Our son, Josh, was stationed in Minot, North Dakota and so we packed up the younger children and left our home in sunny Florida and flew north for a visit. When we landed in North Dakota, we were met with ice and snow and temperatures colder than we had ever experienced. Josh met us at the airport and we all piled into his truck and set out for a 3 hour trip to his home. The roads were treacherous, but Josh seemed confident as he braved the storm. Suddenly, Josh lost control of the vehicle and we began to spin on the highway. The truck spun 360 degrees and crashed into a snowbank. As we were spinning, in what seemed like slow motion, Josh remained calm and my husband quietly repeated, “We’re ok. We’re ok.” When the truck hit the snowbank, we took a collective breath and realized that we were, in fact, ok. A highway patrolman quickly came to our aid and got us out of the snowbank. We told him where we were headed and he advised us to get off at the next exit because the roads were too dangerous to navigate. We heeded his advice, took the next exit, and found a hotel to spend the night.
Later that evening, we were watching the news and learned that a 100 car pile-up occurred minutes after we had exited the highway at the very place where we would have been had we not listened to the advice of the officer who came to our aid. We thanked the Lord for His protection.
So often when our plans are thwarted, we become frustrated. We fail to recognize that God is often protecting us from unknown dangers. He is a good Father, always loving, guiding, protecting. I am thankful that He protected my family that fateful winter day and that He continues to protect us each day.
He will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. Psalm 91:11 
Melissa Heiland is an author and educator and holds a BA in Education from Wake Forest University and a Master’s of Education in Curriculum and Instruction from Central Missouri State University. She has worked in pregnancy care ministry for over 25 years in various roles including volunteer, Client Services Director, and Executive Director and Board Member. She served as a full-time missionary with the International Mission Board and has led volunteer mission teams since 2000. She is the Founder of Beautiful Feet International, an evangelical mission organization that plants international pregnancy centers (www.beautifulfeetinternational.com) Beautiful Feet International has started over 60 international pregnancy centers in over 20 nations. In addition to the Growing Together PRC curriculum, she has authored two books for mission workers published by the Hendrickson Publishing entitled Get Set and Let’s Go and two books for Pregnancy Resource Centers available at Christian Book Distributor by Hendrickson Publishing Inc., entitled A Mother’s Journey for expectant mothers and A Mother’s Comfort written for baby’s first year. She has also written You Are Wonderful, Psalm 139 for children. She trains pregnancy center staff and volunteers throughout the U.S. and worldwide in English and Spanish.
Thank you, Melissa, for sharing your story. We will never know how many times we’ve been protected from danger.
If you have a story to share about a lesson you learned through some life experiences, feel free to comment below with your name and email.
Blessings,
Loretta
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