“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” Isaiah 41:10
Things around my house has been crazy to say the least. Most people who I know are aware of the dangers of lightning and high winds. During this time of the year Southern Utah is hit by monsoons and other types of weather that causes flooding, lightening storms and death, Normally I am out taking pictures of the awesome lightening storms that God has displayed to us. Last night was different though, but a constant reminder of how awesome God is and how powerful lightening can be.
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1:9
When we started to hear rolling thunder and the winds picking up, we knew the storm was coming in as predicted. The alerts has been on TV for about an hour. Once we started hearing the thunder and wind, I asked my husband if he would go outside before it got to bad and bring in the garbage cans that way they wouldn’t blow away. As he prepares to get up to do that, the weather got really bad. We had strong winds, hail, thunder and lightning. The rain was so bad that you couldn’t even see the house across from ours. But, that is normal during monsoons. They come in strong and dump a lot of water.
I told him to never mind since the weather got so bad. Just as I shut my front door to make sure things were OK, I heard a huge clap of thunder and lightning. At that moment
I went to the garage to see what was happening outside. I love to take pictures of stormy weather. As I opened my garage door, I freaked out big time. I yelled to my husband that the huge tree on the side of our house fell onto my car. My car is a 2003 Ford Mustang. All I could see of my car was the front end and the license plate. I have personalized plates that says, “JESUSIS”.
I was about to have a major meltdown. I know that God is in control of everything and at that moment I had to just trust in Him. I know that all things work out according to His will and is does what is best. I know cars are material items, but this car is special to me. There are many who hates Fords, but, for me I love this car. I looked for a yellow mustang for years. It took me a long time to be able to buy one. Our paychecks goes to bills and I am on disability for Myasthenia Gravis and Guillian Barre Syndrome. A good part of my disability check goes for Dr’s appointments and medication. This is the first car I bought that was specifically for me. I prayed to God to protect it since He knew that it is more than just a car. It’s hard to explain.
Cars can be replaced, but not people. I was just hoping I didn’t have to replace it. The reason I said though that cars can be replaced, but not people is because if my husband Chuck would have gone outside when I asked him to, the tree would have fallen on him since that is exactly where he would have been. He could have also been struck by lightning. I love my car, but I would take my husband any day over my car.
“Tell everyone who is discouraged, Be strong and don’t be afraid! God is coming to your rescue…” Isaiah 35:4
God was protecting us the whole time. Not only did He protect my husband from getting crushed by the tree, He also protected our house. Right next to the tree is a power line that is over our house. The city has had to come and trim the tree many times to keep it from getting into the power lines.
The winds were about 80 mph when the tree was hit by lightning. Had it not been for the strong winds all kinds of things could have happened and none of them good. The winds forced the tree to go in a different direction. It didn’t hit any power lines and it didn’t hit the house. My car is another story though. It did hit my car obviously. Here is a link to St. George News. There is a video that shows the tree coming down unto my car.
As soon as the rain and winds died down, people started showing up to help out. The only person I knew was my neighbor across the street. One guy came with a chainsaw and others helped by moving the tree limbs and cutting them. After only 30 minutes, my car was free from the tree. I was absolutely amazed when I seen my car when the tree was removed.
My car had very little damage. There were no broken windows, no major dents. There were a couple small ones, but you would have to actually put your hands on the car to feel them. The only noticeable damage was to the spoiler fin on the back of the car. My husband and I looked up how much it would cost to get a new one and it would only cost around $100.00.
When I seen my car in the condition it was in, I was truly amazed. I don’t know why I was amazed, but I was. I thought my car was going to be a total loss. Most people thought the same thing. When you look at the damage from the tree falling on the car, one would assume that I wouldn’t have a car anymore. God knows that I would have been able to buy a new car to replace it. I only have liability on it. I am thinking I need to increase my insurance on our vehicles after this. I don’t drive a lot because of my medical things, but when I do have to, I wouldn’t be able to.
In case anyone that helped us with getting the tree off of my car is reading this, I want to thank you all. My husband and I couldn’t do it alone. We had no chainsaw and I couldn’t help because of my physical limitations. Most of all, I want to thank God for having a hand in all things and making sure that the wind blew in the right direction and for protecting each and everyone.
In Closing, I want to leave you with some Bible verses that have come to mind because of what happened. I would also like to thank everyone who helped us. We couldn’t have done it without your help. I hope that if anyone goes through something like this or even worse that God is always there for you. He has a way of working things out according to His will.
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:6-7
Senseless Ramblings of the Mindless 