The Unexpected Road

So, we went on a road trip. Road trips are always fun, but they are even more fun in countries that have broader definitions of what constitutes an actual road. There were several eventful moments on our 8 hour highway journey. Roadside tea and stuffed paratha (it is a little like a stuffed, pan fried pita), a terrifying "floating" bridge crossing, whizzing by cows, autos, and bicyclers while truckers and motorcycles whizzed by us, and beautiful countryside colors. But, perhaps my favorite moment of our road trip was a detour.

While on the highway, traffic came to a complete stop. Trucks, autos, carts, cars and motorcycles were backed up as far as the eye could see. In an effort to figure out what happened, we talked to others waiting on the road. To our dismay, we discovered that a hole had formed in the road (we still aren't entirely sure what this means), and so the highway was going to be closed for the day. We looked at a map, and it appeared there were no other roads that would get us to our ultimate destination. Oh no!! What were we going to do? We were three hours into our journey, and we really didn't want to turn around and go home.

Then, something awesome happened. The guy in front of us said, "Follow me." And we did. Into the middle of nowhere. There are back roads, and then there are dirt roads, and then there is the road we were on. I'm not sure what to call it. Part mud, part hay, part grass, part foot path. We turned and swerved and swayed through tiny villages and farm land. (This was the least amount of people I had ever seen in this country... a nice break from the daily chaos of the masses) But, you will never believe what happened in the middle of nowhere. We got into another traffic jam. How is this possible? We weren't  even on a "real" road, were we? But there, in front of us, was a milk truck. A very, very stuck in the mud milk truck. The villagers had come, apparently from far and near, to help push him out. So,  we joined in the cheering as about 50 people together attempted to push the truck out of the mud hole and back onto the "road". They were successful after half an hour of trying, and we followed our fearless and mysterious leader on our way through the countryside. Eventually, we landed back on the highway we started out on. At this point, our leader disappeared and the rest of our journey was smooth sailing.

The whole thing strangely reminded me of another who said to us, "Follow me." Following is a bit scary, because we don't have the map in our hands. Often times, we are led down paths that hardly look like paths at all. There are bumps and mud holes along the way. Sometimes we get stuck. But the one who said, "Follow me" is faithful. Though His way is unexpected, and maybe at times looks even a little dismal, in the letting go and simply following we find ourselves in a new world entirely. A world where, along with disappointments and struggles, we see beauty and find joy in the unexpected. And the best part is, He who called us to follow Him will lead us to the end. We can trust in that.