Circumstances

​Nate and I climbed out of his silver chariot and wondered, “what will we do if the car has died?”  We stood along a beautifully forested highway at least 120 miles from Fairbanks with over 220 miles yet to travel.  My plane from Anchorage would leave at midnight.  

Neither of us are mechanics so we could not fix whatever was wrong.  We had no cell phone and there was no town anywhere near us. The trunk was full of caribou meat that we had to get to Wasila to have frozen.  Then Nate found a detached rubber hose.  Perhaps now the car would run.  But no.  

After standing by the roadside clueless as to what we should do, a man in a Ford Bronco saw us and stopped.  His name was John.  He saw and heard our plight and informed us that he was on his way to Anchorage.  He agreed to load up our meat and my bags and take us.  And so after securing Nate’s car we were back on the highway headed south.
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It turned out that John was a Christian.  He often picked up hitchhikers and would give them tracts about God.  John took us to Wasila where we were able to get the meat in a freezer.  We took him to dinner and then he dropped me off at the airport.  He told Nate he would tow his car to the nearest town so it could be fixed.  During our time together he shared struggles going on in his life that were refreshingly close to home.  
 
Meditation
Proverbs 16:9--A man’s heart plans his way, but the Lord determines his steps.
 
Do I accept God's purposes for me?  If the answer is yes, I can never be intimidated by my circumstances.  Even in the middle of the wilderness, God can rescue and encourage us.  It would have been easy to scream on a forlorn road in rage at a broken motor. How much greater it is to wait trusting that God has a plan and will take care of us!  I look for the brush strokes of the Master Painter and He continues to amaze me in every circumstance.  
 
Inspiration
The shrine of conscious life is placed in a sacredness of circumstances engineered by God whereby He secures our effectual calling.  That God engineers our circumstances for us if we accept His purpose in Christ Jesus is a thought of great practical moment.—Oswald Chambers in Christian Disciplines
 
©1997 Daniel York  ARR. Reveration is the weekly devotional ministry of First Cause.  If you would like to receive these devotionals go to www.firstcause.org and click on the “Click here to receive weekly devotionals” box.  Unlimited permission to copy this devotional without altering text or profiteering is allowed subject to inclusion of this copyright notice.      
 
Ecclesiastes 12:10-The Teacher sought to find delightful sayings and to accurately write words of truth.  (Holman CSB)