Driving 'round the Island

Today we decided to explore the North-West section of the island of Maui. We didn't have any particular plans, just drive and see what happens. It is amazing how exciting it can be to spend an entire day with absolutly nothing planned. We stopped first at Iao Valley State Park. It was a beautiful valley, with unusual mountains on either side and a stream that ran through the middle. Next, we continued north and west around the outer edge of the island. We traveled along a very narrow and curve filled road, with towering cliffs on our right that fell all the way to the ocean. This was a challenging driving experience to say the least, but it was also unbelievably beautiful. Check out the photos in my photo gallery.As we traveled around those curving, often one lane, roads that could take your breath away, I was inspired by the beauty of what God had created. It was an almost untouched landscape as seen from the road. The ocean was beautiful blue and it just about took your breath away to see it. If the view was breathtaking, the road was equally breathtaking in a scary sort of way. Meeting another car on a stretch of road that was barely wide enough for one, with a 1000 foot drop to your right, will cause you to place a lot of trust in the Lord. At one point, near the end of the narrow road, we came across a nice gift shop (literally in the middle of nowhere), but passed the entrance. I attempted to turn around just past the gate and as I started back toward the entrance a school bus (yes, I said a school bus) came flying around the curve. It was definitely going well above the posted speed limit and passing it put the fear of God in me. As we entered the gift shop, one of the boys commented that it was good that the bus was not a few seconds earlier rounding that curve. It was at that moment I realized that if it had been as little as 5 seconds faster, we would probably have been killed. What is the point to all of this? Well, I realized that every moment of every day God is looking out for me and my family. We often forget just how much God cares about us. We should never forget that!