I was skimming my posts to make sure I don’t repost something. As I did, I was reminded of all the car stories and close calls we’ve had; I wonder how I’ve actually made it this far. LOL!
My thoughts turned to this. God is with us in the big moments when life hangs in the balance, but He is in everyday things too. He is in the things we might pass over and just say quickly, “Boy, I got lucky there!” and then we continue through our day as if nothing miraculous had happened. I’ve heard it said that hindsight is 20/20. Sometimes we see things better after they happen. I have found that I can best recognize God in my life when I take a moment and look back at my day or week—then I can spot where He has shown up in my life.
Take this, for example. I have recently told this story to multiple people, and at the time it happened, I didn’t think it was a huge God moment in my life, but it was actually pretty incredible.
See, we were living in northern Pennsylvania, and this area can get years with a lot of snow (like they did this year). On one cold winter morning, I had dropped Chrissy, Ben, and Tori off at our friends Bart and Yvonne’s house. They lived on top of a hill with a long winding gravel driveway. The driveway was icy and had snowbanks on both sides higher than the hood of my Dodge Shadow. The only place to go was up or down. Turning left or right was not an option. You get the picture. I dropped the fam and went on my way to do something somewhere else.
Through the morning, it flurried and gave us a little more snow, nothing big. I remember that it was almost lunchtime, and I needed to pick up Chrissy and the kids. So, I headed back to my friend’s house. I carefully and slowly went up the drive. I made it about halfway up when, to my surprise, I saw a cloud of snow coming down the hill. At the time, my buddy Bart’s vehicle was a big blue Ford F-250 truck with a very high lift kit. You almost needed a step stool to get in this thing.
Yep, you guessed it. Within the cloud of snow, was that truck headed right towards me. I panicked a bit when I realized there was no place for me to go. I shifted into reverse only to have my tires spin on the ice and snow. I thought, “Get out of the car!” But I couldn’t open my door because of the snowbanks on either side. All I could do is watch and pray that Bart could slow down and stop his monster truck before it crushed me and my Shadow.
I braced for impact. Bart wasn’t going fast, he tried to stop, but the truck started sliding down the hill.
I looked at my horrific future head-on. I remember praying, “Oh God, please help! Stop this truck, and please protect me!” I clenched my eyes shut. I felt a big bump and heard a crunching noise. Then I opened my eyes to see a huge truck parked on the hood of my car.
I cranked down my window and stuck my head out, looking up, and Bart greeted me. (This is what I call a classic Bart greeting). “How ya do’in?” He had a big grin on his face. I replied, “I’m good, but your truck is on my car.” He said, “Yeah, about that… I just couldn’t get it to stop. Let me back it up, and we’ll see if we can get up to the house.”
He backed off my car; the hood looked like a giant sat on it, but it was still running! We slowly made our way up to the house. Our wives greeted us outside the house; they said they heard a big bang and were coming out to see what it was.
We all laughed as Bart and I retold the story from each of our points of view. We were so glad that everything turned out as good as it did.
There is more to this story than me being spared. We were able to get a new 4-wheel drive car that was more reliable for our family because of this mishap. This turned out to be a huge blessing for us because, in a few months, we were about to move nine hours from home to follow our call into ministry.
On this day, God was with me. “Emmanuel” was also providing for us in the steps we were taking in being obedient to His call. This fun story reminds me of how much God cares for me and looks out for me in the present and the future.
Isaiah 41:10 NIV
So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
How has God looked out for you in everyday things?
Our Friends Bart and Yvonne
kidzpastorb 