Every valley shall be filled in, every mountain and hill made low. The crooked roads shall become straight, the rough ways smooth. Luke 3:5
On the last night of our trip in the fall, we were in no hurry to pack up. We wanted to keep that time as special as we could for as long as we could. We visited the beach that day where my oldest wanted to cast his line out just one more time…over and over again. It was like when he was young and wanted just one more cookie. Umm, maybe that was yesterday.
Anyhow, I couldn’t bring myself to head back to the house to pack after our time at the beach, so I suggested one more ice cream trip. There weren’t any complaints as everyone was excited for our detour. We normally don’t go for the milkshakes, but I think we might have found a new tradition before we leave!
When we did get back to the house, we decided we needed to eat those delicious clams and oysters just one more time after gazing at the beautiful full moon from the dock. Talk about procrastination! We packed up a few things but didn’t need to be in a rush to leave the next day, so we headed to bed. I woke up in the wee hours of the morning and couldn’t get back to sleep. It startled me when my hubby’s phone beeped at five o’clock in the morning.
I woke him up to ask him why his phone was making noises. He checked it out and it was a warning that we were to experience flooding due to super high tides from the full moon. I was concerned that we wouldn’t be able to leave the section of the island where we were staying if we didn’t get out of there before high tide. It was starting to come in as it was.
We rustled the boys up and everyone packed in record time. We all worked so well together to beat the flooding that I started contemplating why it always took us so long any other time. As the sun came up, I realized that the dock was already covered in water! We later learned if we hadn’t left when we did, we would’ve been stuck on the island because the road in and out flooded and closed.
On our last trip over the holidays, I looked out front to see the tide had come up so close to the house that it went over the drive leading to where we were staying. There was a marsh in front of us with the ocean beyond that. Behind us was a creek that had water coming in farther than I’ve ever seen due to another full moon and super high tides! For that bit of flooding we just stayed put until it receded, allowing for a clear drive again.
Since experiencing another full moon, I was thinking back to our experiences with the tides during our trips and the flooding that was caused. The roads didn’t disappear; they were there the whole time. They did get covered up by water making them invisible to us though. Isn’t that a little like our lives? Do you ever feel like the road that God has for you is invisible even if you really want to see it? Have you ever gotten a look only to have it disappear again?
There are times when we haven’t even found the road yet. There are times when we’ve seen the road but need to get a move on to take it while the opportunity is still there. Other times we just need to be patient and wait until the road clears. God makes our paths straight and will eventually show them to us, but it isn’t always so simple because they can get covered up by obstacles. We’ve all been there!
I challenge you to not get overwhelmed by all the roads in your life. I’m going to pray for patience (since I surely struggle with that on my own) and wisdom to make my roads visible and the supernatural knowledge on when to travel them. Will you do the same?
If you simply don’t want to travel the road because of fear, think of what Nathan Fillion said: “Saw a little girl touch a big bug and shout, ‘I conquered my fear! YES!’ and calmly walk away. I was inspired.” Be inspired too, and conquer your fear.
Let the full moon (God’s illumination) and high tide (God’s push) help you get moving. If the road is already covered, keep looking forward to the obstacles receding and staying in joy with faith right where you are until the time comes to take that road.
