He Cares For You
James 4:13-16 ESV
“Come now, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit—yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes. Instead, you ought to say, “If the Lord wills, we will live and do this or that.”
The Bible warns us that we never know what will happen in the future; sometimes we believe we have all the time in the world. And then, boom!
After my divorce, my youngest daughter and I moved into a two-bedroom apartment near our old neighborhood. It wasn’t a bad place to live, the grounds were very green and manicured and the walls seemed to be pretty thick. (I let her play the piano sometimes.)
My daughter was a senior at a Christian school in another town, so she often spent the night with friends instead of driving home. She was in a pretty tight group and I trusted her time in that community.
One night as I prepared for bed, I received a call. It was scary. I have been able to continuously thank the Lord for the person who spoke to me that evening. “Mary, this is (—) and I am a paramedic/EMT. Your daughter has been in an accident. She is going to be fine, but she will be at Caldwell Hospital for observation. I have to tell you, when I saw the car that was hit, I didn’t see how anyone could still be alive. You are blessed.”
I thanked God the whole hour while I drove to see her. When I walked into the room, her face was covered with blood where bits of glass had shattered and attached to her skin. Her pale legs had larger shards of glass that had to be removed. It was unsettling, but I knew she would be all right. Her emotional status was shaken and it would take weeks for her to drive again. A drunken driver going the speed of 70 miles per hour ran a stop sign and twirled her around scooting across a highway, smashing totally the other side of the car. I was so grateful there was not a passenger that night. She managed to leave for college on time, still a little dazed.
A wreck, an illness, a storm, there are so many things that happen that remind us that life is fragile. But so many times, we push these things back in our minds as we move on with life. We often avoid acknowledgement of looking squarely at life…the changes that need to take place, forgiveness that needs to be actualized, taking some silent moments for God to speak to us.
The quiet voice of the Lord may be speaking after the shock of whatever you have been through, but are you listening?
Mary Writes Right -Now! Comeback 2022 
As a parent I cannot imagine that call. How do people who do not have a relationship with Jesus cope during times of distress?
A Servant
I do not know. I met Christ as a child, but got caught up in the 1960’s changes. I had to recommit as an adult, and then go through divorce and other sadness to teach me His sovereignty. Praise God that He chose me first.
Praise God your daughter was okay!
Thanks for this reminder to not take time for-granted. We are not promised our next breath.
God can use such hard times to draw us closer to Him, but like you said, are we listening?
This post reminds me of what God spoke for me to share on my blog this week.