Ron and I took a drive to Red Lodge, a small community an hour away. We ate lunch and meandered around the quaint streets before starting back home. When we crossed the final set of railroad tracks and headed north toward home, the low tire warning came on the dash. I selected the tire pressure indicator and noted the front passenger tire only had seventeen pounds of pressure. We must have picked up a nail. Since I’d just left the road closest to the tire shop, I took the next road to circle back.

For the next five miles, I tried to drive slow enough to be safe, but fast enough to not completely run out of air. As I did, the tire pressure continued to drop…fifteen, thirteen, eleven, nine, seven. With each mile slowly passing, I prayed aloud. “Lord, please get us there before we run out of air.” When we finally pulled into the tire shop parking lot, I let out a heavy sigh! Miraculously, three pounds of air pressure remained, just enough to get us to the shop.

My low tire experience reminded me of my own life. I was running out of air too. For the past three months, I’d driven back and forth to Helena to testify at the legislature and defend bills. It had been tough, really tough. We’d lost some important bills, key relationships were strained due to lack of communication, and politics and personalities had overshadowed good policy. With only a month left in session, little time remained to right some wrongs.

Overshadowing the time constraints was a very real awareness of the enemy’s attack. Every member of our team of advocates was experiencing personal traumas; not just simple things, but large life-changing crises. Then came horrifying news that a fellow advocate had been murdered by her estranged husband, shouting about the importance of our work. Today’s zoom call only heightened our urgency when we learned a child had been hospitalized because of an abusive parent’s lack of care.

As we navigated these various challenges, we were all working hard to get an important bill passed; one to protect children from domestic violence. Surprisingly, opposition came from the very organization that should have supported this effort. Politics and money have a way of corrupting and opening the door for the enemy’s attack.

Our team was numb and exhausted. We knew we'd done everything humanly possible to educate and raise awareness for the desperate need for this legislation. We needed a clear path forward and yet; every effort was met with more roadblocks. We’d taken this as far as we could go. Now we needed a miracle.

2 Chronicles 20:15, 17 came to mind: “Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s. Take up your positions; stand firm and see the deliverance the Lord will give you. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged. Go out to face them tomorrow, and the Lord will be with you.” (NIV).

The words filtered through my mind, realizing that although we were in a battle, it was the Lord’s. Would the battle be over tomorrow, or even the next day? I don’t know, but I was certain of one thing: I’d been called to stand firm, to wait with expectation for His deliverance, and to not become discouraged or afraid. The Lord was with us. He would deliver us in His time and season!