Two years ago as we sat in a southern Oregon campground (our favorite place to camp at the time), I went online to search out possible RV parks for us to visit as we traveled up the coast (one of our planned trips). I bookmarked and, surprisingly for me, kept the bookmark for the very campground we are currently in. I hesitate to use its name (Seal Rock RV Cove), because more people might learn about it, and we’d never get to stay here again. Selfish of me. If God allows, we plan to come again. It has been a week filled with peace, enjoying a part of God’s creation we’ve never experienced and just plain relaxation. Minimal work (no laundry, so can’t even do that) for both of us.  Just listen to the sounds of God’s creation, enjoy the view(s), read -just draw closer to the Lord. I have, and Nick has as well.

I have frequently heard and have myself used the phrase “there are no coincidences with God.” I do believe that. It was part of His plan for us to be here and for the journey we took to get here. We left Smithville in early July, stopping in Matador, TX, to visit with Nick’s cousins, Marty and Linda. We stayed 2 more days than planned, but again, the Lord had already planned that for us.

If you know Nick, you know he loves trains, especially steam engines. Which made a trip on the Royal Gorge Railroad in Canon City, CO our next destination. A fantastic ride, I will say. Lots and lots of cliffs filled with rocks.  Lots of them. And if you know me, you know I love mountains and rocks. It was wonderful to see and experience. An added bonus was seeing a small herd of big horn sheep up close.

From there we headed for my daughter’s home for a visit. It again was a restful, quiet 3 weeks there (I could do laundry there). Of course, we saw lots of mountains, and canyons, and rocks, and deep mountain lakes, and even wild horses. It was hard to leave there, however. Gonna miss my daughter very much. It seemed harder to leave this time. She agreed.

Our next destination was Salem, OR. Our family visit here was church family. Nick and I have a friend there from his days of belonging to an online group of southern gospel fans. She attends Salem Evangelical Church, and we attended with her our first visit here. Wow! Wonderful worship time and messages that are equally wonderful, filling and oftentimes (is that a word?) convicting. We continue to watch their services online. If you are searching for a service to watch sometime, check it out. You’ll be blessed. We always are. We were able to attend two services this visit.

And so we headed here.  No idea what to expect, but we’d booked a week’s stay here. We knew no laundry, so prepared for that. It hasn’t been a problem, but there are places in surrounding towns to get that done. It’s hard to put into words what we’ve experienced here, but it’s truly been wonderful. As I sit here typing, I can hear the gulls down on the beach and the roar of the waves crashing. The sky is blue and the temperature is perfect (with a jacket on for me). Our site is nestled in among bushes and trees, but if I stand at the door, our porch view is the ocean, far, far out over the ocean. We cross Highway 101 to take the steps down to the beach. At low tide we can experience all the tide pools have to offer us. It’s a beautiful and mystifying world under the sea, and we are blessed to be able to see brief glimpses of it in the tide pools.

Along the way we have continued to meet people and hear stories and prayer requests from many of them. Again, there are no coincidences with God. All was planned for us. We have had requests for cancer healing, pregnancies, children’s health issues, divorces, peace, and the list goes on, some with tears. Yesterday we had our first praise from someone – he had contentment in his life and was grateful. The requests are surprising for us, and we are very blessed by the people we encounter.

Our time for resting and healing is soon over. We leave on Monday to head to WA and The Dunes Bible Camp for a month. We’re serving there, and excited to begin again.  It’s on the beach too, so more waves and sand and birds for us. But here will continue to be a place to return to, to experience, to enjoy, to rest, to meditate, to reflect. Thank you, Lord, for this wonderful adventure Nick and I have and for the stops we’ve made and the people we’ve met along the way. We know there will be many more.

Blessings,

Boo with Nick