For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end. Jeremiah 29:11

It was a horrible car wreck that should have cost me my life. My friends and I had been drinking and we were now in the car heading home. But we were being followed.

In the frenzy of my friend’s pleas for the driver to speed up, I began to panic.

I quickly sobered up and began to ask God for help because I somehow knew we were going to crash.

The realization hit me that I didn’t have my seatbelt on so I rushed to secure it. Seconds after the belt clicked into position, the driver ran a stop sign and our car crashed into a deep ditch.

Without my seatbelt on, I would have gone flying through the front window at the rate of speed we were going. Miraculously, I was still alive.

I started crying – crying in excruciating pain, and crying with gratefulness that God spared my life and the lives of my friends.

Within minutes of the accident, headlights could be seen down that dark, deserted road and I was relieved to see the vehicle that drove up was an ambulance!

The paramedics quickly came to our rescue and transported us to the hospital. I suffered a spinal injury and the healing in my body would take months.

I later learned that the paramedics had been called out to a nearby location and were returning to their post when they came upon our accident.

I would like to say this was the turning point in my life where I gave myself wholeheartedly to the Lord, but it would be two more years before I made that decision. My choices that night caused me to be in an awful accident, but God always has a better plan.

The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. Proverbs 16:9

Thankfully, Jesus mercifully forgave me of all my sins and gave me the gift of His salvation.

He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings. Psalm 40:2

His plans for my life far exceeded my own and I wouldn’t have it any other way!