This was a comment that I wrote on the blog Richard’s Watch:

Sometimes, for our time to be synchronized with the Lord’s time, we have to do seemingly crazy things (or at least crazy to the world system/unbelievers). We have to take up our cross and die daily, because we are not conformed to the world. It all hinges on obedience to the Lord.

Two nights ago, I slept in this junked pickup in Hamilton, Montana. It got down to minus 1 degree F; I froze my toes pretty good. After I got some breakfast at a Burger King, I began walking down the road–thinking that I was going to hitchhike south to Salmon, Idaho.

South of Hamilton, this Christian picked me up and took me to Darby, Montana. We had good fellowship. I told him that I went to his church (called The River) about three or four years ago; I thought he had a very good pastor who preached a very powerful message. (I went to The River back in 2015 because this older couple picked me up near Lost Trail Pass and invited me to go there for church. The husband told me that he had picked me up before in around 2006 where we then went to a church conference in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho.) When he dropped me off, he gave me his address and told me to look him up the next time I was in Hamilton.

South of Darby, I got a ride with a Christian couple to Sula where they bought me some hot chocolate and something to eat. I then walked down the road to look up someone who had given me three rides in the past few years. I walked up to his log cabin and knocked on the door. I waited a few minutes and he opened the door. He smiled at me and said, “Hey, Tim. Perfect timing. That was better than my alarm clock. I need to get ready to go to work.” We sat down for a short while and talked about a few things; I told him that his mom picked me up while I was hitchhiking out of Darby just a week before.

So I left his cabin and walked south towards Lost Trail Pass on the Montana-Idaho border. I walked maybe a mile or so and this young man picked me up and drove me to just south of Dillon, Montana. He was going to Utah to go back to school; his route bypassed Salmon, Idaho, but I thought I would still try to make it to Rexburg, Idaho later that day. When we got to just south of Dillon, there was this roadblock: the traffic was closed because of blowing snow on I-15; there were a lot of cars and trucks parked on the road and at this gas station/cafe. I told the guy that when the Lord puts a roadblock in your path, you sometimes have to go in another direction.

I got out of the car and started walking back north on I-15 towards Butte, Montana. As I walked up the ramp, this guy picked me up–I didn’t even have to wait or walk far (perfect timing). When I left Dillon, it was minus 2 degrees F. He dropped me off near Rocker, which is a couple of miles from Butte.

I then walked west on I-90 hoping to make it to at least Drummond, Montana where I could camp out and hopefully stay warmer than if I had to sleep out in Butte (Butte is usually one of the coldest places in Montana in the winter). The wind was blowing very hard and I walked maybe less than a mile when this car pulled over to give me a ride.

This guy was coming from north of Helena, Montana; he was originally from Orange County, California; he was driving to So Cal to see his wife. He was a Christian and we had great fellowship (perfect timing). We drove to Missoula and then south to Hamilton where I told him to drop me off. I was looking at the temperature and it said 5 degrees F and I didn’t want to sleep outside again that night. Sometimes the cold weather frustrates hitchhikers like myself; winter can be a challenge when trying to sleep outside at night.

He drove me to a motel, bought me a room and I was so grateful. We shook hands and I wished him a blessed trip to California. I think it got down to 5 degrees F last night. I was grateful to be out of the cold.

During my hitchhiking trip yesterday, I really didn’t do that much walking, I didn’t wait that long between rides. It was all such incredible GOD-TIMING it took my breath away. So after I leave the library here in Hamilton today, I will look up that guy who drove me from Hamilton to Darby yesterday. And maybe that was what the Lord wanted all along.

His thoughts are higher than my thoughts. God’s timing is perfect timing.

Three Dollars in Whitehall, Montana
Waiting Always Matters
Sitting in Jail in Broadus, Montana
A Hot Meal at a Campfire in Montana

Kim Clement speaks on Prophetic Timing and why God’s Timing is so Perfect

God is always doing something bigger than you can see

A few days before the 17th of May, the Lord showed me the number 17.  It bore witness with my spirit that it meant the 17th of May.

