A crazy day of grace, God, and miracles

Honestly, I was sort of hesitant to write this at first. Or at least to share it. But the more I thought about it, the more evident it became that God's hand was over us this weekend, and so I'm trusting Him to use this in some way or other. If nothing else, it'll be beneficial for myself to reflect and let the events of this weekend sink in.

This weekend was really good. It was refreshing and adventurous and I got to be reunited with some incredible people. It didn't quite end the way I'd planned. But then again, when freak things happen, you usually don't make room for them in your schedule.

So this is what went down. Two good friends and I were visiting Noah and some friends at IWU for the weekend, so we drove out and enjoyed our time together with lots of laughs and memories. It was great. We enjoyed each other's company and it was definitely good to see Noah again. Seriously, we had a blast.

Then Sunday came. Yesterday is officially going down in the books as one of the weirdest, most bizarre days of my life. The plan was to go to church with Noah, come back, and head out right away to beat the snow and weather that was supposed to come in the afternoon.

I woke up feeling strange; my stomach was unsettled, I felt weak and exhausted, and I couldn't figure out exactly why. During church, I literally felt like I could almost pass out, so Noah took me back and made me lay down and rest up for an hour or so, so I'd hopefully be feeling better by the time we were ready to go. I laid down and I could not completely relax; I couldn't stop my body from trembling. We came to the conclusion that I was lacking energy and was partially dehydrated. Noah ran and got me some Gatorade, which helped a little bit.

My two friends came back after church and we were gonna get ready to go. By this point I had some more fluids in me and was starting to feel at least slightly better. Noah had asked that I'd let one of my friends drive the first leg of the trip just to be safe, to let me rest up and feel better before I started driving. Setting my normal stubbornness and determination aside, I agreed and handed over the keys to one of my friends.

We said our goodbyes through giant snowflakes and dropping temperatures (both of which came faster and sooner than was anticipated after checking the weather and planning ahead), and then at approximately 11:45, we were off with me in the passenger seat. We had to stop in town on our way out to grab some food, and when we stopped, I offered to drive since I was starting to feel better after getting on the road and drinking some more Gatorade. Not to mention the roads were starting to get to that annoying slushy stage and the snow continued to fall, and I felt bad making her drive through that.

Before we headed back out, I sent Noah a text to let him know I was feeling a bit better and was gonna be driving. I got his response at 12:07, but only glanced at it quickly before heading on our way. Not until later did I take the time to actually think about what he'd said and let that resonate with me. I'll come back to that later.

After a few minutes we got to the highway, followed a huge semi truck up the ramp, and merged in with the traffic. I was thrilled to see that the roads weren't bad—wet, but not snowy or slushy, so I wasn't worried. 

Less than a minute after getting onto the highway, it happened. 12:19.

In one of those freaky, all-at-once yet somehow in slow-motion moments, a car came crashing into the back of mine, sending us toward the truck. Turning to avoid slamming into the truck, we went down the bank, into a field, and through a barbed-wire fence, somehow ending up facing the direction from which we came. 

Once we came to a stop, the three of us looked at each other, faces full of shock and amazement. As soon as we realized we were all okay, I scrambled for my phone. "I need to call Noah. I need to call Noah." Somehow I was able to at least somewhat calmly explain what happened. He was glad to hear we were okay, and told me he was coming to get us.

We sat there for a moment, looking at each other in awe, when my friend gasped from the backseat. "Guys," she said. "I just realized I wasn't wearing my seat belt." 

She was sitting in the corner of the car that got hit. 

"I totally forgot and just didn't think about it when we left. But it's weird, I felt like something was holding me back." 

Back to Noah's text. Only 12 minutes before the accident, he had sent "Please please be safe Maryssa. I'm praying for safe travels. God's Angels are watching over your car."

Tonight as I reread that message, I got chills. I knew without a doubt that he was right. Because by the grace of God, we didn't hit the semi, we somehow didn't roll or flip the car, and Jamie was unscathed by the impact of the accident. I'd say His angels were with us alright. His presence was definitely all around us.

