RV Havin Fun!

Little Beaver State Park, Beaver, West Virginia

Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.  Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.  Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you. ~ Matthew 5:10-12     I think the highlighted words are important.  We can be persecuted for all kinds of reasons, just look at any social media and you’ll find angry, hate-filled words and taunts against people about all sorts of things – from the way you look to the clothes you wear to your political views, and the list goes on and on.  But Jesus says, we are blessed because of being persecuted because of Him.  Jesus Himself was persecuted because He dared to go against the world and do and say what was right according to God.  They insulted Him.  They persecuted Him.  They lied about the things He said and did.  They tortured Him.  And this is the same way people have always treated those sent to speak for Him.  When this happens to us, we need to fall upon the Words of God Himself Who reminds us of the heavenly blessing that awaits those who belong to Him.  It’s not easy, but we can do it.

It was necessary for us to bundle up to go out today – coats, boots, gloves, head warmers – the whole nine yards!  So I put on a crock pot of chili. It’s pretty crazy how much cooler it is considering the temperatures we were just in!  It was supposed to be a nasty day, but they’ve now moved that to tomorrow.  You just never know what the weather will do!  It’s the one thing people really can’t understand or control.  I’m pretty sure God designed it that way for a reason.  😊

We just did an in-the-Park hike today.  There’s still some extra water around, and I’ll bet after tomorrow, there’s gonna be even more.

Trying to play catch up on the blog and other activities consumed the remainder of our day.  And there was nothing to write home about on Wednesday because the weather was more conducive to remaining indoors. 

Except . . . .

It SNOWED!!! 

It was really wet and didn’t stick to anything, but still . . . it gave me joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart!

Pine Ridge Campground, Roebuck, South Carolina

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God. ~ Matthew 5:9     Did you know that this is the only place in all of scripture where the word ‘peacemakers’ is used?  It’s an adjective describing a person who strives to live at peace with all men, rather than in disagreement or anger or unforgiveness.  It is a sign, a verification if you will, that we have become/are children of God, “because God has poured out His Love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, Whom He has given us.” (Romans 5:5b)  If we live in this way, we will be obviously different from the world.  There’s an old Christian song with a chorus that says, “They’ll know we are Christians by our love, by our love.  Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love.”  It’s not easy in this world that somehow captures us in the folds of its anger and malice toward others.  But God would have us persevere and not fall into the evil one’s seduction.  Stand strong, and show Love.  Be brave and strong enough for the world to call us sons of God.

At 298 miles, today was the longest drive Blaine’s had since last October.  Can you believe that?

Not only was it long for him, but it was pretty rough as well.  It was windy and there seemed to be a lot of construction.  A wide-load semi decided to pass us while we were in a narrow concrete barricaded work zone, which left us with nowhere to go to get out of his way.  His load even hung over the left barricade into the oncoming traffic!

Of course, there were also the cars that always try to squeeze in front of us from their lanes or on-ramps.

We had a fairly lengthy slow-down as soon as we reached I-77.  Why?  No particular reason except that someone in North Carolina had the bright idea to squeeze everyone into two lanes instead of the four they’ve always had.  What happened to the other two lanes?  They made them into ‘toll road’ express lanes!  Only cars and straight trucks allowed, and you have to pay tolls every so often.  Crazy!  And very few people were using it.  Of course, that also means that if you’re in the express lanes and come to your exit, you have to get into the other regular lanes.  Now wonder traffic was so slow!  In case you’re wondering, it was near Charlotte.

Blaine had the pedal to the metal in the Virginia mountains and was doing well, until a semi-truck driver decided it was more important to play with his phone than stay in his lane.  It forced Blaine to slow way down to avoid the possible collision – and to lay on his horn.  The guy seemed oblivious to what he was doing. 

Little Beaver State Park, Beaver, West Virginia

We managed to arrive in one piece and that’s always a great thing!  We didn’t realize it, but we actually stayed here four years ago.  It guess it’s just all a blur now, even for Blaine.  😊

It’s supposed to be pretty cool (cold!) while we’re here.  It might even snow!

Pine Ridge Campground, Roebuck, South Carolina

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God. ~ Matthew 5:8      What is God’s definition of ‘pure in heart’, because surely that’s important for us to be able to see Him.  Do you remember when Jesus told the Pharisees they were ‘white washed tombs’? (Matthew 23:27-28)  That’s because they “look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean.”  Meaning, they did all the right things, but their real lives, their lives lived beyond the view of people; their secret lives, thoughts, attitudes and emotions, where far from God.  Our goal should be to live a life worthy of the salvation we received through the blood of Jesus.  The more we tune our hearts to the purity of God’s, the more clearly we will see Him.

Today was our last day with Bruce and Donna and their daughter-in-law Morgan was able to join us!  She was in town for work but they live just outside Denver, Colorado.  We all Wi bowled and golfed while Bruce’s ribs were smoking.  Donna opened a window and we were all drooling!  Oh man, did they smell good!

Along with the ribs (which tasted every bit as good as they smelled – – and then some!), we had corn on the cob, baked beans and 3-bean salad (which was actually 4-bean).  We brought the salad, but I had to look on-line for a recipe that was most like Blaine and Bruce’s mom’s.  I’ve never made it before, but that was the request and I aim to please. It’s kinda funny though, because Blaine would never eat those beans cold any other time.  Not even room temperature. 😊

It was a wonderfully fun last day!  Thanks for your generous hospitality Southern Pecks!