Early Travel Experiences

Being Equipped for Travel

The vast majority of people in the United States, including ourselves, are not familiar with what it is like to live traveling on the road. Over the last few months, the Almighty has been leading us in different directions to prepare for this new lifestyle. It is much different planning to go out for many months, or even years, with no permanent home to return to than it is planning for a weekend camping. All the supplies for living life have to be carried along and maintained where space and weight limitations exist.

Family stuff We now have many smaller versions of things we already have; for example, instead of big padded chairs for a house, we now have folding camping chairs. We now have many battery operated equipment or camping items that work on propane. We have had to prepare how we will deal with our banking and mail while on the road. Although we were already planning on home schooling our daughter before this journey appeared, we have to have educational materials and supplies that can be worked with on the road.

Ministry stuff For a ministry journey, there needs to be dealt with not only one's personal gear and clothing, but ministry equipment as well. Only the most used books can be taken, there is audio and visual equipment to store. There are materials that may be donated and given away to deal with. As well as access to communications to contact brethren and update this website.

Camping stuff In regards to the camping itself, there is a wealth of information out there for those in the pop-up camper / RV lifestyle that are available and very helpful to even modest campers. Maps and site information are extremely useful. Considerable time will be spent just in planning the movements and travels. Also, the reality of the situation is that the equipment will get heavy constant use and not just a once a year vacation. This means searching our camping gear that is not found at the local stores because what is chosen must work consistently and hold up to regular use.

Mental stuff One thing more important that all of the physical equipment combined is the mental and emotional preparation for such a trip. The family will be in close quarters for long periods of time. Co-operation will be needed more than what is found in a normal apartment or house because of the limited resources. We know in advance, that quiet time will be much less than we are accustomed to, and yet how prepared are we for this togetherness? We have been learning this some by doing more activities together as a family, but from previous short camping trips, I know it is not the same. The unity of the family is what will make or break the trip more than any of the equipment.

Knowledge vs. Experience

We have been traveling for 8 months now. The Almighty has done so many incredible things for us. I am beginning to understand that one of the reasons He provided a pop-up camper for this journey was so that we were forced to be dependent on Him. Growing up in this culture we do not know what purity is. We do not know that the systems and institutions created by man have a good appearance on the outside but inwardly are devastating to our trust in the One Most High because they cause us to be reliant on mankind, or the government, or upon some institution for our care and protection. These things are His job and it is one He gladly does out of love and caring for His people.

To make an illustration. Think of a person who grew up in a country where there is no baseball. He comes to a country where it exists and decides that he will be a professional player. He can read every book ever written on the topic, he can memorize the statistics for all the players current and past, he can know the rules as good as any umpire ... but these are all in his head. If he were to know all this and then step up to the plate on a baseball field, pick up a bat, and try to hit a ball pitched to him would he hit a home-run or a triple or a double or a single or would he be likely to strike out. He may know how to judge a pitch but he has not developed the hand-eye co-ordination and quickness of reflex to react to that knowledge. He may know how the bat needs to be swung, but he has not developed the muscles for swinging the bat. Knowledge is not enough to make things happen. Professional players know that it takes practice and a lot of it.

In the same way, I can sit in a living room and read the Scriptures. I can study concordances, lexicons, commentaries, sermons, and try to know everything I can about Scripture. Yet I am not better off than the man above who steps up to the baseball plate and cannot hit the ball. If I step up to the spiritual plate and try to do any type of good, I will be unable because I have not worked on the reflex of faith and I will not have developed the spiritual muscles of works.

On this journey, we have been put to the test many times. Sometimes it is small and other times it has been big. Yet through it all and in each one we have been learning how much the Almighty truly loves and cares for us. Building up our trust and our faith in His ability to care for us under any circumstances only comes through practice and experience. It is not enough to consider it sitting in a chair. This type of learning began when we lived in a house, but it has increased tremendously because of the challenges faced when living on the road. I now have a better idea Who my Mighty One is than I did 8 months ago.

