I don’t know why I asked the barista to pray for me, as I was about to begin my drive from Idaho to Colorado. It just came out of my mouth since a winter storm was supposed to hit Colorado that weekend. I was leaving Idaho a day earlier than I’d planned, in order to try to miss it, but before I left Coeur d’Alene, I HAD to stop for a latte and bacon cheddar scones at my favorite coffee shop in the area. (Their cinnamon rolls are, by far, THE best I have ever had, but this was a No Desert Day for me, so no cinnamon roll.)
Terre Coffee had immediately become my favorite in Coeur d’Alene after I complimented another barista on her smile. Her immediate and exuberant response was, “IT’S JESUS!!! It’s the Joy of the Lord!” and we had a fantastic conversation about the inexplicable joy that comes from a deep relationship and friendship with Him.
Not only was this a Jesus friendly coffee shop, but it had pictures on all the walls of Cinque Terre, Italy, which is my all-time favorite place in Italy and quite possibly all of Europe. (Embarrassingly enough, It took me a while to figure out that’s where the name “Terre” came from.)
Well, I did not miss the storm! I drove right into it and am so grateful to have been covered in prayer. There would be 3 events where I have no doubt prayers kept me safe.
The snow had already been falling heavily, as darkness descended on the drive. The speed limit was 80mph, but a slow 40mph was what felt comfortable in most parts. This would potentially double the time for what should have been a 15-hour drive. However, anything faster felt stupid.
As I was trotting along at 40mph, I noticed a pickup ahead of me begin to slide a little. I slowed down and soon witnessed the pickup slide into a sideways position on the road. The driver tried to self-correct but slid across the road then into a sideways position in the opposite direction.
My heart raced as I watched this certain accident unfold. I slowed to a near stop for what seemed like 5 minutes as the out-of-control pickup continued to slide all over the interstate. The pickup soon slid off into the ditch, then, miraculously, drove out of the ditch and continued on unharmed and traveling in the right direction.
Unbelievable!! It was impressive to watch and whoever was driving that pickup had some mad driving skills…or some fabulous guardian angels.
I took it as a warning and, as I drove through the area where the truck had slid so much, I made sure I slowed down to about 20mph. Sure enough, it was slippery even at that slow speed. I made it through without a problem, but had I been going faster, it could have been catastrophic. I have no doubt, that pickup was placed there to warn me.
Later on, I went to pass a couple of semis that were travelling at about 30mph. “Too slow!” I thought. “The roads aren’t THAT bad and I’m already doubling my travel time.” As I began to pass the truck, the semi sped up. I wasn’t comfortable going any faster to try to continue passing it, so I fell back behind it again.
“That was rude!” I thought. Truckers are usually pretty considerate, so it was strange that this one wouldn’t let me pass.
I was immediately spiritually reprimanded, “Don’t you think there might be a reason for that?” God asked and I quickly repented of calling the trucker rude and asked for forgiveness. Sure enough, it wasn’t long before I hit a patch of ice that would have sent the car out of control if I had been going any faster. The “rude” trucker probably saved me from an accident, if not more.
The final and most unbelievable event was the fox. I’m driving along this icy, snowy interstate and, all of a sudden, a fox runs out into the middle of the road and just looks right at me, daring me to run over him. It was just instinct to slam on the brakes and, at 40mph in those conditions, I knew the car was about to begin sliding and spinning.
It didn’t! The tires worked as though I was driving on dry pavement. Nothing happened other than the car stopped, the fox ran off, no one died, and the fox got to go home and tell stories of how he played “Chicken” and won.
It wasn’t long after that, around 2am, that I decided it was time to pull off at a rest stop and take a nap. By morning, the storm had passed and the roads were much better. The car and I both made it to Colorado in one piece and I am, once again, so grateful for the protective prayers of others.
I know many reading this keep me in their prayers, too. I feel them and I appreciate them so very much! Thank you!