
Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy paths.

This is literally true. Many many times He has directed my path. He has let me know which way to turn. He is there. He is real. This isn't about little Bible stories for children. It isn't about being religious. It is about a relationship with a living, loving, very real God.

Dave









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