Thanks be to God - Bryan Norford

You may recall eastern Canada received heavy rain at the end of last week. Friday evening, our daughter Alex, was driving the highway from Montreal in heavy homeward bound traffic during darkness and heavy rain.

The film of water on the road built up under her front driving wheels, and the car began aquaplaning. She lost complete control of the vehicle, and it began spinning hitting the median a number of times before crossing the traffic lanes and stopping on the right parking lane.

Thankfully, she made contact with no other vehicles during her gyrations, and the car stayed upright. The engine was still running and automatically she pulled off the road. None of the following vehicles stopped—including her husband, following her a few cars behind!

In the rain swept darkness, he didn’t recognize the car at the side of the road. Alex watched him drive past. Whatever our attitude to modern technology, Alex was thankful that they both had i-phones; he returned in minutes.

The car sustained major bodywork damage; the passenger door was jammed, but Alex seemed to be alright. But her concern was the baby; she was halfway though her pregnancy. Very emotionally distressed, she called my wife Ann while waiting for the ambulance.

She was thankful that her four year-old son was with a friend, not with her in the car. But having a record of several miscarriages, she feared for the safety of this second son she was carrying. Ann prayed with Alex on the phone, praying protection through Psalm 91, and then called Alex’s sisters to pray also.

At the hospital, she had an ultrasound. The baby’s heart was strong, and he appeared to be doing a happy dance. An ultrasound on Alex’s torso found no internal bleeding; but the attending physician advised her to watch for any signs of latent damage.

Released from the hospital, relieved and thankful, she drove home with her husband and called us. She was feeling sore all over, bruised from the seat belt, and had a headache, but otherwise felt well.

Saturday, she posted on Facebook: incredibly teary eyed today. A very emotional 24 hours to say the least ... car accident, baby scare, offer on home, counter offer sent back ... all on the 37th birthday of this lady's life! I'm soooooo incredibly grateful!

Today, she is at her gynaecologist for further checks, but cautiously hopeful there is no hidden damage. But above all, we are thankful to God for the good news so far, and know we can trust Him for the future.

A fitting tribute to Thanksgiving week.