Ten Miles of Gravel

by Reba J. Hoffman

I am currently in the middle of a solo cross country bicycle tour to help women who have been the victims of violent assault. Day by day, God has divinely led me to minister to hurting women.

Last week, I was riding from Henderson, Kentucky to McKleansboro, Illinois. I was so excited to be riding through three different states in the same day.

It was 92 degrees outside in the middle of the day, but I barely felt it. I was in my element. I passed mile after mile of corn and soybean fields and went for hours without passing a house.

Suddenly, the road turned to gravel. Not just gravel, but mounds of soft gravel road. That is about the worst challenge a cyclist can face fully loaded with fifty pounds of gear.

I tried to ride it but knew I’d risk a bad fall. So, for the most part, I pushed my bike up hills, down hills. It demanded all my strength and concentration. I’d already begun rationing my water.

As I pushed up one hill, a mailbox appeared at the side of the road.

A house!

I pushed my bike up the gravel hill in their driveway, leaned my bike against a tree and knocked on the front door. Turns out, the lady of the house was the victim of domestic violence and had just gotten a restraining order against her husband.

She’d heard of me from a friend and had been following my blog. She began to cry and said, “I can’t believe God sent the bicycle lady to minister to me today.”

We held hands and prayed right there on her front porch. She gave me directions to the town I was headed to and within a quarter mile, the pavement was back.

Some people feel Google maps made a mistake and sent me down ten miles of gravel but Kayleedean and I know better. There was a purpose in my pushing my bike down that road.

You may feel like you’re pushing a heavy burden through ten miles of soft gravel. You may think there was a mistake somewhere along the way and that landed you in the middle of the wilderness.

If you’re feeling that way, you have to know that there is a purpose behind the problem. There is a reason you can’t figure out that plot. God has a purpose for you.

You don’t have to see the entire staircase in order to take the next step. Relax. Let God move and you will be astounded by His work in your life. He will guide you and order your steps.

With God, there are no wrong steps… no matter what it seems like sometimes. Even when you feel you’re walking a heavy load through ten miles of gravel. Trust me on this. It’s all good!

Do you feel like you’re walking ten miles through gravel? Share it here!