I have feared for the lives of my children. I can’t decide which of the two major earthquakes was more traumatizing to my mommy heart. During the initial earthquake, I watched as the crowd of Nepali women surrounding my son dissipated as my husband ran to find my daughter who was being trampled by dozens of panic stricken Nepalis down a flight of stairs. In the safety of the street, tears in my eyes, I squeezed my new friend who had scooped up the helpless babe I couldn’t rescue, repeating one of the few Nepali words I knew to express my gratitude.
When we were shook strongly again, I was separated from my children. My husband had dialed the nanny before the ground stood still. No answer. My heart sank thinking of the possible plight of my babies. Did it wake them from their nap? Were they scared? Were they left alone inside the house? Did anything fall on them? The worries came quicker than than the frightened foreigners fleeing into the streets of tourist Thamel. We called our neighbor/missionary friend who promised to check on our littles. After a presumable eternity, she called back, assuring that our children were safe, though grumpy from being woken from their afternoon naps.
Car in the shop from a post-earthquake-traffic car accident, we hailed a taxi out of the chaos. After promising to pay several times the standard rate, we realized our fee didn’t buy us the luxury of running everyone down in our path to the children. Hopping out of the car, we started on foot in my not-so-sensible but ever-so-trendy footwear, in the hopes that we could find a taxi closer to the house. This hope was never realized as we trekked the 6 miles home. With one mile to go, we were tempted by a milk tea break with a police officer friend of ours but declined the invitation. We were on a mission!
We arrived home to our sweeties, sunburnt and sore, but extremely happy to be safe and sound with our tiny tots. How truly comforting it is that our great God who stills and subdues the earth holds our most precious gifts in His impenetrable hand!
Tell me about a time in your life you’ve had to trust God with the lives of your children.
I would love to hear your experiences in the comment section below!
Great Post girl! I think the time that Taylor ran out into the street, when it was night time, was one of the many times that I just cried out to God, “protect her, please.” I praise the Lord that there were no cars a usually very busy street! I praise the Lord that our children are in His hands one I can always take comfort in that.
Wow that does sound terrifying! So thankful for his ever present help!
My adult daughter was 5 years old. My parents were visiting from out of town. It was after the Sunday morning service. The family was in the living room waiting for me to finish dinner. My two girls were outside still in there little church dresses playing on a broken down swing set. My five year old was doing a flip on the side bar and she fell. I heard a cry as I looked out the kitchen window. I dropped my pressure cooker in the sink and ran outside. She was standing there with blood down the front of her little long dress. I couldn’t see where the blood was coming from until I pulled back her long hair and saw blood coming out of her neck with every heart beat. She had fallen on a piece of glass and severed her carotid artery.
I was six months pregnant with our fourth child but I picked her up screaming for my husband. He came running out without shoes and in his suit pants and a tee shirt and took her from me. I ran inside and grabbed some clean tea towels and placed them on her neck to try and stop the bleeding. My father came out and took her and he and my husband got into the car and took off for the hospital. It was a hospital in a small town that usually didn’t staff the ER but there was a doctor there that day. As they laid her on the table her heart stopped and it had to be shocked back.
They rushed her to surgery and a vascular surgeon just happened to be in the hospital that Sunday afternoon and her operated on her to repair the artery. They put us into a small room and told us that she had survived but she would probably be brain damaged because of the length of time there was no oxygen to the brain. They put her in ICU and we were prepared for the worse. But God had other plans. People began praying across America. Our church family lined the hall of the hospital and stood and prayed.
The next day she opened her eyes and her first words were “home.” God spared her life through so many special circumstances. If we had waited for an ambulance she wouldn’t have made it. There was usually no doctor at the hospital on Sunday. The vascular surgeon is never there on Sunday but he was that day.
She is grown now. She graduated from Pensacola Christian College with a BS and a MA. We kid her and say we think she did suffer a little brain damage! She teaches in a christian school and is a great testimony to the grace of God. We had no control over that situation but had to leave it completely in God’s hands. We could not do anything but pray and ask God to spare her life. He was gracious and kind to allow us to keep our daughter and put His hand on her life for His honor and glory. We give Him all the glory and praise for His goodness in our life.
Wow! What a testimony of his grace and goodness! Truly he watches over us and our children and provides for every need! Praise Him that she loves Him and lives for Him as well!
Although I don’t have kids of my own yet, the one piece of wisdom my mom has passed along to me is to remember in all situations that our children are not ours, but are on loan from God. She told me that when she dedicated my brother and I as infants, from that moment on, we were God’s and she just had the privilege of borrowing us as long as He willed. She said that that, more than anything else, is what helped her through the tough or scary moments. For me, growing up that way was great- my mom was calm and collected any time I ran off on a new adventure. I remember in high school I took a trip to France with our French teacher. When everyone else’s parents were freaking out at the airport that their babies were getting on an international flight, she just winked at me and told me she loved me and to have fun.
Even knowing we are God’s, safeguarding a child is still a huge responsibility, and she is still human so she definitely had a few moments of worry, but I know that the fundamental difference between “my children” and “God’s children” is what made my mom such an amazing parent.
Wow! She does sound like a wonderful mother! I know that had to be hard on her but the Lord have her everything she needed as He is always faithful to do! I’ve found this is a daily surrender and can be so hard! But it will be amazing to sit back and see what God has done after I’ve let go! Ps- Michelle, you turned out great! And this wisdom will make you a wonderful mother as well some day! Thanks for commenting.
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