Barkcamp State Park, Belmont, Ohio

Now, hurry back to my father and say to him, ‘This is what your son Joseph says:  God has made me lord of all Egypt.  Come down to me; don’t delay.  You shall live in the region of Goshen and be near me – you, your children and grandchildren, your flocks and herds, and all you have.  I will provide for you there, because five years of famine are still to come.  Otherwise, you and your household and all who belong to you will become destitute.’ “You can see for yourselves, and so can my brother Benjamin, that it is really I who am speaking to you.  Tell my father about all the honor accorded me in Egypt and about everything you have seen.  And bring my father down here quickly.” ~ Genesis 45:9-13     Having read ahead some, I can tell you that Joseph knows whereof he speaks.  I suspect that God has revealed a plan to him that has implications far into the future.  Joseph wants all his family under his watchful eye and care.  In his position, he can do that.  The ‘becoming destitute’ isn’t just about grain.  It’s about the events that are about to unfold over the next five years.  It’s about God providing for His chosen people.  Over the next five years, people will become so desperate for food that Pharaoh (under Joseph’s leadership) will eventually be owning everything in the land. How are you at trusting God?  Do you have the faith it takes to place Your life in His Hands and do things you don’t understand?  It’s soooo hard!  Especially now when we’re used to instant gratification.  When we don’t have the patience to wait for a day.  Or wait to answer our phones.  Or wait for a response from someone.  Or wait for answers.  Or wait for that promotion.  Or wait for that recognition we think we deserve. Or wait until marriage. . . .  Waiting is sooo hard!  But we can practice by taking a deep breath and telling ourselves to be calm and wait.  As Isaiah says, “My thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways My ways . . . and . . . Those who wait upon the Lord will renew their strength.  They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary; they will walk and not be faint.”  (Isaiah 55:8 and 40:31)

Life’s little surprises have been trying to beat us down the past two days.

We woke this morning with a sense of feeling a bit lost, because we had no schedule to keep. 😊 We got used to living by a calendar of constant motion for six weeks, so we got off to a slow start today, as the temperatures began rising quickly.  Even though we had several things on our list to visit here in the Belmont area, it was really too hot and humid today to take them on, so we opted for a mid-morning walk around the campground instead, which turned out to hold a little adventure of its own.  How many dull days have we had in the past nearly five years?  Not too many, that’s for sure!

We came upon this little “historic farm” alongside the trail. The building below is a general store that, according to the sign was supposed to be open for business, but wasn’t.

When we returned, Blaine got to work washing windows, and then set about trying to make us level, at which time, he discovered the main reason why it was so bad.  It was so hot yesterday, the wood blocks we used, sank into the asphalt!  He made a few adjustments, and we became nearly perfectly level.

We were both involved in computer work when suddenly . . . . . .

KA-BOOOOMMM!!!

If felt like we were t-boned by a semi on our port (driver’s) side!!  Scared the begeebers right outta me!  And Blaine immediately reassured, “We’re all right.”  We both jumped up and began assessing.  He went outside, already having a basic idea of what happened.  I stayed inside.

Drawers, doors and cabinets all along that wall had flown open, including the microwave door, and my very heavy knife block tipped over!  Things on the bathroom counter slid from that side to the center.  It’s a wonder nothing fell out of the cupboards. 

But it also did something to one of the bathroom pocket doors that Blaine will have to check out at some point.  Holy cow! That’s one experience I hope never to endure again!

So what happened?

One of our jacks exploded.  I guess a better word is, it failed.  What does that mean?  It means we’re now walking around like drunken sailors on a moving ship.  There’ll be no cake baking for a while.

Our coach has hydraulic jacks which are used to level and stabilize the entire place.  Without them, we sit at a tilt; (unless a site is perfectly level to start with) the degree of which is based on the platform we’re parked on.  They also keep it from rocking when we walk, or if it’s particularly windy.

The right (passenger) rear jack weld failed (experts later confirmed that it was never done properly). When that happened, it released the pressure that holds the jack up, and we came crashing down on that side.  It also released the hydraulic fluid.  And the ‘explosion’ was great enough that it moved us about a foot to the right, which in turn, broke the ‘foot’ off the other rear jack.

A new jack is $1,100 + shipping.  It takes the manufacturer two weeks to make one, and who knows how long to ship.  Living on the road, we’d really have no idea where to have it sent.  And no, we can’t wait until September when we come home.  Good grief!!  At least we are still drivable and livable.

But wait!  There’s more!

As Blaine was crawling around under the coach, we began to hear thunder.  I checked the weather radar and told him he had about an hour.  Sure enough, an hour later, just a few minutes after we cleaned up and went inside, it started raining buckets.  Great, huge, God-sized buckets full of water!  Oh, and let’s not forget the pea-to-marble sized hail that came along with the near gale-force winds.

It was nearly over by the time Blaine got out of the shower.  Praise God there was no damage!

We collapsed in front of the TV for about an hour and a half, then hit the sack.

Little did we know, there was more adventure in store for tomorrow!