We're ALIVE!!!

Do these pics really require captions??????

"Look here, you people who say, "Today or tomorrow we are going to a certain town and will stay there a year. We will do business there and make a profit." How do you know what will happen tomorrow? For your life is like the morning fog — it's here a little while, then it's gone. What you ought to say is, "If the Lord wants us to, we will live and do this or that." Otherwise you will be boasting about your own plans, and all such boasting is evil.
Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it." James 4:13-17

Last blog we mentioned about our plans to go to Kampala many times in the next few weeks for various reasons . . .well, hmmmm . . . how are we going to do that when we now have NO VAN as it was totaled on Sunday when we were in a very serious accident?

Details? You want details? If you had the opportunity you could ask any New Hope staff member or surrounding villager if we should even be alive--seeing the van alone they would say NO, but knowing our GOD, the answer is YES, HE SAVES US!!!

The end result is Geoff is VERY sore, but has one small scratch on him, Toby has one small scratch, Acacia has a fat lip and minimal swelling to her left hand. Mary and Kevin sustained the most trauma. Kevin has a broken right leg and some face lacerations with a few stitches. Mary has a few face lacerations and a lotof swelling and bruising to her legs. Both of her legs were pinned under the dashboard for 30-40 minutes.

So what happened???? Well, on the way home from Kampala (and we were almost home--20 minutes away) we had come down a straight stretch of road and were approaching a corner when a huge truck OVERLOADED with charcoal SPEEDING was suddenly at the corner. Geoff blasted the horn and immediately the truck driver slammed on his brakes and started to slide. Because he was overloaded, his load shifted with his out of control response and tipped over. Geoff steered us as far away from the truck as possible, but missing the truck completely was not going to happen. Good thing Mary wasn't driving because as soon as she saw the truck sliding our direction she closed her eyes!!!! Her eyes only opened when it was all over. Unbelievable. Charcoal everywhere. Geoff immediately realized he HAD to get out. The steering wheel had him pinned and, if you ask him, he can't tell you how he got out, he just did because he knew he had to tend to his family. He handed Kevin to Toby and Toby got Acacia and Kevin out of the van and onto the safe side of the road. Geoff began the long process of trying to get Mary out. It's agony to have your kids screaming for you and you can't get to them!!!!!!! He called Vicki Dangers to tell her of the accident and asked that someone come quickly. While they were on their way (Uncles Jay, Fred, Keith, Joseph, Jonnes) our friend and administrator of the Kiwoko Hospital drove up and told us he had called their ambulance. All the while Geoff was desperately trying to pry Mary out with a "come along" hooked to different vehicles that had happened upon the accident. To no avail--the dash wouldn't move. When Jay arrived with a long pipe he finally was able to get the dash to move enough for Mary to slip her legs out. After all that time the swelling was too much for her to stand on them so Geoff piggybacked her to the waiting ambulance. All our staff there stayed to empty our van of stuff (we had just purchased some solar equipment for the new house, groceries for a month, and supplies for a new staff family that is arriving at the end of March.)

Kevin and Mary required an overnight stay in the Kiwoko hospital. Geoff stayed too and it was in the night that his muscles began to scream at him. All the adrenalin he had used to sustain him in the crisis was gone and the body began to tell him all about it.

We are now home and spending the week together. Geoff, Mary and Kevin are very sore. Toby and Acacia are fine. Geoff took off a week of work and we're keeping the kids out of school so we can be together to focus on the greatness of God and the miracle that we are all alive here together!!! Of course, there is a lot of rest and elevating of limbs going on!!! Kevin's break is a "good" break--no setting was required before casting. A few weeks and he'll be back to normal. His facial lacerations are healing well and we think there may not even be any scarring!!

So, keep in mind always that God is in control, He is mighty to save, His love is perfect and He is trustworthy!!!!!

Thank you for all of those who pray for us, our survival is dependent on it. If you have a testimony of God putting us on your heart to pray this last weekend we would like to hear from you as we have two testimonies so far of people here in the community that were moved to pray for us on Sunday.

BLESSINGS TO YOU!!!