Saved from God Knows What

“Grandma, why do you always pray before you drive?” The question came from my eight-year-old grandson. He and I had been vacationing at the beach with his uncle and cousins, and we were about to start the five-hour drive home in the rain. My two grandsons, who are about the same age and had become inseparable, were traveling with me.

“Driving is the scariest thing I do,” I told him. “I wouldn’t think of driving without praying. I might forget to pray before I cook a meal or write a letter or go for a walk, but I never forget to pray before I drive my car. I really depend on Jesus to protect me and my passengers. You just never know what might happen.”

Our trip was going well and we were making good time, despite the rain. Then, only two miles from home, someone pulled onto the highway immediately in front of us. The driver was going too fast on the rain-slicked roads and lost control of the car, which spun around twice. The scene seemed surreal, like something out of a movie, and I only had time to breathe a silent prayer, flip on my emergency flashers to warn the cars behind me, and brake as forcefully as I could without causing an accident myself. The spinning car came to a halt perpendicular to the traffic, half on the highway and half off. I was upon it in a second or two, and just managed to steer clear of it by inches.

“Boys, did you see that?” I asked when I could breathe again.

“Yes, Grandma,” one of the boys answered. “We could have had a really bad accident! But I know why we didn’t—because you prayed.”

I think Jesus sometimes lets us see the trouble He spares us from to remind us that He’s with us every moment, watching over and protecting us in answer to our prayers. And heaven only knows what troubles He saves us from that we don’t see, whether behind the wheel or all through life. What a wonderful companion, friend, and protector we have in Jesus!

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2 Thessalonians 3:3 ESV – But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.

2 Samuel 22:3-4 ESV – My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my savior; you save me from violence. I call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.

Psalm 46:1 ESV – God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.