The Best Hands Ever

“He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.” Psalm 91:4 (NIV)

Twice the first week in January God showed me firsthand how He is our protector.  Tuesday night my husband, youngest, and myself went to get gas before heading home to relax.  Driving along a well traveled suburban road, talking quietly, we noticed two police cars in a driveway of a random house and naturally, my husband slowed down for a minute, wondering what was happening.  Seeing nothing out of the ordinary, he continued driving.  Not two seconds later, a deer ran out onto the road in front of us.  And right behind him, a pack of five deer clustered together ran out onto the road as well.

If Bill hadn’t slowed down to look at the police cars, the deer would have shattered the driver’s side window along with the passenger’s window on that side, where our littlest was sitting.  I immediately thanked God for His protection and realized how close I had come to witnessing the serious injury or death of two of my loved ones in front of my eyes.  Instead we were all safe and continued on our journey while the deer continued on theirs.

Three days later, we woke up to a significant snowstorm.  Over 100 schools closed in the area and my husband was debating whether to travel the highway to his job as well.  He finally decided to call in and stay home, enjoying a three day weekend.  Turns out his work closed after all which further reinforced he made the right choice.  A few hours later we found out there was a serious accident on the highway, on the route he takes back and forth to work.  When it was all complete, almost 200 vehicles were involved with one death and 24 injured, many stranded for hours in the middle of the wreckage.  There were fireworks igniting as well as hazardous material that had spilled, causing the authorities to issue an evacuation order for a 1 to 3 mile radius surrounding the accident.  I can’t tell you how many times on Friday and throughout the weekend I thanked God for protecting my husband, giving him wisdom to choose to stay home and prayers of safety for those involved.

Those two incidents, occurring just three days apart on a very significant week for me, had me wondering.  How many times has God protected us from serious injury or death that we aren’t even aware of?  I believe that God lifted the veil that particular week to reassure me of a truth from the Bible:  Just as He was physically protecting my family, He is willing (and able) to provide for our family in all areas.  I’d been hit by a whammy that week and while I was clinging to trust in my Father, humanly speaking I was wrestling with fear of the unknown. I believe He loves me so much that He wanted to show me repeatedly all week – through reassurance from His Word, through friends and family members’ encouragement, songs, and devotions – that He’s got this, using my family whose importance in my life is second only to Him.

Three days later we woke up to icy road conditions again.  Our littlest was able to stay home but everyone else had to go about life.  I have to say…I was peaceful when I said goodbye, after praying for their safety, knowing I was leaving them in the best hands ever – Our Father’s!

© 2015 Cheri Swalwell