I'm sure a Bull Rider is thinking long and hard about those mere 8 seconds, which I think could seem like an eternity. But I've never ridden a bull so I don't know first hand.
I've watched my sons and my husband many times Calf Rope, Team Rope, etc, and a mere fraction of a second can be a win or loose situation. I remember Tyson missing the buckle at a couple of rodeos by a hundredth of a second, those are always hard ones to swallow. But I've never roped a calf, so I've only experienced that through watching them.
Then there's the basketball game, when it's tied, and someone sends off a long three pointer, and everyone is holding their breath hoping it was in the air before that buzzer sounded. Swish, it goes in, and the crowd goes wild, but the referee calls it no good. I remember Mobridge loosing a Regional Tournament in a similar situation. But I've never played basketball, so I don't know that feeling first hand, only from the stand point of a fan.
There is those track meets, when running the hundred meter dash, a second can be a HUGE difference. But then again, I've never run track, I've only watched it from a spectators standpoint.
I could go on and on listing things that matter in life by a mere second. Last week I experienced a mere second happening, that still has me shaking, and thanking God all at the same time.
Kristi and I were returning from Montana, where she had spent the last two months, when an 'every second counts' situation occurred. We had just arrived in Bismarck, and were taking the exit to our house (Expressway Exit), when we stopped at the red light and waited our turn. Kristi was at the drivers wheel, and I was just reading a text message, the time was 10:42 pm. Kristi got the green light to go, glanced over at the north bound lane, and turned north towards home. I can't say I saw a thing, I was looking down reading, Kristi said she saw it from the corner of her eye. I didn't see anything, but I did hear it. A whoosh sound behind us, then a screech of tires and then an explosion that was so loud, it hurt your ears. Somewhere in that split second I looked up to see a car spinning towards us backwards, and I think I yelled to Kristi to get over, which she was in the process of doing anyway. The spinning cars wheel hooked on the median between the highway lanes and came to a stop. Kristi jumped out of the car after stopping and ran to the car, to see if the driver was alive. I was staring at my cell phone, wondering in those split seconds how in the world do I make it just be a phone!! Quit laughing, I may have only questioned for a second or two, but I just couldn't think straight. As I finally dialed 911, and was getting out of the car, I then saw the second vehicle, pushed back up the overpass about 80 feet. I'm trying to remain calm, but not doing a good job explaining to the 911 operator where the accident is at, I'm shaking so bad I can hardly hold on to the phone. I finally get it straight where the accident is at, and she said help was on the way.
Two other ladies pulled up behind us, they had been in the north bound lane waiting at the light, and had saw the whole thing. Another man (who I called, the man in the blue shorts) also pulled up, he had been behind Kristi and I on the off ramp, but saw the guy coming when he started to go, and had stopped and backed up. Another lady in a nurses uniform came running up, and began checking on the victims of the wreck. The passenger in the second car was in really bad shape. She actually got them both out of the vehicle, as their car was smoking, and she was worried about it exploding. Those two young men, had just been sitting at the stop light waiting for it to turn green, when they were hit head on at 80 mph. The driver kept asking, "What happened? What happened?" I was amazed that they were all still breathing. Airbags had been what had saved them.
Then police began arriving, and checking on the victims, till the ambulance and fire trucks arrived with the trained professionals. And as Kristi told me later, she suddenly has a great appreciation for those emergency workers, as she had no idea what to do other than ask them if they were ok, and tell them help was on the way, I felt the same way.
It was when the police began asking for our statements, that I over heard 'the man in the blue shorts' tell the officer, "He just missed that white car, and then hit that car sitting at the light. He was in the south bound lane, heading north, and going about 80." I got to thinking, wait a minute, we're the only white car here!! I talked to the man in the blue shorts after the officer left, and said, did you see him almost miss us? He said, "Yes, he just missed you." We hadn't even seen him coming. A second or two later, and we would be talking a different story.
In the next couple of days, I would hear from several people, that they were praying for us on Sunday, and praying specifically for safety. A couple of them told me they had been praying for days, as they felt something was wrong. Oh the power of prayer!! Never ever think that prayer is weak, or not needed. Kristi and I both knew, someone had been praying. There was divine protection.
Later in the week, I was driving to the airport to pickup Philip. (He flew home for a couple of days for his birthday) I had to drive through that intersection. Somehow, it just seemed eerie at night to me. I began to again thank the Lord for his divine protection. Then I had this terrible thought; what if we had been hit? I knew I would be dead, as it would have been a side hit for us, and no airbags will save you then. I knew I would have died on the scene. My thoughts went to Kristi, and thinking how awful it would be for her to loose her mother as well as her father. I again said a prayer of thanks for our safety. But then I heard inside me, "No, you both would gone. But it's not your time, you're not done."
I'm not done. God has more for me in this life. Someday, I will get to go to heaven, but not now, there's work to be done here. There's life to be lived. I'm so thankful for that!
Even at the accident scene that night, I looked at Kristi and asked, "Did we pray today before we left? We always do, but I don't remember if we did today." She said, "I don't know, I think we did, but I KNOW somebody did." And God answered. He protected. When I asked her that, I heard inside me, "I've got this." I know it was God's way of saying to me, that He had us covered, cause someone took the time to pray.
I still pray for the young men involved in the accident. I do not know how they are doing, or even how I could ever find out, but I continue to pray for them. Praying God would heal any injuries that they may have. That God would do a work in their lives.
I am reminded again, that every second counts in our lives. In our case that night, another second later we could be lying in coffins right now by Todd in the cemetery. But for now, God has us still alive, and still with purpose.
I think about another phone call I got just yesterday from one of my best friends. She was in the hospital just having gone through an emergency appendectomy, the doctors said, they didn't think her appendix would have held for another hour, and with how bad it was, if it had burst, they didn't think they could have saved her. Maybe it was minutes, maybe it was seconds, but God was still there with her, getting her the help when she needed it, for God still has plans for my dear friend. I pray too for her, and a quick and complete healing. I just talked to her, and she was home and out on a walk. She said it only lasted for two and one half minutes, but she had made it that far. That's like running a marathon after what she's been through.
Prayer, never take it lightly. Your sudden 'thoughts' about a friend could be God's reminder to pray for them, they maybe in a great need right now in their lives and need someone to pray for them. I'm SO thankful for the friends and family that prayed for Kristi and I. They took the time, they took it serious, God answered their prayers.
I know every second counts, and I want every second of my life to count for God.
the second car and emergency vehicles.
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