Day 9 - Lexington, VA to Petersburg, VA

October 10, 2019

Today we traveled from Lexington, VA to Petersburg, VA; about 200 miles. Total miles traveled so far 1,153.

We are South Forty Resort & Campground, about 30 miles south of Richmond. Traffic was the heaviest we have encountered. No stop and go traffic, but a lot of bumper to bumper once we hit Richmond. We went through about 3PM, I can’t imagine what it must be like during rush hour.

At the South Forty. The pool is closed for the season but it looks wonderful. Since the nights are down into the 50's and the highs for the past several days have only been in the mid 70's I expect the water would be brisk

 Our campsite. Nothing fancy, but everything we need.

 The campground is fairly large. There are some nice wooded sites in other areas.

The plan is to stay here 3 nights. That will give us 2 days to explore the area.

Had a life lesson today. We have had some issues this trip. We needed to have some welding done the first stop. Another day we lost a wheel bearing dust cap and had a difficult time finding a replacement. This morning I checked the oil in the truck and there was oil up several inches above the full mark. I checked it twice more and got the same result. (Yesterday we put some real stress on the old Duramax, lots of climbs up and then engine braking on the descents.) A mechanic suggested starting it, letting it warm up, shutting it off, waiting 5 minutes and checking it again. When I started it the oil pressure was around 70, it normally runs 60 when cold. After letting it run for maybe 5 minutes I shut it off, waited 5 minutes and checked the oil again. It looked a little over full, but nothing like when I previously checked. We drove about 100 miles and stopped at a rest area for lunch. The oil level was fine.

Now for the life lesson. Kathy & I are doing a study with some friends at Centertown Baptist Church. The workbook is titled, “Experiencing God.” The point is that we all need to strive to have a personal, intimate relationship with God. Just praying the sinner’s prayer and filling a church pew on Sunday morning is not going to make us the people God wants us to be. The points the authors set out are: 1. God is always at work; 2. He wants a personal relationship with each of us; 3. He gives us an invitation to join Him in his work; 4. He “speaks” to us to reveal how He wants us to participate in His work; 5. When we hear Him speak to us (probably not an audible voice, more likely He will speak to us through what we have read, or are reading, in the Bible), we will have a “crisis of faith”. Is that God really speaking to me?; 6. Once we hear Him we have to decide whether or not to participate in His work. This will require changes in our lives because we will need to re-arrange our priorities; 7. We obey God’s call and He works through us.

So where is my life lesson? I think God was just getting me to ask myself, “Do my recent reactions to these minor trials show that I believe God is in control?” Perhaps also, “Am I ready to make necessary modification in my lifestyle to participate in His work?” Whatever happens, good or bad, I must remember that God loves me and that He is in control. I need to look for His purpose. I hope this made at least a little sense to you.

God is good. May He bless you and yours.