God often teaches me the greatest lessons during life – what I mean by that is if I simply pay attention as I walk through different situations – I will learn lessons that last me a lifetime. I am going to share one of those with you today.
As I shared, I went on a trip with a couple of friends recently. We had a great time all weekend. On the way home, we were laughing and talking about where we would stop and eat dinner when we got an urgent phone call that no one expected.
One of my friends received a call to let her know that her parents, both in their 80’s, had been in a bad car accident. Immediately the atmosphere changed. We could see her trying to stay in peace, however the more information she got, the more fear tried to overtake her. She was getting call after call with the news appearing worse with each call.
We were over an hour away from the city they had wrecked in, which only made the situation worse. My friend was speaking with the EMT, trying to get as much information as she could. She could hear her mother and knew she was frantic.
Anxiety began to get the best of her. We were all praying. We were driving as fast as possible to get to them, time seemed to stand still.
Then Marsha did something very odd for her, especially in front of other people. She began to sing worship songs to the Lord. I could hear her voice cracking through the first few songs; I wasn’t sure she would be able to keep singing. But she continued to sing to the Lord. On and on she worshipped God, hands lifted, singing loudly, song after song. The atmosphere in the vehicle began to shift again.
Marsha continued to sing to the Lord. Her voice became stronger and more clear as she sang. After about 20-30 minutes she stopped singing and said, “I’m okay now.” It was not just words, she had broken through to victory and we all knew it. Peace filled the vehicle because peace filled Marsha in that moment.
Over the next few hours as the ER team did CT scans and x-rays, we sat and watched the miracles God did for her Mom and Dad. Every single test came back good. They had suspected internal bleeding but there was none. This accident was so traumatic that the car ended upside down quite a way from where they were first rear-ended at full speed. Looking at the vehicle, one could only conclude, God had done miracles.
I have thought about that night a lot. About what Marsha did instead of panicking, instead of leaning into the bad report. She chose the good thing. She chose to worship God in the midst of it. At the most difficult time – she chooses to glorify God.
Not only did her parents survive this horrible accident but they both went home that night. They did have soreness, bruises and bleeding – but they were okay. We all knew God had been with them the entire time.
I have learned through life that often our first response to a situation will help determine the outcome. What comes out of us when we are squeezed? When we walk through the fire, what is our first instinct. We are all going to go through things where fear tries to overtake us, what is our response when that happens?
This is one thing I know. The situation appeared bleak, then Marsha began to worship and we all felt it when it changed. It felt like Jesus literally stepped in. From that moment, it was miracle after miracle. May we all respond as she did that day. Instead of fear, may we exhibit faith. Instead of anxiety, may we worship the God who can and will change what needs to be changed. May we all run to Him and fall at His feet, knowing, He does all things well. Praise the Lord God Almighty, from whom all blessings flow!!!
There is one more powerful lesson I learned that day – I will share that with you tomorrow.
Beautifully written. Thank you Kim.
Thanks for being a friend over and over.
Marsha,
It is my great honor. KP