Today we have seen the hand of God move in a miraculous way, so it seems an especially appropriate day to share the following Jackson family experience from a dozen years ago.

From September 12, 2012:

Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in Him! – Psalm 34:8

Now that my family has put a week’s perspective between ourselves and our recent experience, we are in a position to better share our hearts’ responses to what the Lord has done. First, the facts:

Last Sunday night (2 Sept) around 11:30 PM we were six miles from home, returning from a weekend visit to Church of the Holy Apostles in Westminster, MD and Church of Reconciliation in Bel Air, MD. I was driving, Edye was in the front passenger seat, with Christyn (13), Tobyn (10) and Bryn (16) stretched out and sleeping on the three rows of bench seats behind us. We’d come through some periods of heavy rain, with more moderate showers in between … and on a straight stretch of 4-lane divided highway the rear wheels of our 12-passenger van suddenly lost traction and we began to fishtail. Christyn heard me cry out “Oh my God!” as I fought to gain control for a few seconds; I could not, and we went off the right shoulder into the ditch at 55 mph (the speed limit was 65). We didn’t know it at the time, but apparently the right front tire hit something and lost air pressure as we angled through the ditch and up the embankment on its far side. We careened through the grass, during which I remember distinctly crying out “Jesus, help us!” multiple times. The van then came back down through the ditch and onto the highway at an angle. Because of the blown tire the van pitched over onto its right side, skidding straight down the highway at an angle until it came to rest across both lanes. The glass of the first three windows in the right side of the van shattered; only the last long side window remained intact, though scratched.

Edye and I confirmed we were both okay, the seat belts and shoulder restraints having done their jobs well. Although the windshield was broken on the right side, there was no front end impact so the air bags did not deploy. As I unfastened my seat belt and let myself down, trying (with only partial success) not to step on Edye below me, Bryn and Christyn were able to stand and Tobyn was not far behind, crawling out of a pile of blankets. Gracious people stopped to assist, opening the rear of the van to help us out, waving traffic around us on both shoulders, and one providing a first aid kit (Christyn had discovered her back was bleeding, so I pressed an antiseptic pad over the wound until help came). Someone must have called 911 because the police and paramedics were on the scene within minutes.

Although I had been able to climb behind the passenger seat and thread my way to the back of the van, Edye was a bit dazed and stayed in her seat. The paramedics took the most direct way in, breaking out the remainder of the windshield to lead Edye to safety. She reported some pain and sensitivity in her neck and shoulders, while Christyn obviously had back pain, so they were both strapped securely onto spine boards and taken in individual ambulances to the hospital in Frederick, MD, about fifteen miles away. The rest of us rode in the ambulance with Edye.

Edye was given a CT scan of her neck and shoulders, while Christyn was given one for her lower back. Edye was given the “all clear” by about 3 AM, her pain most likely caused by the shoulder harness. Christyn was a different story: beyond the obvious external injury – something had gouged out a grape-sized piece of flesh above her pelvic bone to the right of her spine – the CT scan revealed a small fracture in one of her lower vertebrae. The fracture might have been there previously, but just to be safe they left her on the spine board and transported her to Children’s National Medical Center in DC. By 5 AM I was riding with her in a second ambulance while Edye and the boys took a taxi home.

The one hour ambulance trip to DC was uneventful, and Christyn handled being on a spine board for eight hours amazingly well. After admission they attempted to read the data disk with her original CT scan images on it, without success. That left us with a choice of a second CT scan or a two-hour wait for a courier to retrieve a good copy. After a CT redo they decided an x-ray of the specific vertebra was needed … and then one more CT of her pelvis to see if any other damage was visible. Finally by 2 PM they were confident of no serious injury – and would finally allow her to be rolled over and stitched up. Only then did they discover a handful of auto glass inside the back of her shorts – no wonder she had been so uncomfortable all this time! After stitching and cleaning her up she was released at 3 PM; Edye and the boys drove to DC (with a stop at the towing yard to pick up the contents of the van), and we were finally all back home by 8 PM … completely worn out.

This factual description is only a small part of the story; of much greater consequence are the amazing things we experienced in those long hours and the days since! We have spent a good deal of time this past week sharing our various perspectives, and identifying all the ways in which God provided for us through this trial. With joyful hearts we give Him all thanks and praise!

• We are so thankful the van merely tipped over onto its side rather than rolling over and over
• As we were sliding along the road on our side, Christyn heard a voice telling her to lift herself up: she was suspended by arms and legs above the asphalt road sliding by the missing second window
• At the same time, the pillows that Christyn had been sleeping on somehow ended up under Edye’s head and right shoulder, protecting her from the asphalt sliding by inches from her face
• Moments before the accident Bryn had complained of being a little warm … it both woke him up (so he was aware and could respond appropriately) and caused him to roll over from his stomach onto his back allowing him to fall forward feet first onto the window when gravity and momentum demanded it, and he crouched like a surfer — on the only window that didn’t shatter when the van pitched onto its right side
• There were no cars near us either in front or behind, and the van rolling onto its side prevented us from crossing over the median and into the opposite direction of traffic
• If we had left the roadway just a few feet earlier, we would have hit a drainage culvert
• If we had come back onto the roadway just a few yards later, we would have hit the end of the next guard rail
• Edye discovered from the towing company that this is an especially dangerous stretch of highway, and apparently that same night another car went completely over the embankment we were on, through another road and fence, ending upside down in a field. We continue to pray God’s mercy and provision upon the occupants

“Witness”: one who has personal knowledge of something

We bear witness to the love, mercy, and power of God! We each have personal, individual, practical (not just theoretical) knowledge of God in the midst of what might have been tragedy. For that reason, though I am sad the accident happened because of the financial impact it will have on our family, I am grateful the accident happened because of all that the Lord has done and will do in our lives through it. Every single one of us saw the hand of God at work. Edye, seeing the ditch approaching, denied fear and closed her eyes in trust that God would save, and indeed His angels were present to strategically avert/minimize the damage. Christyn specifically talked about how this terrifying event had actually strengthened her faith because she experienced a voice inside her exhorting her to hold on tightly, the voice of One Who cares, and Who strengthened her to do it. Both boys stand amazed at the way His hand carried us.

And His grace did not stop once we were all home and together again. The next night (Tuesday 3 Sept) the family spent some time together in prayer specifically regarding the previous two days. Afterward Christyn just remained seated in her chair, so I went over to her. Hardly looking up, she said, “This is the first time in my life I have ever, ever, really sensed that God is actually here in the room with me, listening to us, and caring.”

Were the events of that weekend worth it? Yes they were — If we never need God, we will never know for sure just how close He is and How much He loves us, and we will never truly be able to depend wholly upon Him! I love You, Lord!

We are tired, we are bruised, but we are very, very grateful to God.

Soli Deo gloria!