The tests and the training can come in an infinite variety of forms. These can come through elements of nature, or animals, or people. What happens when we unexpectedly find ourselves in 110 degree heat or below freezing weather? How does one act when suddenly finding oneself next to a bear in the wild or waking up to a herd of bison going through the campground? What is the proper response when in a bad neighborhood? Or when one's bicycle is stolen while in a good neighborhood?

Advice at the Right Time / Incredible Beginning

As we were preparing for this trip, one difficulty we encountered was not knowing anyone who has done this type of activity. We had no good example to look to or people to get advice from. We had to gain some knowledge and insight through books instead. However, the Almighty knows our needs, when we need encouragement, and delivers it at just the right time. There are times to minister to others ... and a time to be ministered to.

Although our journey is westward this year, we were led to go eastward for our first stop to spend time with with brethren who had been encouraging in the past. It turns out that the Almighty had planned for us to meet three other families that have been doing traveling ministries for many years now. We suddenly had access to their insight and first hand experience into what happens on such a journey. Their testimony of leaving behind their own lives to go do the will of the Almighty is of great encouragement to us. They helped prepare us in both the physical and the spiritual for what is ahead. Their stories remind us that the One Most High is faithful and will lead us and care for us wherever we go and in whatever circumstances we are in.

There accounts included such topics as:

Leaving behind their own lives to do the will of our Heavenly Father

Encountering rejection from people who oppose Kingdom work being done in this way

Learning lessons (sometimes the difficult way) from the Almighty for correction in our own lives

and perhaps most importantly the Spiritual struggles that would occur in American Indian reservations, New Age towns, and even political provinces

These and other personal stories helped prepare us for the physical and spiritual battles that would come on our adventure through the United States. This trust in His care would become one of the most important building blocks of the entire journey.

A Meal in Michigan

Early on in our trip we were ready to leave one campground and across the state of Michigan to another campground. We had only a little gasoline and just a little bit of money maybe 10 or $20. We knew that we have enough money to purchase enough gas to get to the next campground and that was not an issue, however we did have an issue that we had not prepared a lunch we were so busy packing up for the trip to leave that day we were unable to that make a lunch we were hungry and tired and on times like that it is nice once in awhile and go from one camp to another to take the luxury of eating out in a restaurant. However, eating out in the restaurant was not something we could afford on that trip we needed all the money for gasoline. When we departed from the campground we traveled with a about 20 minutes to the nearest town where we're going to switch roads. In that town there was a restaurant and I was getting a strong prompting here that we should stop and eat.

This does not make sense to me. Sometimes things from Father do not logically make sense. Yet I obeyed that and we ate at the restaurant. While we ate several people at a couple tables down from us got up and left the restaurant and one of the people a man smiled at us and nodded as he went by which is not unusual in casual passing. However, when the waitress came to our table that it was time to pay the bill she let us know that the individual the man who just left had paid our bill for us. What a Blessing ... Father had provided for our need for a meal and we still had the money for gasoline to travel where we needed to go to. We had no reason to delve or worried or should have problems concerning the where we were going are doing that day because we were doing what Father was telling us to do.

The Voyager Van Trip

Will this has been another interesting year for travel. It started all the way back in the month of January. And we are starting to get things in prayer that we should leave the campus and go traveling although the lead and not know the exact timing nor do we know the route. I think it was in the month of February that we started packing up the things in our apartment to put them in storage and we started purchasing things for a trip which included in a water resistant bag to go on the roof of a car and rooftop carrier.

The rooftop carrier was interesting because at that time the campus really did not have a vehicle that could handle it except possibly one guy's car. The pickup truck and other vehicles a scene in almost inaccessible and even if they were accessible seemed awkward to use a car top carrier. It would be a couple months further, but a family would get a white minivan from their son which they would end up offering to us to use on the trip. The rooftop carrier could be used with ease.

Well this minivan itself came with some interesting things. There was a list of things wrong with the minivan including loose steering, worn tires, a muffler and in poor shape, a headlight that was not working, and probably some other things. It was assumed and suggested that we would probably fix or replace some of these things as we traveled. However, this is not the case. During the entire trip, father basically had me keep trusting him and the van that things would be fine and in that I should not replace anything. Also, it had both engine oil leaks and transmission fluid leaks. Not fixing the van did challenge me somewhat... concerns about what would happen if something did break down or go wrong would come up in my mind from time to time.

