The murky water surrounded me like a tomb. I could feel the motion of the boat racing towards me and knew that this could be the end of my life. Instinct took over and my body plunged deeper towards the bottom of the lake. I seemed removed from the pain that seared throughout my body. As I raised myself to the surface, I became fixated on the blood that oozed from a wide gash and exposed muscle that used to be my upper arm. Everything began to move at a very fast pace. A boat full of people were racing towards me. As they approached their faces mirrored their fear of my condition. They seemed afraid to tell me that the propeller had also sliced through the left side of my back leaving slashes of open wounds. Without hesitation, my parents began wrapping me with towels and moving me to the car that would rush me to the local hospital.
These moments of time have been etched in my memory for decades. When I think back on this experience, I often question why I was allowed to survive. If I had been wearing a life preserver, I wouldn’t have been able to plunge to the depths needed to escape the full onslaught of the propeller blades. Even though I was badly injured and had to endure several major surgeries, no nerves were severed or bones broken.
Recently, I have tried to change my questions to God by asking “what” instead of “why”. Why questions usually turn into negative assumptions about God. On the other hand, what questions can produce spiritual growth if the answers are sought through his Word. Just this morning I stumbled upon a scripture that brought me comfort as I reflected on this frightening experience. Isaiah 43:1-2 “Fear not, for I have redeemed you. I have summoned you by name: You are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you.” How cool is it to think that God has summoned me by name and to feel assured by the fact that while under the water, God was truly with me.