This is what happened on the 17th of May:

I was walking east out of Missoula, Montana on I-90 when this truck driver picked me up.  His name was Rusla and he was originally from Belarus (near Russia and the Ukraine).  He was a Christian who lived in Mount Vernon, Washington.  During that trip, the Presence of God became very powerful.  Rusla dropped me off in Belgrade where I camped out that night.

The next day (May 18th) I hitchhiked to Jackson, Wyoming where I camped out for one night.  The next day (May 19th) I hitchhiked to West Yellowstone, Montana and camped out in the woods just north of town.  That night I was attacked probably by several demons in my sleep.  Before I went to sleep, there was this sense of foreboding or sense of dread.  Later this evil presence came upon me and I became paralyzed and then the demons attacked me.  It may have lasted fifteen minutes to half an hour.

Why did the demons attack me that night?  Probably because the Presence of God was so strong on the 17th of May.  I believe some demonic bondage was broken inside me on the 17th and that is why Satan was so furious.

I hitchhiked out of West Yellowstone the next morning (May 20th).  A Christian friend picked me up outside of Belgrade and let me stay at his place in Three Forks for one night.  I was using his laptop that evening and noticed that the number of page views on my High Plains Drifter blog (Google) was down drastically.  The previous several months, I averaged between 250 and 400 page views per day on my High Plains Drifter blog.  After May 20th, my average page views has been around 40 to 70 per day.

Something serious happened in the heavenly realm in the past several days for Satan to attack me like that.  Praise the Lord!  That’s good news.  If Satan attacks you, that means you are destroying some aspect of his kingdom.

The next day (May 21st) I hitchhiked from Three Forks to Helena, Montana.  Outside of Helena, this truck driver picked me up.  He was originally from Russia; his name was Alex and he was from Mount Vernon, Washington.  He later told me that he knew Rusla, the other truck driver, very well.  We had a good laugh.  It’s a small world.  To me, this was confirmation that something definitely happened on the 17th of May:  two truck drivers picked me up from Mount Vernon, Washington; they knew each other; they were both Christians (went to different churches); they both spoke Russian and English; Rusla picked me up just outside of Missoula, Alex dropped me off in Missoula.  In the mouth of two or three witnesses, let every word be established.

Alex dropped me off on the east side of Missoula.  I hitchhiked to Lolo and camped out there that night. Before I went to sleep, I went through a fascinating deliverance from a demon.  It was like the demon was in a death throe when it manifested (it felt like I was dying); finally the demon came out.  It lasted for about an hour.  Praise the Lord!  I am still being delivered from demons; curses are being broken.

When I think back on the power of the Presence of God in Rusla’s tractor cab on the 17th of May, I think of these scriptures:

Isaiah 10: 27:  “And it shall come to pass in that day, that his burden shall be taken away from off thy shoulder, and his yoke from off thy neck, and the yoke shall be destroyed because of the anointing.”

I Corinthians 4: 20:  “For the kingdom of God is not in word, but in power.”

Matthew 17: 21:  “Howbeit this kind goeth not out but by prayer and fasting.”

Revelation 2: 24:  “But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and which have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak; I will put upon you none other burden.”

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Recent Page Views Per Day (High Plains Drifter blog):

4 May:  453

7 May:  471

10 May:  931

12 May:  300

16 May:  363

17 May:  258

19 May:  37

21 May:  197

24 May:  47

25 May:  75

27 May:  36

28 May:  58

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A Deeper Deliverance
Obedience: The Bondage Breaker
New Testament Circumcision

The Deeper Work of the Cross by Watchman Nee
A Dream About General George S. Patton
What Can’t Kill You Will Only Make You Stronger
The Gates of Hell
A Parable About Lukewarm, American Christianity
The Lord Will Come With Fire
Levels of Spiritual Warfare — Fr. Ripperger
Practising His presence.  Preparing the heart.
Where Are The Watchmen?

