The (Snowy) Road Less Traveled

 We had underestimated the interstate, that much was clear. After a long day snowmobiling in Yellowstone, we had driven to Bozeman with no problem, but now we had an hour drive to our lodging in Paradise Valley and the sun had set. Being from the south, I figured that the interstate would be no problem- they get snow all the time, of course it will be clear! 

But we had not considered the dreaded ground blizzards- a flurry of dry snow whipped across the road by wind. And we had underestimated the snow that was falling. And we had not expected the 18-wheelers to be so intimidating.

I almost threw up. Jeff drove like a pro, but I could tell he was nervous. 

We both were worried we were in trouble, but we didn't see a way out. You can't pull to the side on a busy highway in the dark in the snow as that can be dangerous too. We were stuck. 

As I was clutching the armrest and prayed more than I've prayed in years, I looked down at the directions on the screen- ironically to the town we were staying in called Pray, Montana. There had just appeared an alternate route that said three magic words:

Seven. Minutes. Faster. 

"Jeff I have no idea what this exit is, but it says we can be scared for 7 less minutes. Want to take the chance?" 

Within a minute we had exited. 

We had exited not onto another highway or town road, but a winding back-country road that went on for over 20 miles. The "road" was covered completely in snow and the snow was falling heavily on our windshield. The going was slow and the only lights were those of the occasional farmhouse (which I kept sight of in case I might need to hike to one and ask for shelter). But we were the only ones on the road and truly that was a blessing. There were no trucks bearing down on us, no cars trying to pass us, no attempting to stay in the correct lane with zero visibility. We had one long winding road, driving 20 miles an hour or less, that would get us home. 

The drive, though better, was not easy. We put on some music to calm our fears, Jeff relaxed his grip but not his vigilance, and we kept moving- me using the map to guide Jeff when sharp turns were ahead. About halfway through, the pavement ended and we continued on what I assume was a gravel road. Or a path? Perhaps we drove through a meadow, I have no idea. 

But we got there. 

We arrived at our little country house in the mountains at 7:45pm, exhausted, tense, but safe. We had literally no idea what or where we had just driven, but we could have cried with gratitude that it got us off that highway. 

Later, we learned that if we had continued on the highway we would have gone through a dangerous mountain pass that had even worse conditions than we had seen up to that point. We both laughed in amazement that it could have gotten worse and reiterated our gratitude that the alternate route had popped up and claimed to be faster.

This was the back of our car after the drive, when we finally arrived at our lodging. 

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In many ways, I rediscovered my relationship with God on this trip (and not just because I was forced to pray for our lives to not end on a country road in Montana!). I was considering truths about God as we drove in the snow that night, and I realized something. 

I did not rediscover my faith in God because suddenly good things were happening to me. Yes, my life is better than it was. Yes, the clouds cleared and I got to see the Grand Tetons. Yes, my husband knows how to drive in the snow and is also super good-looking. But it wasn't that. 

Instead, it was the realization of who God is in the midst of the chaos. God did not make the snow stop and the sun come out and the roads clear that night. Instead, he offered a different path. This new path, though it saved us from certain death (dramatic, but that is how it felt!!), was still a challenging path to go down. It was better, but it was still hard, still scary, and still slow going. 

Similarly, God did not miraculously heal me from cancer. Instead, he put me on a path with surgeries, chemo, and competent doctors. Was this path easy? No! It was the worst! It was hard and I would not recommend it, but it kept me from the path that led to death. 

On that late snowy night driving that dark country road, my life thus far was put into perspective. I realized, that we don't always see the dangerous mountain pass ahead. We don't always know what God has saved us from.  But in the midst of the storm or the valley, God does not abandon us. Sometimes He shows up as the kind and renowned surgeon ten minutes from your new apartment, and sometimes He shows up as a little note on the screen in the car that says, 

Seven. Minutes. Faster.