Back Roads

It’s been one of those days where it is tempting to just lay on a sofa, read a book, sip lemonade and have a fan pointed at you for hours on end. Today was a very hot and humid day. However this evening we had a thunderstorm. I love storms in the summer. There is just something about the smell in the air when it has passed by, a freshness that can not be duplicated. It was just becoming dusk when I went down to my grandmother’s – just down the road. I spent about 45 minutes pampering the cats, eating blueberries and visiting with my grandparents. I took the cats one at a time out to the breezeway on my lap. We saw bats flying around the trees. It was such a beautiful evening. When I bade my grandparents adieu I decided to go for a drive. One thing I absolutely love about rural America is back roads. They are so much fun! Windy, sometimes bumpy roads surrounded by fields, woods, meadows, hills all around, passing farms and houses set on big lawns. I rolled down the windows, put on the high beams in the growing darkness and ventured off into the darkness. It was glorious! There are just a couple places that I will burst into song: mowing, in the shower, and the other is driving. What a beautiful beginning to the Sabbath. I belted out my favorite hymns and praise songs as the moon shone brightly toward the west and on the eastern horizon lightning flashed behind the clouds as the storm was still rumbling in the distance. It was just beautiful. Several times I stopped the car. All that could be heard were peepers and crickets singing their tunes. The roads were starting to become foggy, like a blanket that the car passed through. I saw a cat stalking in the bushes. To my delight I saw a skunk romping across a lawn. Farmers were ending their day in the barns. Cows were moving slowly across the fields. A frog jumped out of my way and many a squirrel looked around in alarm. It was such a perfect summer evening. I sang my praises to my Lord for this beautiful day and I could just sense His smile on me. “Thank you Jesus for this present, a beautiful opening to Your Sabbath.”

I encourage you to take the back roads today. Take some time to get away from distraction and notice what Jesus has for you to enjoy. I know many people who are stressed every single day. There can be so much to do, so many things that fill our minds. Too many people just fall to their beds at night never having taken a moment to reflect, to think, to be calm. “Peace I leave with you” Jesus tells us. There is peace to be had in every situation. We have to “be still and know that I am God” and then God’s peace will fill our hearts and rejuvenate our minds.