An adventure I could have done without - but God still used.

July 16, 2009. Life certainly has a way of keeping me on my toes. Driving home last night (the 15th) at almost ten o'clock, I came upon some road construction. It was a surprise to come to a complete stop from driving the posted interstate speed, but I had plenty of room in front of me. As I was sitting stopped on the highway, the following thought ran through my silly little head – “Boy, if someone wasn’t paying attention, this could be bad.” Yep, you guessed it. About thirty seconds after that silly little thought, I heard a very loud crash; two seconds later, I heard a second crash. The second crash was accompanied by the jarring sensation of my car being slammed into. I collected myself quickly and once I realized I was physically ok, I got out to check on the other people in the other two cars.
After consulting with the driver of the second car, I returned to mine to get my cell phone and call emergency personnel. By the time I turned back around, the first car, the instigator of the wreck was gone. But he/she was kind enough to leave their front bumper on the road – complete with license plate We’ll see if anything comes of that. Long story short, (too late!) the tow truck driver drove me home, my car is in the shop & will likely take a week to get fixed, the claim is filed with my insurance company, I have a rental car, and I’m hoping they find the person who started this lovely chain of events so my insurance isn’t liable.
So, that’s the “what happened.” Here’s the “how I reacted / felt.” My first thought was, of course, “this sucks!” (pardon my thought-language.) I couldn’t believe how alone I felt. Who was I going to call? How do I get to work tomorrow? How do I get home tonight? How do I deal with all this? Who’s responsible for this? In that first moment, I felt completely by myself. I knew I wasn’t and I was quickly reminded (thanks, God!) I called two people here in Kansas City that are very dear in my life. Then I called my folks to give them a quick FYI with assurance I was fine and would call with details later. I hated that the car Nathan got me as a way of taking care of me after he passed, got wrecked. That broke my heart. Then one of my dear friends reminded me that the car *did* take care of me. I was safe; the car did what it was supposed to. It didn’t crumble like ash. It didn’t explode or disintegrate or act like a house of cards. I was protected and safe.
I was reassured by the presence of the very kind emergency personnel, tow drivers, and roadside assistants. Then God used it. He didn’t “show up” since He was there first. But He started moving in a way I could feel and understand. He started showing me the “why.” I got the opportunity to witness to the tow truck driver on the way to my house.
The tow driver asked typical questions which somehow lead to Nathan, his battle with cancer, death, and my subsequent journey. This man’s aunt, who is devoutly religious, was recently diagnosed with cancer. This, coupled with the recent death of his good friend and other circumstances of his past, have lead him to question the realness and validity of God. (It wasn’t a very long drive, but he was extremely open.) God just used the conversation so powerfully. I don’t know what this man’s faith ever was or is. But I’m prayerful God will use last night’s accident to touch the heart of this tow truck driver.
Last night, sleep was not easy in coming. Too much “fight-or-flight” in the bloodstream. Very little pain last night. But, the soreness is creeping upon me, the physical, mental, and emotional exhaustion are on me full force. I will sleep like a champ tonight. God will continue to watch over me. As Mom and Dad were praying with me last night on the phone, Dad reminded me God sees us through. I remarked, “I know. But I’m starting to get tired of ‘through.’ I’d be ok with boring for a *little* while…”