Vintage View Vednesday Jedediah Smith Redwoods State and National Park 2005

At the bottom of the post, I have links to previous installments about our accidental vacation.

Jedediah Smith Redwoods State and National Park 2005
We drove the truck and trailer down the Oregon coast and into California with no specific goal in mind. We had spent a couple of days in northern California 13 years before, but we did not see much and did not know what there was to see. We had preached a night or two in Arcata and had driven up the coast to Eureka, but that is about all. We were ready to explore a little.

California Vacation

The first thing was finding a place to park. This was a couple years before smartphones so I imagine we found the campground in our huge Good Sam RV Park Directory that we relied on for many years. It was about 10 miles off 101 on 199. It was a beautiful drive to the campground. 

As we were checking in I ask the person at the counter about scenic drives in the area. She said most people camp here to enjoy the Jedediah Smith Redwoods State and National Park. We were directed to a six mile gravel road that leads through an old growth Redwood forest. We were blown away by the beauty. To take it all in, Kelly Jo and Odie rode in the back of the truck and we took a few hours to make our way through it.

We have seen Redwoods all over the state of California before 2005 and since then. We have never seen anything to compare to that unbelievable drive.

It is amazing how this little drive went way down deep in our hearts and found a home. Kelly Jo and I spent a couple of days there again in 2010 during a drive from Montana to California. The magic still holds.

I know that this post is about our accidental vacation in 2005 and the following pictures are from 2010, but they are begging to be posted.

But first, we needed some KFC for a picnic under the majestic trees. It was finger licking good!

We headed for the trail that leads down to the Stout Memorial Grove.

We stocked up on water before we picked up the chicken. If a fat boy is going to hike he needs huge amounts of water! No sense in getting dehydrated out in the redwood wilderness...

Full of chicken and stocked up on H2O we hit the trail!

This particular grove was donated as a memorial in 1929 by the widow of Frank D. Stout who made several fortunes in the timber industry.

Here is Kelly Jo standing by the roots of a tree that fell many years ago.

This place is awesome! We can't get enough of all these massive trees! We have stumbled onto a lot of amazing people and amazing beauty in our travels, but this blind find probably tops them all.

The next day the end dropped off of our accidental vacation and we were left to deal with it. I will tell you all about it for sure! 

Thank you for joining us on our trip.

Davy

Accidental Vacation 2005 I Yellowstone National Park

Accidental Vacation 2005 II Grand Teton National Park

Accidental Vacation 2005 III More Grand Tetons and Yellowstone

Accidental Vacation 2005 IV Glacier National Park and The Metzger's

Accidental Vacation 2005 V Washington State

Accidental Vacation 2005 VI Oregon Coast

Accidental Vacation 2005 VII Southern Oregon Coast

The Story of An Apostle, An Epistle and An Old Bus

We are moving beyond the bus saga that began January 24th as we pulled to the shoulder of I-45 with the bus not running. I am still sweating bullets and the girls are praying behind me every time I reach for the key to crank the engine. Eventually, hopefully, we will learn to trust our beloved home again.

1996 Prevost XL

The two weeks the BoggsMobile was broke down in Texas and the week it was broke down in Alabama could have taken a big chunk out of our sanity for a very long time. I have been candid here about the potential for this to be overwhelming.

Detroit 60 Series 12.7 Liter

I have also been very open about the way the Lord has helped our minds and my nerves through the whole mess. God has strengthened us, sustained us and blessed us each and every day from January 24 until right this very moment.

I have been careful to document on Mile Markers the entire ordeal including our highs and our lows. I am assuming that most of you are familiar with the story, but IF you are not, you can catch up by reading the links in the previous three paragraphs that look like this.

I have told you about the church at Gainesville having special prayer for us on a critical Sunday morning when I was needing God to help me. Help me He did in a tremendous way! While I was praying, my brother Steve sent me a Word from the Lord and the Holy Ghost fell on me. I did not even know at the time, those blessings were in response to a whole church specifically praying for me at that very moment hundreds of miles away.

