We each have a life story, penned without ink, read by the people around us. Who's writing your story?

Sunday, April 5, 2020

Remembering the Miracles

Do you remember what you were doing seventeen years ago today?

April 5, 2003 will forever be embedded into my heart - and the hearts of my family. It started out so normal, yet in a matter of minutes our lives changed forever.

Dense fog engulfed us as we strained to see past the front end of our car on the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The unexpected, eerie haze on a fair day spiked my pulse and revved up my every nerve. … I turned to check on five-year-old Elisabeth in the back seat. In that instant, a crushing blow from behind convulsed us back and forth like rag dolls. … Sickening terror seized me as the life-shattering impact snuffed out hope . . .
Fire. Explosions. Screams. Scraping metal. These were the terrifying sounds that pierced the murky mist around us. Only one thought beat like a drum in my mind: We have to get out of the cr. Out of the car. Out . . . *

This past week I found the box of cards so many caring friends sent our way in the weeks and months following the twenty-three care pile-up. Hundreds of cards. I opened every one, compelled to savor each loving, encouraging message once again. 


Here's one that captured my attention:
April 11, 2003
How can words express what only the heart can speak? Know that you are constantly on our hearts and in our prayers during these difficult days.
"I cried out to God for help; I cried out to God to hear me. When I was in distress, I sought the Lord; …  Will the Lord reject forever? Will He never show his favor again? Has God forgotten to be merciful?
"Then I thought, 'I will remember the deeds of the Lord, yes I will remember your miracles of long ago. I will meditate on all your works and consider all your mighty deeds . . .'" (Psalm 77).
Today is a day for remembering the miracles! Humanly speaking, we should never have survived. Only God could've protected my spinal cord, preventing paralysis. Only God could've brought Barry back from a coma that lasted for weeks. Only God sustained us through our long and arduous recovery and the new normal we often found overwhelming.


We're all facing many unknowns. In a matter of weeks, life as we knew it has changed in ways we could never have imagined. The future looks foggy and obscure. Economic and physical recovery seem unlikely. Fear lurks around every corner.

The author of Psalm 77 faced similar feelings so many centuries ago. In his despair, he chose to remember the miracles, to meditate on all God's mighty deeds. It made all the difference.


I invite you to read or reread our story told in Penned Without Ink: Trusting God to Write Your Story. Within its pages, you'll find story after story of God's goodness, and you'll share my journey of learning to trust God in the midst of uncertainty. I've also written a Bible study that will draw you into the Scriptures to dig deeper into the themes of trust. I pray it will be a blessing to you and bring you hope in these trying times.

And on this Palm Sunday, how about taking some time with your family to remember the miracles in your own story!? 





*Page 7, Penned Without Ink.
**Resources available on Amazon.com. Click HERE and HERE for more information.

4 comments:

  1. Pastor Mark commented today that often when we are struggling to walk our Christian walk it is because of a failure of memory...a failute to remember the cross and what the depth of suffering there demonstrates...the depth of God's love for us. My favorite quote today, "At the cross God paid a remarkable price to send an undeniable message." May I never forget that but daily seek to inscribe the message on my heart. "Jesus paid it all...all to Him I owe" Love you and miss you Sarah. Thank you for this message. I am re-writing this passage from Psalm 77 as a reminder right now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for sharing this, Gwyneth. Good thoughts. I miss you and the LBS women. May we be faithful . . .

      Delete
  2. Well done, Sarah, in surviving, thriving, growing and multiplying your faith through this fine book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Your encouragement blesses me, Jo Ann. Thanks, and all by the grace of God!

      Delete