Several years ago my family planned a trip to Washington D.C. for Spring Break. We invited my mom to join us, booked plane tickets and secured an AirBnB. We were excited to see the cherry blossoms and explore the historic areas, we booked a condo conveniently located near the areas we hoped to visit and we would save money by cooking our meals rather than eating out the entire trip – everything was set and we had a plan!
Growing up in Florida where all the seasons just kind of run together, I suppose the possibility of unfavorable weather conditions in the Spring never really crossed our minds. As our trip got closer, the weather forecast got colder and we scurried to find winter clothing for last minute packing. It was after our flight and once we got into our rental car that the gravity of our situation really hit us. There, on the dash of the windshield, sat an unfamiliar object – an ice scraper. Oh boy, things were about to get very interesting. With a major winter storm forecast that evening we were anxious to get to our Airbnb and get settled before the storm.
As our GPS navigated us through narrow streets and eventually into a very unwelcoming alley behind a stretch of row houses, I think we were all holding our breath. “I don’t have a good feeling about this. We can’t stay here” My husband said as we parked our car by a random dumpster. Partially because our stay was paid in full and partially because I am just stubborn – I insisted everything would be fine. So, we unloaded our bags and the kids and went inside. Once inside, we all sighed a breath of relief. It wasn’t bad, clean and tidy and plenty spacious for the 5 of us. At first glance everything seemed normal and I was relieved everything was going to be just fine. We all began to walk around checking out our accommodations for the week and assigning sleeping quarters and inspecting each room. Upon closer inspection we began to realize that this home was very much lived in. I can’t explain it, but we are not talking about extra clothes in the closet or extra toiletries left in the cupboards for the occasional property owner’s use. I think at some point one of us asked the question, “do people like live here?” It was like someone packed a bag and vacated their home when they found out we were coming. There were various liquor bottles on the kitchen counter and boxes of leftovers and random grocery items in the fridge. I wasn’t going to admit it, but even I was starting to feel uneasy about this place. That’s when it happened. I was standing in the primary bedroom with my then 10-year-old daughter Leah and I looked into the bathroom. “What in the world?’’, I mumbled as I walked closer. There, draped over the curtain rod, were ladies undergarments presumably hung out to dry. It took me a minute to wrap my mind around what I was seeing and then I began to laugh hysterically at the absurdity of it all. By now, everyone has joined me in the bathroom and it has become abundantly clear that we are not staying here!
We gather our belongings and head back to the car unsure what to do next. Fortunately, the hostess was gracious enough to give us a refund of our Airbnb but we were in an unfamiliar city with a major winter storm headed our way and we had no place to sleep. When we started out on that trip we thought the 5 of us would be spending the week in a comfortable 3 bedroom rental home but we all ended up in a cramped room in the Hampton Inn. We thought we would be seeing Cherry Blossoms but got a snow storm instead. Nothing about that trip went according to our plans.
We still laugh about that trip and Leah got a kick out of telling the panties-on-the-shower-bar story to our tour guide in the Capitol, but I would have much preferred the comfort and predictability of our original plans. Sometimes we just don’t end up where we thought we were going.
The Bible is full of stories that illustrate that fact isn’t it? In Acts 27 we see Paul set sail for Rome to stand trial before Caesar. I imagine, as we all do when embarking on a journey, Paul had his destination in mind when he boarded that ship. I think it’s safe to say that he wasn’t expecting to spend 14 days in a storm while at sea or a three month detour after a shipwreck on the island Malta.
What about Joseph? God gave him a dream but he could not have imagined the road that would lead to that dream would lead through betrayal, slavery and prison. Or Ruth. I bet she never didn’t have being a destitute widow in a foreign country on her bingo card.
We also see it in Genesis 28. Here we find Jacob running. He had deceived his father Isaac and cheated his brother Esau out of a blessing. Now, fearing for his life, he was on the run because his own brother wanted to kill him. In Genesis 28:10 we see Jacob, exhausted and sleeping on a stone pillow in an unfamiliar place. And there in that place, the Lord speaks to him in a dream, reminding him of the promises made to Abraham and Isaac – promises of great blessing.
“I am the Lord God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac; the land on which you lie I will give to you and your descendants. Also your descendants shall be as the dust of the earth; you shall spread abroad to the west and the east, to the north and the south; and in you and in your seed all the families of the earth shall be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land; for I will not leave you until I have done what I have spoken to you.” – Genesis 28:13-15
I love this passage of Scripture because it reminds me of this profound truth: God can transform a place of failure, fear and exile into a place of encounter.
Jacob wakes up from his dream and says these words, “Surely the Lord is in this place, and I did not know it.” (Genesis 28:16) Jacob thought he was running away – but he had actually run into God’s presence! What a beautiful reminder that God’s presence isn’t confined to the places we planned to go.
If I’m honest this season of my life feels unplanned and often unfair. I can’t tell you how many days I’ve looked around and said to myself, “God, how did we end up here?” I feel like I’ve had one too many shipwrecks, viper bites, and pit experiences and some days I just feel like running away. But I am learning that it is our most uncomfortable seasons that draw us closer to the Savior. Like Jacob, I’m learning that God’s grace can find us anywhere – even in the places we never planned to be.
Jacob named that place Bethel, meaning “House of God”. A unfamiliar and unexpected place, a place he never planned to be – yet he named it not because of its location or geography. He named it because of Who he encountered there.
May we find closeness with the Savior today, even in the unexpected detours of life. ⚓