Waves Fall 2004 Newsletter

...I knew that God had placed them there as warring angels...who believed in God and loved him enough
to give their lives to his service. -- The Awakening Heart by Betty J. Eadie, p. 88

September, 2004

W.A.V.E.S. Newsletter

Fall Edition

Embraced by the Light

Prayers

Words Ripple

by Juan-Marie James

Have you ever purposefully created a positive "ripple" in the world?

"Choose your words carefully; guard them as sacred treasures", was the lasting thought that occurred to me. A few days ago, a friend, Joyce, visited and shared the story of a car accident she was in and how her father's first response was to yell at her instead of to comfort her. Joyce and I further spoke about the power of words and our roles as teachers to use words to inspire and uplift others.

The Saturday before Mother's Day, I agreed to take my friend's three daughters, Brianna, 8; Kyera, 7; and Jordan, 6, for the day. Our first morning trip was to attend piano lessons. The morning was routine with the exception of a huge snowfall that fell during the night and continued into the morning. Nevertheless, having just purchased a new car called "Blessed", I felt reassured that our trip would be safe.

Before leaving for the hour's drive, I assessed the roads and prayed for a safe journey. The girls sat safely in the back seat reading, and little Jordan was singing the line, "I have come too far for you to let go", from a song by Kirk Franklin. A smile lingered in my heart to hear this child bellow a song like an angel bird. I continued driving, humming along with her, but felt restless, like something was not right.

About five minutes later, the thought entered my mind, "Perhaps I should not travel today." My immediate response was, "God, you are our protector and will protect us." I then remembered a dream I had had two weeks prior about a car accident that I was involved in. I shook my head, trying to erase all traces of the dream or restlessness that lay on my spirit.

I continued driving, listening to Jordan's voice. Approximately five minutes later, my car skidded but realigned itself back onto the road. Immediately, I felt protective, mostly of the girls’ safety, for the thought of having anything happen to them was unbearable, so I quickly pushed the thought away and started praying, silently at first, then with increasing volume.

We continue down the road for another two minutes when suddenly I felt the car skid on a patch of ice beneath the snow. The car skidded out of control! At first I sat, allowing it to skid, holding on to the wheel, waiting for that break when I would be able to realign the car. It came! The car started slowing down and I felt someone's presence in the car telling me what to do. For what seem like five seconds, the car regained its bearings and stayed in the correct lane, only to lose them again. The car slid, turned, and was going down the road sideways. Immediately I became concerned for the girls' safety, fearing the car would turn over or do something else.

Quickly I observed what was around me, noticing the electrical poles on the right side of the road (the side we were facing now) and on the other side, barbed wire fencing and a cluster of small trees.

At this point, my defensive driving training took over. I prayed as loudly as I could, reassuring the girls to just continue reading because we would be okay. However, the three girls started praying for the protection of everyone in the car.

Instead of slowing down, the car seemed to increase speed. I began asking God for help. I could not regain control of the car! I screamed, "Jesus! Mercy, Jesus," turned the steering wheel, and prayed the car would end up on the side of the road with the fencing. Miraculously, the car turned 180 degrees and we went into the ditch, past the barbed wire fencing, and into the trees. The sound of a crash, a tree breaking, and cracking sounds filled the air.

Shaking immensely, I managed to crawl into the back seat, push a door open (even though all the doors were pressed in on by trees) crawl out, and call for help.

Approximately fifteen minutes later, a lady with a van stopped to help, almost repeating the same accident we had, but she managed to stop her vehicle safely. Normally, more vehicles would be on the road at that time of the morning, but the massive snowfall kept many travelers indoors until mid-morning. The lady identified herself as Patty and agreed to take us to the closest house since we were all physically unharmed and it was safer to be indoors in this weather than standing outside waiting for emergency help. We climbed into her van, thanking her for stopping to our aid.

Brianna was quite concerned about my car. She repeatedly said, "Your new car is broken." Immediately I remembered the words Joyce and I had said to each other three days prior, surprised that I would remember those words at a moment like this. The only possible response that I had to give Brianna was, "You are the most important thing; your life is the most important. Don't worry about the car; God will take care of it. Are you alright?" All three girls looked at me, smiling and relaxed by the comforted words. They answered yes and reached out to touch my hand in comfort. I looked up into the rear view mirror and saw Patty smiling.

These lasting words imprinted on the minds of three young girls and a stranger, creating a ripple in a chaotic moment, yet peace rested its delicate presence upon us.

Three weeks later, while visiting my home, the girls asked if my car was still broken. I smiled and was about to respond, but Kyera looked at Brianna and restated my words spoken from the accident three weeks ago: "Our life is more important than a car. Thank God he protected us; anything could have happened, but God protected us."

I stood in awe, marveling at the power my lasting words contained, imprinted in the memories of three little earth angels. Once more, I thanked God for our protection, but mostly for the ripple effect of the power of my words.

We learn by observation, by experience, or from listening to others' stories and assimilating the experiences and lessons they learned. My experience with my friend allowed me to learn from her, and in turn it changed my own view, purposefully creating a ripple in the midst of a crisis.

"Words ripple!"

Warring Angel Volunteers on Earth, (WAVES) is acknowledged as a trademark of Betty J. Eadie