March 24, 2006

Roadside Miracle

By Blair Bartlett

On December 15, 2004, my wife, Beth, and I were in a serious motor vehicle accident. By all accounts we should have been severely injured, if not killed. Instead, by the grace and mercy of God, we miraculously escaped from our demolished 1995 Windstar minivan with no broken bones, no internal injuries involving vital organs, and no cuts that needed stitches. Surely the Lord had His hand upon us.

The night before the accident I worked a 12-hour shift at my place of employment and knocked off work the morning of the 15th. After I had a nap we departed for a day of Christmas shopping in Moncton, New Brunswick. I was still tired and sleepy so Beth did the driving while I slept in the front passenger seat.

We were traveling along a four lane divided highway at approximately 110 kilometers (68 miles) per hour when Beth became drowsy. She closed her eyes for an instant and we drifted over to the left shoulder. She came to when she heard the sound of gravel and also the sound of the van hitting a metal highway marker.

Beth tried to get the van under control. We veered to the right, crossed both lanes, went down an incline and rolled the van at least once before hitting a rock wall head on. If we had driven another 10 seconds farther down the road we could have gone off a bridge into a steep ravine.

Damage to the van was substantial. The windshield was shattered, our rear window and four side windows were smashed out, three out of four tires were blown, both air bags were deployed, and the van’s frame was twisted and dented beyond repair.

All I remember of the accident is Beth calling my name, opening my eyes and seeing a rock face that seemed to be right on top of us. I remember thinking that we were going to be killed. But I had complete peace of mind. I was right with the Lord.

After the impact, I turned to Beth and asked her if she was OK and tried to reassure her. I asked her where the cell phone was. She said it was in her purse, and I retrieved it. I spotted a gentleman walking towards us. When he reached the van, I handed him our cell phone and asked him to call 911.

I started to move around a little bit. I had a drop of blood on the front of my nose, a few little specks on my hands where the glass sprayed me, and some discomfort in my lower back. Other than that, I felt okay. I got out and took several photographs of the wreckage.

Bystanders were concerned about me walking around, so I sat back down in the van. Someone covered me with a blanket in case of shock. They were also looking after my wife. In hardly any time at all, the Mounties, fire department and paramedics arrived.

Beth and I were placed in cervical collars and strapped securely on spine boards. We were transported in separate ambulances to the Sussex Health Centre about 10 kilometers away. Personnel examined us, took our blood pressure, took X-rays, and administered tetanus shots because of the broken glass. We had no broken bones. They kept us for observation for a few hours and then discharged us with basically a clean bill of health.

Victims have been in lesser accidents and fared much worse even to the point of losing their lives. Since our mishap, six people have died in four separate accidents in our area. The latest was a schoolteacher driving home just a few minutes from where we had our accident at the same time of morning under the same road conditions.

As Christians, we do not understand why things happen, but we should remember Romans 8:28: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose” (NASB).

We believe that the Lord spared us to be a witness to Him. If our testimony encourages just one person, it will be worth it all.

Blair and Beth Bartlett attend Forest Hills Baptist Church in Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada (Roger Graham, pastor).