Genesis:  Garments from the Garden of God – Trey Smith

WASHINGTON, DC IS A GHOST TOWN

This morning I got a ride from Ashton, Idaho to West Yellowstone, Montana with a couple of guys.  I don’t remember the driver’s name, but he was originally from China.  He has lived in LA for the past ten years.  He was with his son.  He spoke some English, but sometimes it was hard to understand him at times.

He was a Christian.  I asked him who were the first Christian missionaries to China.  He said the Portuguese were; I thought the British were.

They were from southern China.  He said something very interesting:  he said that someone from Shang-hai would not be able to understand someone from Hong Kong.  The national language is Mandarin and there is also a Cantonese language that is spoken in China.

I told him about Watchman Nee and that Nee was a well-known Chinese Christian writer who died in prison in 1972.  He had never heard of Watchman Nee.  Maybe Nee is better known in North America; maybe the Communists tried to suppress Nee’s writings.  I told him that The Spiritual Man by Watchman Nee was a classic.

They dropped me off in West Yellowstone and we took some photos.  He said that his son would stay with him for a month and then go back to China.  It was a very edifying trip to West Yellowstone.

Burdens of the Spirit

China is Finished & So is Obama – Mark Taylor

Pastor Kent Christmas – Powerful Prophetic Release – China Crippled

The Skies Over Beijing Turn Black in Middle of Day as Government Passes New Laws Against Christians

Kim Clement Prophecy on China vs USA Fulfilled

Dr. John Sung:  Evangelist to China

Watchman Nee

12 December 2015

Yesterday I walked eight miles from Belgrade to Manhattan, Montana on I-90.  I put my backpack down on the shoulder and waited a few minutes and this vehicle pulled over to give me a ride.  The driver’s name was Butch and he was from near Great Falls.  I told him that I was going to Missoula.

We stopped in Three Forks where Butch bought me a sandwich and something to drink.  He told me that he just flew back from Alaska.  He helped his son move from Montana to a new job in southeastern Alaska.  Butch also was a Christian and we had a great talk about the things of God as we traveled west.

When we drove into Missoula, Butch told me that things happen for a reason and that I was in his car for a reason.  He told me that he had a sister that lived south of Missoula who had cancer and was bedridden.  Her name was Jessie.  He said that maybe the Lord had him pick me up so that I could pray for her.  I agreed with him.

Previously I had told Butch that when I was living in Ames, Iowa (around 1990), that I had prayed for my roommate’s girlfriend, Vanessa.  Vanessa had gone to this doctor and she had to have surgery on her sinuses.  Before I prayed for Vanessa, I had told my roommate how my faith in Jesus Christ healed me of manic-depression back in 1986.  My roommate told Vanessa about this, so they wanted to talk to me about it.

I told Vanessa how I was healed and I asked her if she wanted me to lay hands on her and pray for her healing..  She said yes, so I laid my hands on her head, prayed in tongues and I could feel virtue go through my hands.  A few days later, I was at the lumber yard stocking some lumber up on the cat walk when I saw my roommate walking down the aisle of the building.  He had driven to the lumber yard to tell me that Vanessa had gone to the doctor and that there was nothing wrong with her sinuses—she was healed!  He held out his hand and reached up to me and we shook hands.  I said, “Praise the Lord!”, and went back to work.  I later told Vanessa that her faith had healed her.

Butch and I drove south of Missoula and we drove to his relative’s house where his sister, Jessie, was staying.  We walked into their house and we met Butch’s relatives.  Jessie was laying in bed in the living room.  It looked like she was in great pain.  Jessie told me that it was very difficult to breathe.

We talked for a little while and then I asked Jessie if I could put my hand on her shoulder and pray in tongues.  She agreed, so I began to pray.  I think I prayed for around five minutes; I could feel virtue go through my hands.  After we were done praying, Butch and myself and the rest of the family had some supper.

