So Selection Sunday at our house was about more than where our beloved Jayhawks would be seeded and whom they would be playing. Selection Sunday was also the deadline for our senior Rebekah to make her college decision.

After a lot of thought and campus visits and hours spent weighing the pros and cons, Rebekah decided to become a Jayhawk. She had a tough time making up her mind because she had a lot of good options. And I think the enormity of the college decision has had a sobering effect on our usually laid back, upbeat child (the only one of the three who could be called “mellow” in temperament).

Shawn and I told her that she should focus on schools within a 600-mile radius that would offer her good scholarships or would be in-state. Rebekah’s Final Four: the University of Kansas, the University of Oklahoma, Texas A&M (where sister Rachel attends) and the University of Texas (she would go there even if it meant ticking off her Aggie sister).

Rebekah went on official campus visits to all four schools but was still having a tough time making up her mind. Since she was leaning towards either OU or KU, we stopped by Norman on our way to central Kansas for Spring Break. We walked around the campus a little on a frigid Sunday afternoon just so she could see it again. In the middle of a relaxing week at the Engelland family farm, she and her sisters headed off to Lawrence for a day trip just to look at KU one more time.

After lunch on Mass. Street, they headed towards campus. Rachel is the only one of the three who has a smartphone, but since she was nearing her data limit she didn’t want to use it to find the Kansas Union and its adjacent parking garage. So Rebekah was left to follow signs marked “Visitors Parking.” They pulled into a garage and walked towards the attached building. The door read, “Allen Fieldhouse.”

Rachel said they realized they weren’t at the bookstore, but a woman walked up and asked them if they wanted a tour. She took them on a behind-the-scenes tour of Allen Fieldhouse and the adjacent buildings: the student tutoring center, the Donors Atrium, the indoor track, the weight room, and they even spied Kevin Young practicing on Naismith Court. As they went through one hallway, Bill Self walked by and said, “Hey, guys.”

Rachel and Rebekah said, “hi.” Anna was stunned into silence. Really, that was the extent of their interaction with Coach Self. But the kindness of the woman to take a half an hour out of her day and the chance encounter with the famous coach left an impression on my girls. They had a totally unexpected adventure because they got a little lost.

I like to think that God delights in surprising us when we believe we are off track. I may think I went the wrong way or events may not turn out the way I wanted, but God has me right where He wants me. Now I could have insisted on going with them to Lawrence, and they never would have had that experience. I would have gone right to the visitors’ garage next to the Union. Part of being a parent is knowing when to step back, even when it’s hard. Shawn and I wanted them to have their “Sister Road Trip,” so we sent them off with maps, verbal instructions, cash and well-funded debit cards. I prayed that God would watch out for them and that He would give Rebekah guidance about her college decision. That has been a long-running prayer on my list.

I believe that the unexpected adventure they had could have been God’s confirmation to Rebekah: this is going to be good. He sees her in her struggle and has a great plan worked out just for her (Jer. 29:11), even though she doesn’t know what it is.

That’s why I wanted to title this blog post, “How Coach Bill Self convinced Rebekah to attend KU.” I knew it would draw readers. Rebekah wouldn’t let me. She would say what convinced her was the excellent honors program and the emphasis on study abroad. But since she was having a hard time making a commitment, maybe the Engelland girls’ escapade at Allen Fieldhouse tipped the scales.

I need to remember, especially when life is not going as planned, that God sees me and has some unexpected adventures in my future. As Christians, we can always look ahead with hope no matter what struggles surround us.

“For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” – Eph. 2:10

This is going to be good…