Tuesday, April 26, 2022
The wild donkeys were the draw. Those fascinating, hardy animals who roamed the desert in search for food. We had seen them on YouTube RV adventures. Several RVers had shared about their experiences in a little gold mining camp in the middle of the desert in northwestern Arizona, one of the last stops on route 66 before entering California. One main fascination for the place were all the burros who roamed freely the streets charming the tourist out of food.
These friendly burrows were a must on my Bucket List. So, Oatman, Arizona was our next destination. We had been dealing with a lot of stress and challenges in the last few months so a day of recreation out in the middle of nowhere was greatly welcome.
We found a great Boondocking place (free RV camping with no hookups, i.e.: electric, water, sewer) just a few miles out of Oatman and rode our bikes into town. There was plenty of evidence the burros , or wild donkeys, frequented the place where we chose to stay. Great!
The mining town was definitely a tourist attraction and we enjoyed the fun of the place: the museum, the mine, the shoot-out, etc. Nevertheless, the donkeys were the best attraction. They were everywhere and they loved attention, and weren’t bashful when it came to food. Three donkeys stopped a vehicle going through town, sticking their heads in the open windows, hoping for a reward. A baby donkey, not even a week old, stayed very close to it’s mother. The burros often blocked the road and were in no hurry to move along. We were on bikes so it didn’t matter much. A beautiful, gray visitor even came to our rig looking for an apple. I couldn’t disappoint him!
One vendor chose, for some unknown reason, to bless us and gave Tim and I two leather objects from his store. He refused payment for them so I bought a little purse I wanted and left him one of my books on Laughter. He was reading it when Tim saw him the next day. We prayed God would use the stories in the book to speak to his heart.
Shop after shop had lots to tempt one to empty their pocketbook but one item really caught my eye and I purchased it. It was a magnet with a picture of John Wayne and something he was quoted to saying: “Courage is being scared to death… and saddling up anyway.”
Courage. That hit home. What is courage? The dictionary says it is “the state or quality of mind or spirit that enables one to face danger, fear, or vicissitudes (unforeseen change in circumstance or experience that affects one’s life, especially in a trying way) with self-possession, confidence, and resolution; bravery.”
Courage has been greatly needed in the last while. Tim got us electric bikes last year and I am a very clumsy rider, not the fearless adventure he would like me to be. Those are my words, not his! Thus, getting on the bike is a scary ordeal every single time. Especially when the roads are not very conducive to bikes. Tennessee didn’t offer many safe roads and off-road riding was scarier still. Yet, I continue to saddle up, as John Wayne would say, and try again hoping and praying I will get better as time goes on.
Now that we are on the road again Tim has been encouraging me to drive the rig. Again, lots of courage is greatly needed as it is a very big rig and I am a very small person. Would you believe, even sitting all the way forward, pillow at my back and steering wheel between my legs, I barely reach the gas pedal. I am driving from time to time, but not without fear and many prayers. The steering wheel wiggles all over the place and I feel I have little control. Yes, courage please!!!
This past weekend I realized another aspect of courage: not giving up when greatly discouraged. We thought our rig was finally fixed and we would have a welcome breather. We knew a new engine was down the road but hoped we would have a year or two to save up for it. When the rig started guzzling oil, it would be time for a new engine. A couple of weeks everything went smoothly. Every day we were very grateful to God and told Him so. Then a few days ago we were hit with the reality that a new engine would be needed much sooner. We were frustrated and greatly discouraged.
To be honest I was very tempted to throw in the towel. Discouragement can be worse than fear. I wanted to trust God but was finding it hard to do so. We have endured so much in the last year.
To question God’s calling didn’t come into play. We have committed each step of this journey to much prayer and consideration. We continually seek His guidance and experience His peace. It was the same with getting this RV. We had looked at others and were even considering buying but were stopped in one way or another.
So, what was God telling us?
Discouraged and desperately needing Christian fellowship, we attended a church in Flagstaff, Arizona, not knowing what to expect. God led us there. Both Sunday school and the church messages were directly meant for us it seemed. Four statements really stood out:
Don’t despair, depend!
Don’t pull out, press on!
Don’t give up, keep getting up!
God takes the bad and makes it good.
When Tim and I actively started memorizing scripture again about a month ago, the first verse we learned together was Psalm 27:13, “I would have lost hope had l not believed, I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.”
Hope. Courage is having hope in the midst of discouragement. Tim says, “Now is the time to hope because God isn’t done yet.”
We don’t know why God is allowing all these difficulties and frustrations. Our comfort zone is being stretched to the max! But we do know He does all things well. He is doing something we can’t even begin to comprehend but our hope and trust is in our Sovereign Lord. Every day we need to saddle up and keep going. He has always provided in one way or another and He won’t stop now.
Furthermore, Tim has been praying for more boldness in witnessing. Our current struggles have opened up more opportunities for him to share His faith with people on line. Courage.
Thus, pursuing Gods delicious unknown continues…
PS. If you want a good movie on courage, watch Rio Bravo starring John Wayne. We did last night!
Blessings, mari
Praying for strong faith for you, courage and encouragement. God’s direction and provision.
Thank you Nancy and Dad. Greatly appreciate you both and hopefully will see you in WA 😀
Thank you for your experiences and the great lessons that you have learned and are learning. Indeed, the LORD puts us through trials and testing’s to mold us into what He wants us to be. He is the Potter, we are the clay. I’m reminded of a song that the Collingsworth family sings: One phrase states, “I want mountains to move but He wants me to climb.” Rich blessings to you as you continue homeward. I’m sure that there will be more mountains to climb but the blessings will multiply as well. Love you both and praying for you every day.