Butch then drove me to a gas station in Lolo where we talked for a short while.  We shook hands and I walked to my campsite down by the river.

28 November 2015

Yesterday I was walking north of Sugar City, Idaho on U.S. 20 when this pickup pulled over to give me a ride.  The guy’s name was Ted and he looked like he was in is late sixties or early seventies.  He was driving from Utah to Billings, Montana.  I told him that I was heading to Belgrade, Montana.

Ted spent 12 years in the Special Forces (Green Berets).  He did four tours in Vietnam.  Ted was from the Crow Reservation south of Billings.  He said that he was 15/16 Crow and 1/16 French.  I told Ted that I had hitchhiked across the Crow and Northern Cheyenne Reservations a number of times over the years.

Ted told me that, when he saw me, something hit him between the eyes and told him to pick me up.  We had a great talk all the way to Belgrade.

I told Ted that I was involved in intercession and spiritual warfare.  He told me that he had been working on a project on the Crow Reservation for 20 years to help the Crow Nation become more independent of federal welfare programs.  Ted has met with a lot of opposition.  I told him about the power of prayer and we talked much on the things of God.

We stopped at a gas station in Henry’s Lake, Idaho.  Ted bought me some biscuits and gravy and something to drink.  We then walked back to the pickup and he handed me a plate of Thanksgiving Dinner.  He told me that his friends in Utah prepared him a plate of dinner for him to eat on the road.  Ted knew it was for someone else.  As he drove through Utah, he saw this homeless guy (maybe in Salt Lake City) and offered him that plate of food.  The homeless guy told him that he had just eaten some dinner.  So Ted gave me the plate of food; I was very grateful.

Ted told me something interesting.  He said that his great grandfather was a Crow scout for Colonel George Custer.  His great grandfather had fought with Custer at the Battle of Little Big Horn.  His name was Gozerhead.  Ted said that the Sioux and Northern Cheyenne tribes were allied with the Blackfeet during the Indian Wars.  I told Ted that I have always enjoyed reading military history and that I worked for this guy on the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming–he was from the Arapaho tribe.  He told me that he had an uncle who did seven tours in Vietnam.

I love it when the Lord puts someone in your path and you have a lot in common with them.  When this happens, either you will say something that they were supposed to hear or else they will say something that you were supposed to hear.  It may be one word or one sentence and then the Lord engrafts it into your spirit and you grow stronger from it.  Some Christians call this a rhema* word.  You could also call it our Daily Bread.  Jesus is the Word of God and He is the Bread from Heaven.

Ted dropped me off just south of Belgrade and continued on to Billings.  I walked to the McDonald’s and got some tea to drink and sat down and read the Bible till it got dark.  I then walked to this junk pickup on the far side of town and hunkered down for the night.  It got down to minus three degrees Fahrenheit that night.  My two water bottles froze solid, my loaf of bread froze solid, the sandwich that Ted bought for me froze solid, but I did not freeze solid (actually, I stayed nice and warm that night).  It had been a very blessed day on the road.

*Rhema

Special Forces
The Art of War
At a Cafe in Merriman, Nebraska

I received this email earlier this morning:

Tim,

We picked you up in early August this year and took you to West Yellowstone.  My girlfriend and I were driving a blue beetle with two small dogs.  We were on a road trip through the West and talked about encounters with hitch hikers (the guy who took the hitch hikers clothes and dropped them off 20 miles away after he pulled a knife on him), and about how you got into Hitch hiking, etc.

.

It was a memorable meeting for us and we still think about you from time to time.  I remember that you had given your tent away to someone who needed it because the zipper was broken, and your sleeping bags were well used, but still functional.

.

My girlfriend, friends, and I are avid campers/backpackers and have accumulated extra gear throughout the years.  We thought if you needed anything (tent, sleeping bag, stove, water filter, food, jacket, shoes, etc) we could ship it to a post office of your choice around Christmas time.