Well in the state of Ohio, we had nearly enough money to replace the tires and that was still expecting to be fixing things on the car at that point. Father told me not to and instead, he sent us off to a music store where we ended up buying a hammer dulcimer. This is something we have been wanting for many months and were glad to get even if it made fun's tight for a while. The interestingly, the car also had a slow leak in one of the tires which was starting to get worse and within another month maybe a couple weeks to be bad enough it would have to be changed. That was one of the few things we did fix but it only cost a minimal amount to buy a generic hub for that we'll. As usual, when following letter father would have us do, we were blessed... instead of purchasing tires we purchased the dulcimer which is much more beneficial.

When we were in the state of South Dakota, we were getting low on funds and it would be awhile before we would be able to get more and I was wondering what will happen next. As it turned out, my wife's mother found she was going in for surgery and it would be in need of assistance to take care of her and the house down in Puerto Rico. She sent us enough money to get to Denver to purchase airline tickets and that the car in storage and get down there to help for a couple months. In father's timing on that was great another one of those times where it was the right time not the last minute.

In Denver was another time our Father made me look around for options on how things can be done moving money around. In this case Western Union was not functioning and the route we ended up taking loans to use my old pay pal account where is able to load money to pay pal and then pay for an airline ticket from their. Shortly thereafter I hate received a new debit card from pay pal, which I wondered if I would ever use again or not depending on how Western Union works. Much later in the trip on the way home, we were going to be used stock in South Dakota for a week waiting on our mail to have the funds to finish going back to the campus except for the idea of letting the campus know that if they sent us some money we could come back a week earlier. Well, in a normal is able to send $70 immediately through pay pal and with the use of my card I was able to get our mail sent overnight by FedEx and we went home a week earlier which prevented us having to spend the week and a very hot area with not many resources although we were yet in a small town.

Once again the timing was excellent.

Another challenge, was on the way eastward back to the campus. After we passed through the Bighorn Mountains of Wyoming, something happened to the brake systems and it sounded like steel was grinding against steel when we used the brakes. I was potentially an expensive repair, and would delay are returned to the campus another week or two which is something we did not want. The rest of the trip was mostly interstate and highway and could potentially not have much breaking involved. Father did say to make a run back for the campus which we did. Knowing full well that the repair there might be more expensive but probably still less than what it would cost us to stay a week or two out West's for shelter and food and repairs to the van. We got back to the campus just fine way a the problems of the brake didn't seem to be so bad and repairs not that costly. Thank you Father.

End of the First Journey

Storage The primary reason we return to Ohio is to take care of the loose ends left behind in storage. We remembered having many boxes but could not remember what was in many of them. What we discovered is we have grown a lot over the past 18 months and many things we were still holding onto then we threw into the trash or gave away now. Our lifestyle cannot afford such excessiveness. As it turns out, the Almighty helped us out in a similar way as He did when we left. Some of the major furniture items left behind because of family sentimentality were given to a missionary couple recently back from Africa. Many of the smaller items went in a dumpster at the campground we were staying in. A few items were kept. Perhaps the most time consuming item was the photographs. We went through them and kept very few.

Friends Although we were in Ohio discreetly, we did have a few people we wanted to visit more than most others. I begin to realize that our friends are those whom we have shared many experiences in life. Not just talked about life with but those we have actually done activities together with. It is also those who are encouraging to our walk rather than discouraging.

For those we have not visited, some we have heard about anyway. It seems that many are having difficult times one way or another either in finances or marriage or life in general. A sad reminder that one must be diligent in seeking the Almighty's will for one's life and be hard working defending it.

Family During this trip, there was to be healing for the family situation on my side of the family. There has been ... but not as I expected. What I find is that encouraging believers act much more like family than does family. The healing has come in letting go ... it is not all the way yet, but I seem to have no regrets in not visiting with them at this time.

This page is under construction. My apologies for any misspellings, repeated text, missing references, etc. Please visit again later for a more complete treatment of this topic.