I needed to call my parents, and thus began the frantic calling frenzy. I couldn't get ahold of anyone in my family for nearly an hour. I called my dad multiple times, my mom, my brother, my home phone, with no luck. I then proceeded to call my grandpa, several friends, a family friend, my youth pastor and his wife, and my pastor and his wife, doing anything I could to get in contact with my family. Eventually, I finally figured out where they were and my dad finally answered the phone. Thank God he was calm as I explained everything to him. Like Noah, he was just thankful we were all okay.

After an hour of waiting, I realized our quick, fast food lunch was scattered across the car and I'd been sitting on soggy, greasy fries for an hour. But I couldn't have cared less. We were safe. 

While we had to wait on the cop to talk with the other vehicles on the other side of the road, we had to watch Noah sitting up in his car along the side of the road. I can't say how scary it was watching the cars move past him from our perspective, not being able to judge their distance from his car. Every time a semi passed him, I couldn't help but cringe.

Eventually, the cop came back and explained that my car needed towed but that we were free to go with Noah and could pick up our things later. So we trekked up the bank, climbed into the car, and headed back to town. The snow was still coming down, harder now, and we began to discuss our options. My parents suggested meeting us halfway that afternoon, but considering the weather (it was supposed to get significantly worse throughout the afternoon and evening) and the fact that we still had to retrieve our belongings from my car, that didn't look like a very good idea.

Noah asked if we'd be okay to miss our Monday classes, and he said he'd rather call off his student teaching to drive us all the way back to school in the morning, after the nasty weather passed.

Meanwhile, I was told to take everything out of my car in case it was totaled, so we loaded Noah's car up and headed back to IWU for the night.

We spent the afternoon resting and taking it easy. When Noah's roommates got back, they were surprised to see us there. One jokingly said, "This is an answer to prayer... I prayed that I'd get to see you all again soon... it's a MIRACLE!" We all laughed, and although he said it simply in jest, looking back over the events of the day, yesterday was pretty miraculous. So many things could've gone quite differently. It could have been so much worse than it was. Seriously though... How miraculous that we didn't hit the semi, that we didn't flip, that Jamie didn't get hurt or ejected without a seat belt, that this happened only 25 minutes away from Noah, that no one was seriously injured.

Throughout the night we learned of many prayers that had been lifted on our behalf throughout the morning; we were blessed by understanding professors; we were encouraged by kind words of friends and classmates and families; we were welcomed by the hospitality of new friends; we were grateful for safety.

I was also reminded of the blessing God's given me in Noah. He showed nothing but selfless love to me and my friends all weekend. From taking care of me when I didn't feel well, to being there to pick us up after the accident and making sure we were taken care of and okay, to setting aside his schedule and offering to drive eight hours to make sure we got back to school safely, I was again blown away by his heart. I'm so thankful for him.

At the end of the day yesterday, my heart was simply full of thankfulness. Exhaustion, too. But mostly thankfulness. I found myself thankful that I lived through another day. Thankful for the lives of my two friends. Thankful for the reminder that God's not finished with us yet. Thankful for the opportunity to be held in Noah's tight embrace again. Thankful for the opportunity to hear my family's voices. Thankful for another chance to say "I love you." 

Those three words really can't be said enough. I've learned that much in the past 48 hours. 

God is good. There is power in prayer. And He is in control in all things. What a bittersweet reminder that He is always good, always full of grace. Tonight I am thanking Him for the reminder that each day is a gift, not a guarantee. So please, please tell someone you love them. And thank God. Tell Him you love Him. Thank Him for your loved ones. Thank Him for today. Because today is a gift. A pretty big, miraculous gift from the One Who loves us more than our hearts can comprehend. To Him be the glory.

This was taken right before we left IWU Sunday morning. Little did we expect to be back so soon. I'm so thankful for these two.

This was our view from the field where we ended up.

This corner was the only point of impact. I'm still amazed and thanking God that Jamie was okay sitting right inside this door without a seat belt.

I took this from Noah's car once we were ready to leave. This was the direction we were going, and when we stopped, we ended up facing the way we came from.

This too was taken before we left Sunday morning. My heart is full of love and gratitude for this gent.

"And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." Philippians 1:9-11