The sovereignty of God and the providence of God—two powerful concepts that resonate deeply with me. Many times there are circumstances that I can’t seem to understand, yet God is there. His work is hidden from my sight so many times, but He is always acting on my behalf for His glory.
Take, for instance, the morning of October 10, 2008, when our family was involved in a horrific 15-passenger van rollover. It was a horrible experience, and after sifting through the details over the last 16 years, I have seen God’s hand over and over again.
The morning of the accident I had read several verses and promises from Isaiah chapter 41.
“Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.
For I the LORD thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee.
When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the LORD will hear them; I, the God of Israel, will not forsake them. I will open rivers in high places and fountains in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water, and the dry land springs of water. I will plant in the wilderness the cedar, the shittah tree, and the myrtle, and the oil tree; I will set in the desert the fir tree, and the pine, and the box tree together: that they may see, and know, and consider, and understand together that the hand of the LORD hath done this, and the Holy One of Israel hath created it.”
Isaiah 41:10, 13, 17-20 KJV
These promises of who God is and what He does stayed with me throughout the day, reminding me that, number one, God is always with me, and number two, He holds my daughter’s right hand—the very hand that would just hours later be crushed on State Route 83.
It really started on October 3rd. My sister had her first baby, a precious little girl named Zoe, born with a single ventricle - a heart defect in which one lower chamber (ventricle) does not develop. I had planned to drive to South Carolina with my father on October 11th to visit my sister. Her baby was scheduled for serious surgery—the only way to keep her alive—that is a whole other story. This very trip began the start of the fingers of God being a part of the events that would happen just seven more days in the future.
That was the providence of God.
Seven days later, at the exact moment of our van accident, my dad was driving to Ohio. On October 10, 2008, he left Muncie, Indiana, at 3:00 PM to drive to Ohio on I-94 to pick me up for our trip to visit my sister. Dad arrived at Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus just minutes after Autumn’s airlift landed.
That was the providence of God.
There was a critical car seat exchange one day before our van accident. On October 9, 2008, we took a family trip to Columbus, and my 13-month-old baby, MercyAnna, threw up in her car seat. That evening, as I took the seat apart to clean it, I discovered the locking mechanism was broken.
Before we left on the afternoon of October 10th, I replaced the baby’s car seat with Serenity’s, my 2-and-a-half-year-old’s, which was rear-facing. Serenity sat in Stephen’s (5 years old) booster seat, and Stephen sat in Timothy’s (6 years old) booster seat, which meant Timothy did not have a booster seat at all.
When the pole struck our 15-passenger van, it scraped the entire length of the vehicle. With the impact of the pole and the van flipping several times, had my baby been in the broken car seat, she would have been thrown through the windshield.
That was the providence of God.
If Timothy had been in a booster seat, the extra height would have meant his head could have been completely severed. Instead, the pole grazed his head by mere inches.
That was the providence of God.
The seat exchange of Joshua and Autumn was pivotal. On October 10, 2008, at 3:00 PM, I set out to drop off two of my eight children at a friend from our church; she was to take care of Autumn and the baby while I took my trip to South Carolina with my dad.
Before we even left the driveway, Joshua, my 13-year-old, was sitting in the front passenger seat. I asked him if he could move behind the driver’s seat next to the baby so I could spend some time talking with Autumn, who was 12.
This decision saved Joshua’s life. When the 15-passenger van flipped and landed upside down, Autumn was thrown into a tiny pocket in a fetal position, with her head resting on her pillow, surrounded by the crushed van. Joshua, being a tall young man, would have been completely crushed had he remained in the front seat.
That was the providence of God.
That afternoon, our 15-passenger van was loaded with suitcases, pillows, and all of the kids, aged 13 months to 13 years. Joshua had graciously agreed to switch seats, allowing Autumn to sit in the front with him behind her, while little MercyAnna was in the car seat next to him. Right before we left at 3 o’clock that afternoon, I turned around and noticed that MercyAnna’s car seat was too loose around her neck, so I tightened it.
That was the providence of God.
In the second row were Melody, 10, Carissa, 9, and 2-and-a-half-year-old Serenity, who was in a booster seat. Timothy, 6, and Stephen, 5, occupied the last row, with Stephen in his booster seat.
That was the providence of God.
As we traveled south on Highway 83, I glanced into the driver’s side mirror at a small green grasshopper that was holding on for dear life.
That quick look changed our lives.
I suddenly realized we were veering off the road. It was too late to correct our course; a steep embankment loomed ahead, and a telephone pole was fast approaching. I yanked the wheel as hard as I could to correct our course.
That was the providence of God.
