In one of your messages of the year, you mentioned that we needed the Lord’s protection. I listened to that message over and over again, and confessed that we were crowned with the Lord’s glory and honor.
In April, my two daughters and I went on a road trip from Virginia to Georgia and experienced one of the biggest tornado outbreaks in US history. A few days before we left for the trip, I had the urge to just read Psalm 91 and Psalm 23 again with my children. We read the Scriptures and quoted verses out loud, and then I read it again to my girls as they drifted off to sleep.
On the day of the trip itself, we encountered horrendous storms with awfully dark clouds, torrential winds, and hail as we drove through Virginia and Tennessee. In my heart, I felt that I needed to just drive through the storms and did so by God’s grace.
We stopped to eat in north Georgia. I wanted to hurry and eat so that we could get back on the road quickly. But in my heart, I felt the Lord telling me to slow down and let my girls eat and relax, and not to rush them.
When we left the restaurant, I felt the urge to get gas at the gas station next door. I didn’t know why because my gas tank was already more than half full. But I did it anyway. Then, we got back on the highway and continued our trip.
After traveling less than a mile, the traffic came to a complete stop. We waited for a while and then realized that something serious had just happened right up ahead.
A large tornado had just torn through the town directly in front of us only minutes before! It had traveled and caused destruction on the very section of the highway that we were going to travel on. By God’s grace, the Lord had us stop to get food and gas, slowing us down enough to keep us from the destructive tornado! We missed the tornado by only three to five minutes.
We were stuck on the highway for five hours as emergency crews began to emerge from everywhere to help the victims of the tornado. We prayed in the Spirit for the victims and sang praises to the Lord for His saving grace.
Although we were in the car and couldn’t move for five hours, we now had enough gas in our car to keep the DVD playing (for the girls) for most of the five hours. The Lord had prepared us for this without me even knowing it. When packing for the trip, I had packed extra water, food, blankets, DVDs, and more for the girls.
While we waited in the car, another storm arose and traveled over us. It shook our SUV violently and all those on the radio said that another tornado was imminent. We were stuck on the highway with no way to exit. The exit up ahead had been torn apart by the tornado before.
I began to confess Psalm 91 over us and told my daughters that the Lord would keep us safe no matter what the storm looked like. The Word of God calmed our hearts. We turned off the bad news on the radio and just sang praises to God for His protection, and He protected us. Amazingly, the second storm didn’t produce another tornado! The Lord kept us safe and I am so thankful!
The devil intended to cause destruction in our lives but the Lord’s amazing power, love, and grace made sure that we were always held safe and warm in the secret place of the Most High.
Renee / Virginia, United States