.

We love the fact that you’ve followed your dreams and chose a unique and interesting path.  You aren’t just another drone in society, and that’s worth something!  We’d like to help support that dream!

.

Godspeed, high plains drifter!

.

Jake & Jess

.

About a week ago I hitchhiked from West Yellowstone to Belgrade, Montana.  From Belgrade I started walking west on I-90.  I walked a mile or two and these two young guys picked me up and dropped me off in Whitehall.

I tried thumbing west on the interstate, but the Lord told me to shut it down for the day.  So I walked into Whitehall and spent the rest of the day at the library.

Whenever I go to the library, I check my two blogs and/or any emails.  I usually spend the rest of my time reading other blogs—mostly Christian blogs.

I stayed there at the library in Whitehall till after 7 PM.  I then walked to this convenience store across the street from the railroad tracks.  I left my backpack outside and walked inside to get a cup of coffee.

I was now down to my last six bucks, a half a loaf of bread and a can of soup.  A small number of customers came and went from the convenience store as I slowly sipped on my coffee.

I really don’t care for coffee, but in the winter time, a hot cup of joe warms up the bones.  I usually put a lot of cream and sugar in my coffee for the extra calories.  I would much rather drink hot tea, if it is available.  I noticed on the weather forecast that it might get down to 18 degrees F, so that was my ulterior motive for buying a 24 ounce cup of coffee.

After I finished my coffee, I walked outside to my backpack.  I saw what looked like two dollars stuffed into one of my straps on the top of my pack.  I was pleasantly surprised.  I walked back into the convenience store and told the lady at the cash register about the two bucks that I found on top of my pack.  She smiled and I bought some hot popcorn for a dollar.  On closer examination, I noticed that it was three dollars that someone had given me.  I was very grateful.

After I finished my popcorn, I walked back outside, lifted my backpack onto my shoulders and walked a couple of blocks to the east.  I then crossed the railroad tracks and towards the rodeo grounds.  I found a machine shed on the outskirts of town.  Someone had obviously kept some cattle or horses in that shed:  I found a little stall with some hay on the ground.  I shook and scattered the hay on the ground (for insulation), unrolled my two sleeping bags on top of the hay, crawled inside my bags and eventually fell asleep.  It was a cozy and warm place to sleep for the night.

The next morning, I had a few pieces of bread and a can of cold soup.  I then headed to the convenience store and bought a small cup of coffee.

I then walked back to I-90 where I stood on the side of the road for maybe half an hour.

I started to get cold, so I started walking west.  I walked for around two miles and this tractor-trailer pulled over.  I ran up to the cab and opened the door.  The truck driver grabbed my backpack and I climbed up into the cab.

This guy’s name was Walentin and he was originally from Russia.  He spoke some English.  I told him that I was a Christian; he said that he was also a Christian and that he went to a Pentecostal church in the state of Washington.

We didn’t talk a whole lot because his English wasn’t so good.  We drove west through Butte.  We drove past this sign near Garrison which read “Jesus Christ is Lord over this valley”.  Walentin pointed at the sign, smiled and gave me a thumbs up and I said “Praise the Lord!”

Walentin dropped me off in Missoula.  I walked to the library where I spent fifteen minutes on the internet.  I then walked across town to Brooks Avenue.

I had just walked past the McDonald’s when this young man ran up to me carrying a white sack.

“This is for you,” he said.  He gave me the sack and ran back to the McDonald’s.

“Thank you and God bless you,” I replied as I looked back at the McDonald’s.  I was very grateful.

I walked to this gas station where I set my backpack down.  I sat down on my backpack and looked inside the sack.  There were three sandwiches:  two double cheeseburgers and a chicken sandwich.