The van tipped onto two wheels as chaos erupted with the abrupt turn of the wheel, causing the pole to hit the side of the van instead of running right through the middle.
That was the providence of God.
The children screamed while I desperately tried to steer away, but we collided with the pole. The impact catapulted the van into the air, flipping it several times. The passenger side door opened, and Autumn reached up to steady herself as the van turned several times.
The van landed upside down back onto the road. Her hand was trapped under the van, crushing Autumn's hand and trapping her in a small pocket with the van crushed around her, with her head landing on her pillow.
That was the providence of God.
When the dust settled, the van lay upside down, and I was disoriented, blood streaming down my face, and my left arm was useless to move. My primary thought was to turn off the engine to prevent an explosion. I prayed for strength and managed to find the ignition. Once I turned it off, I unbuckled Autumn's seatbelt while Joshua worked on freeing the baby, Mercy. Joshua and I screamed for help.
When I turned my head back around, I realized one end of the van window was blown out and Joshua had crawled out the window with the baby.
Carissa ended up going in and out of the van several times to rescue her siblings who were hanging upside down by their seatbelts.
I was trapped on my back, and I hesitated even trying to leave the van; Autumn was crying, pinned by the weight of the metal, her hand trapped beneath the vehicle.
In tears, thinking of Isaiah 41:10, together we sang "The Lord is My Shepherd" until help arrived.
Tom, a kind man from our local middle school, stopped and stayed with Autumn, providing comfort until her father could reach us.
The ambulance rushed me to Good Samaritan Hospital before being transferred to the trauma center at Grant in Columbus.
Autumn was cut out with the jaws of life and gently lifted by her daddy into the arms of the paramedic, leaving several fingers on the country road behind her, and transported to Good Samaritan Hospital via ambulance.
Michael, my husband, arranged for Joshua to accompany Autumn in the ambulance so she would not travel alone.
Good Samaritan, when they found out that Autumn was my daughter, put us both together in the trauma center hand in hand, with her in a neck brace and myself in a neck brace. Neither one of us could look at each other.
My right hand reached out to touch her left hand, with tears streaming down her face. She sobbed, "Please don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me," and in the providence of God, I remembered that my father was on his way to pick me up and that very moment he should be very close to Columbus, Ohio, nationwide, where she was going to be airlifted.
The Holy Spirit reminded me, "When the helicopter lands, her papa will meet her there."
I held her left hand and lifted up a short prayer as they rushed her away. Her tears stopped, recognizing that God was with her and that somebody she knew would be there at the end of the ride.
That was the providence of God.
In a remarkable turn of events, Papa arrived at the hospital just minutes before Autumn did. She underwent immediate surgery on her hand, performed by a skilled surgeon specializing in hand injuries.
Just 30 minutes before he was in his car, about ready to leave, he got a call that a child was coming to be flown in. He turned around and drove back. He was the only hand amputation specialist in the hospital. He alone was the only one with the skill possible to save her thumb.
That was the providence of God.
Though she lost her right pinky and ring finger, and much of her right hand, she survived, and her thumb was saved.
Again, Isaiah 41:10 rushed through my mind when I heard about the amputation: that God holds our right hand, and that was Autumn's right hand.
Melody was taken to Good Samaritan, where Joshua had ridden with
Autumn. The rest of the children were assessed at Bethesda Hospital, where Michael stayed with them. Despite some bruises, they were all remarkably unharmed. Serenity, in particular, lightened the mood with her innocent observations about the crash.
I sustained injuries as well, including a separated shoulder, a fractured nose, and numerous bruises, leaving my face badly battered. I was discharged from Grant shortly after midnight.
Friends drove me to Children's. As I walked into Autumn's hospital room, my father was sleeping in the chair, and on the floor next to Autumn's bed was a nurse kneeling in prayer over my daughter.
That was the providence of God
Our church family supported us during this trying time, especially in caring for the younger children while Michael rushed to be with Autumn.
Now, 16 years later, I marvel at the many miracles that unfolded.
Though the accident was tragic, God had been with us every step of the way.
So many times throughout my life, I have taken these five promises from Isaiah 41 and claimed them with tears and faith and hope.
Fear not... God is with me;
Fear not... God is my God;
Fear not... God will strengthen me; Fear not... God will help me;
Fear not... God will uphold me.
God’s sovereignty means that as the Creator, He has the right to rule over everything He made. It also means that we belong to Him, and He can do what He wants with us.
God’s providence is how He uses His power to achieve His plans. He works in ways that help carry out His good and wise intentions for us.
I may not always understand what God is doing in my life or in the world, but I trust that He knows what He’s doing, and His plans are always good ❤️
My choice is to choose Jesus and His right hand.
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