Bus Conversion

God's people prayed for us, encouraged us and God infused us with the power to move forward one moment at a time. With two major breakdowns behind us, we have emerged with most of our emotions entirely intact, the bus running and the bills paid in full.

Prevost Community

We are praising God for the series of miracles He has performed in our lives. Thank you to everyone that prayed and responded to our crisis with so much kindness and love. May God bless you for it.

However, there is more to this whole story that we did not know until a week After the bus was repaired the second time. I would like to share that with you now.

The Apostle Donald C. Williamson and his wife, Sis. Gayla (The Epistle😁) are no strangers to Mile Marker readers. Bro. Donnie is Pastor of Tanner Williams Holiness Church and they have been dear friends for many years. They have purposefully encouraged us and strengthened our hands every step of the way.

Naturally, I informed Bro. Donnie of our first breakdown in Texas so that they could go to prayer for us. He stayed in contact with me closely, encouraging me as only he can. When we arrived at their church on March 7, I learned the rest of the story.

Bus Repair

BEFORE the bus quit and coasted to the side of the road, Sis. Gayla had a vivid dream that she was trying to comfort me as I was crying uncontrollably like a little boy. She told Bro. Donnie they needed to pray for our family fervently because we were needing God desperately. They shared that need to pray with their church and everyone was praying for us BEFORE they or we knew we needed fervent prayer.

Can you understand how that affected me when they told me that? 

I was overwhelmed with thankfulness to God for his divine providence AND to the Williamsons and the Tanner Williams church for being sensitive to the Spirit of the Lord. They took our needs to God with heartfelt, intercessory prayer without any specific knowledge of our needs at all.

That tells me that BEFORE we broke down, God was already making provision for us physically, emotionally and financially. God planned the path out of our difficulty BEFORE we ever walked into it! Hallelujah!

I have preached that so often! God will make a way out before you ever walk in! My family has heard it during conversation so often. I should not be surprised at all that God did it again for our family. Praise God!

Our God and His people are so amazing!

Today I am thanking God for the Apostle, the Epistle and you for partnering with us in prayer through this little detour. You held our hands when they hung low. You strengthened our feeble knees. You lifted our head. You comforted a little boy that could have easily been crushed by the adversity. 

Miracles Answer to Prayer

May God bless you for the time you have invested in us and may God bless you for the resources you have entrusted to us. Praise be unto The Lord!

Thank you for reading.

Davy

Weekend In The Rearview Mirror 3/25/19

The last services at Paw Creek were so sweet Thursday and Friday. We hated to leave our precious friends, but our itchy feet let us know it was time to roll on down the road. It seems like that happens every Saturday.😀

Odie snapped a few more pictures at Paw Creek and they are first up on this weekend post.

We only had 113 miles to drive so I let the girls rest a while Saturday morning. I cranked the bus a few minutes after 11 and it took us about an hour to get unhooked, our holding tanks emptied and then we were on the road.

There was only one stop for the BoggsMobile Saturday. That was in Blacksburg, South Carolina at Love's for diesel and a little snack.

There was quite a bit of construction for most of the drive. We knew it was there because we drove the opposite direction through it the Saturday before. The traffic was slow, but moving and a little less than three hours after we began, we pulled in to Open Praise Fellowship Holiness Church in Easley, SC for the first time.

By 6:00 we were turned around, parked, hooked up and the sound system was carried in, set up and connected in the church. Soon we were on our way back to town looking for a bite to eat. We knew we had found the right restaurant when they have a tow truck parked next to the front door in case you eat too much.😇

We received a lovely warm welcome from Pastor Chad Payne and all of the precious people at Open Praise Fellowship Holiness Church Sunday morning. As I mentioned, this is our first time here, but they have made us feel right at home already. The Lord moved wonderfully in the singing and in the altar service. Plus, they served a great meal after church. It does not get much better than that!