I began eating  a cheeseburger when this lady walked over to me.  She had been filling up her vehicle with gas when I arrived at the gas station.  She asked me what I was doing.  I told her that I was hitchhiking and that I was headed to Lolo.  She said that she could give me a ride.  So I grabbed my pack, put it in her vehicle and we drove off.

Her name was Shannon and she told me that she used to live in Driggs, Idaho.  I told her that I had hitchhiked through Driggs many times over the years.  I told her that I used to stay with a couple of friends in Victor whenever I passed through, but their house burned down back in 2012 and one of my friends died in the fire; his dad barely escaped the fire with his life.

“You knew George and Mike?” Shannon asked, a bit surprised.

“Sure did.  Mike is related to some friends of mine that live in Jackson, Wyoming.  George and Mike let me sleep on the kitchen floor whenever I came through town.”

“A lot of people knew George.  We hung out at the same bar in Victor.  There were a lot of wet eyes in the Driggs area when people found out that George died in the fire.”

Shannon drove to this store where she bought some dog food.  I helped her carry a bag of dog food to her vehicle.  We then headed south to Lolo.  She dropped me off at this gas station at the intersection of U.S. 93 and U.S. 12 and we said goodbye.

I walked west on U.S. 12 for a mile or so and camped in a shed near the river that night.

Hitchhiking Stories from Digihitch

Tim and Hans

Tim and Joke

Yesterday I got a ride from Lolo, Montana to Kooskia, Idaho with Hans and Joke (pronounced “yoka”) Grutter.  They are a Christian couple from Holland.  We stopped for a while to see these guys in three boats go down the Clearwater River on U.S. 12.  Hans and Joke dropped me off in Kooskia and took the two pictures above.  Their plans were to drive to Seattle and then fly back to Holland.

Today I hitchhiked from Helena to Hamilton, Montana.  I stayed at the God’s Love shelter in Helena overnight.  It was very cold when I walked out of Helena this morning—it was probably a few degrees below zero F.  I got a ride to Missoula from Helena.  I went to the library in Missoula.  Then I walked across town to the south side near the river where I got a ride in the back of a pickup to Lolo.  From Lolo I got a ride to Victor.

I was standing on the side of the road just south of Victor when this guy told me to come inside his chiropractic office (Sage Chiropractic Office).  His name was Dr. Allen McClintick and he gave me a cup of hot tea to drink.  I met his secretary and we had a nice chat.  They were both Christians:  she was a missionary to New Guinea for a number of years and Allen was a Navy SEAL in the late 1960s and 1970s.

My ride from Victor to Hamilton was with a guy named Nate.  He was a Christian and he knew someone (Corey) who picked me up in August of last year.  Nate dropped me off at the Bitterroot Public Library in Hamilton where I did some work on my two blogs.

I was on the catalog computer and I discovered that the Bitterroot Public Library recently purchased my second book The First Time I Rode a Freight Train & other hitchhiking stories.  That was a pleasant surprise.  I remember telling the staff at the library about my book last fall.  As far as I know, I have books in five public libraries in Montana (Hamilton, Columbus, Belgrade, West Yellowstone and Forsyth).

Author

Guided by the Thumb

Big Sky, Montana

Yesterday I was standing on the side of the road in Big Sky, Montana when this car pulled over.  I got in the car and we headed north towards Bozeman.

The guy’s name was James.  As we talked, James looked at me and said, “Hey, you’re Tim Shey.  You wrote High Plains Drifter.  I picked you up earlier this year.”

I said, “Yeah, I recognize you.  You gave me a ride from Darby, Montana to the pass on the Idaho-Montana line.  I slept at that ski area that night.”

“I bought your book.”

“Let’s stop at your place and I can sign my book for you.”

So we drove to his trailer home at Four Corners.  James lived there with his girlfriend, his cousin and his dog.  He let me sleep on the couch.  I was grateful because it got down to around 8 degrees F last night.  It should warm up to 30 degrees F later today.  God willing, I will be heading west on I-90.