The Lord blessed us with another great service Sunday night. We are really looking forward to the next three nights. This church is right in the middle of a great neighborhood for a church and I would love to reach out to a bunch of them. Pray the Lord will help us!

Thank you for reading today.

Davy

View Out The Front Window 3/24/19

This is our view out the front window this week at Open Praise Fellowship Holiness Church in Easley, South Carolina.

Here are the links to our posts from this last week.

Odie's Saturday Evening Post

Revival In Pictures - Charlotte, NC

School Revival In Pictures - Paw Creek Academy

Vintage View Vednesday

Leading Like A Lion

Our Weekend In The Rearview Mirror

Thank you for dropping by to read our Mile Marker today. May God bless you with a wonderful Sunday and a great week.

Davy

Our Fabulous Friend Farrell

Hey Friends,

Happy Saturday, I hope that your week has been good. Ours has been full of activity in Charlotte, North Carolina. We had revival at both Paw Creek Christian Academy and Paw Creek Ministries. I am so glad we were able to visit with our dear friend Pastor Joseph Chambers. He has been very kind to our family through the years and we love Bro. Chambers!

It is a travel day for the BoggsMobile. Each time that we are rolling, I thank God for keeping us running! We have always tried to have a thankful heart for traveling mercies, but our recent bus problems have made me even more grateful!

Today we are traveling from North Carolina to South Carolina. I anticipate meeting new friends in Easley this coming week. We will be at Open Praise Fellowship Holiness Church with Pastor Chad Payne for Sunday through Wednesday.

Our Fabulous Friend Farrell 

We love all of our extra special friends that we have met along the way. These friends cheer us up, encourage us and bring great big bright smiles to our faces. Farrell Stearns is right at the top of our special friend list. 

We first met Farrell in the spring of 2004 in Cantonment, Florida and we bonded quickly over our shared love for music. It thrills us to receive a letter from him or see his name on the phone screen. Every time that we hear from him it brightens our day!

Soon after we met Farrell we figured out that we had attended Crabb Fest in Owensboro, Kentucky on the same years, but sadly we did not know him yet. We had been to the same concerts, heard the same groups, cheered at the same time and had not formally met. 

Farrell always sits on the front row out on the front edge of his chair. His enthusiasm stands out in the crowd, yet we did not meet. Now years later we still have fun sharing our beloved Crabb Fest memories.

One thing that made us fast friends is that he is a diehard Isaacs fan! It is a blast to talk to him about many of the southern gospel groups that we both enjoy, but we especially love talking about “our Isaacs”! Farrell’s collection of Isaacs memorabilia is definitely bigger than mine. He pulls out shirts that I completely forgot existed.  Twice a couple of years ago we were able to attend the same Isaacs concerts. It was a pleasure to share those awesome services with him! I  certainly hope to do it again in the future.

Farrell is extremely kind and always has a sincere compliment and word of encouragement. He is so good to come to see us whenever we get close enough for him to visit. Recently Farrell came to both Foley and Wilmer, Alabama. We always look forward to seeing him! I appreciate the miles that he travels and the time he sacrifices to be in with us! It is a treat for our family to see his smiling face on the front row soaking up the service. 

Farrell has a large shirt collection of many different music groups. He likes to represent his special groups, especially when he attends one of their concerts. A few years ago his green and blue plaid shirt became his “Boggs Family Shirt” because it matches the bus. Now that shirt resides folded in his group shirt drawer! He wears it when he comes to see us and we feel so honored. 

I wanted everyone to meet and know “Our Fabulous Friend Farrell”! It is a privilege to have him cheering us on. It is a comfort knowing that Farrell is in our corner. We love you, Farrell Stearns, so much and thank God for allowing us to meet you!

Farrell possesses a joyful and positive personality that is contagious. I want to purpose to uplift those around me daily. Do you have a special friend that uplifts you? Encouragers are a priceless gift from Heaven. I am inspired to be that kind of friend to others.

Thank you for stopping by and reading today. I pray that you have a terrific weekend. 

Odie