It was October 1985, and I was six weeks pregnant with my third child. I was one of those who suffered from nausea most of the day. I had spent the last eight hours in mandatory nurse training. I was married and eager to pick up my two daughters and go home. As I got into our Honda Accord to drive across town to my friend's house where the girls were waiting for me, a thought crossed my mind: “You will be in an accident today. Be careful and drive slowly.”

Whoa! Where did that thought come from? Am I so tired and nauseous that I'm even having morbid thoughts? I tried to push the thought out of my mind, but it returned again before I even left the parking lot.

I drove cautiously through the residential area. Even though traffic was light, I stopped and looked twice before proceeding through each stop sign. Soon I was heading towards Downer Grove on 57th Street, a four-lane road. Traffic remained surprisingly light, yet I drove carefully, looking in all directions. I anticipated each green light turning yellow, and stopped well in advance. I drove in the right lane, allowing faster drivers to pass on the left.

I was almost at my destination when a pickup truck, which had just passed me, moved into the left-turn lane and stopped in the middle of the intersection. As I was about to enter the same intersection, a car coming from another direction appeared in front of me. I slammed on the brakes, swerved left, and cried out: “Oh God, save me!”

Despite my efforts to avoid the collision, we crashed in the intersection. I heard the sound of grinding metal, shattering glass, people screaming, and I was almost paralyzed with fear. [SEG 6] I waited for a moment, and then everything was quiet. I wanted to know if I was okay. Doing a quick mental assessment, I realized I wasn't seriously injured. Then my mind turned to the people in the other car. Both ladies were screaming in fear and pain, and I could see blood on one of their faces.

Within a few minutes, which felt like hours, people came to help us, and a police officer arrived to take the report and call for medical assistance. Meanwhile, I remembered the warning I had received before leaving the hospital that day. Had God prepared me for that trial? Had He warned me not to leave in a hurry, as usual, to spare me from a worse or even fatal accident?

I know the answer. I knew the answer that day. I felt His tender love and care despite not thinking of Him during the rush and circumstances of my day. I know He saved my life and the lives of those other two ladies. He is a loving and very personal God!

I'm sure many of you experience similar situations where God's still, small voice brings thoughts to your mind. Perhaps He says: “Don't do that,” “Don't say that,” “Be careful,” “Pay attention,” or “Take it easy.” Are you listening?

Why is this little story significant? It's not just because God warned me, or prevented me from suffering serious injuries or even dying. But because I began to realize, as never before, that He is personally interested in my life and longs to guide me – and each one of us – every moment of the day.

This event prompted me to consider how little time I spent with Him personally, even though I thought I was doing what was necessary. Oh yes, I prayed, I went to church. I even helped lead many of the church programs. I lived a healthy life and had no bad habits. But, in truth, I didn't have a real awareness of His presence with me, even though in the preceding months my husband and I had started spending time with Him regularly.

Through this experience, I realized not only His love and care for me, but I also began to feel my need for Him more deeply. During my recovery, I had much more time for reflection and to seek Him. Love responds to love, and that's what began to happen in my heart. I began to love Him more for loving me when I was still too busy and preoccupied for Him. I started wanting to read and study His Word more to become more familiar with Him. I wanted to know His will for me in a way I had never considered before. I wanted His wisdom and direction in my life, and He was there, multiplying every small effort I made to fulfill the desire in my heart.

As time went on, God revealed many blessings to us that resulted from the accident. First, spending more time with Him personally produced a deeper commitment to be led by Him. Second, it gave me more time with my children to truly tune into them, as I was no longer preoccupied with my other interests. This also helped us obtain additional funds to make our move to the countryside. And finally, it helped me begin to learn how to depend on God when I am in pain or not feeling well.

Over the years, following this period, I have come to love and appreciate my time of communion with God and His Word, which has truly been a lamp to my feet and a light for my path (Psalm 119:105). In it, I have found guidance and comfort I had never known before. It is not just a history book, but a living source for the daily Christian walk. As I make time to seek Him and His will for me as a wife and mother, I have been amazed to see how powerfully His principles work when I surrender to Him and receive His grace that enables me to put them into practice.

I'd like to share with you one simple example of how God's love has come alive for me through His Word. As I read about faithful men of the past, God showed me that there are principles I can learn as a mother to train and prepare my children to be faithful to Him despite the trials they may face. By studying the lives of Christ, David, Elijah, John the Baptist, Joseph, and many others, I see a clear picture of a loving and personal God who guided these men through the daily and seemingly insignificant details of life, and who was still guiding them as they made world-changing decisions. I saw some common paths that contributed to making these men who God wanted them to be. It was exciting to see, and I desired to follow these principles with my family.

First, each of these men lived in a more rural environment – in the desert, in the quiet of the countryside, in a small mountain village, in a secluded place, or on the plains. They did not grow up in the city with all the attractions and distractions that bombarded the senses. Every possible avenue was closed off to temptation.

Next, I noticed that their lives were modest and simple. They were trained in the practical, daily duties of life, often enduring trials and privations. Some of them were poor in worldly possessions, living very humble lives. All of them learned to listen and obey instructions.

Furthermore, I noted the inspiring description of these men's character, formed in childhood. They had helpful hands and were determined workers. They were cheerful and selfless, yet persevering and fearless. Authenticity and integrity characterized their lives, regardless of opposition. They learned to control their thoughts and maintained moral steadfastness amidst immorality. Their parents trained them to be useful, courteous, cheerful, steadfast, and faithful in small things.

What a loving God, who not only showed me how to develop these attributes in my own life, but also how to raise my children! He says, “I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my loving eye on you.” (Psalm 32:8) I believe He not only gives me His wisdom, but also His strength (Matthew 19:26) to fulfill this calling. He desires to personally teach each of us His will and His ways. He wants to show me – and you too – that with Him all things are possible. I have been greatly encouraged and motivated by His love demonstrated in His Word and through His Spirit working in my heart. I long to do everything He shows me.

               The results of faithful parenting not only bring the reward of God's honor in this life, but, more importantly, the reward of eternity with the God of love. We, too, can begin to experience the results in our daily lives as well as in our families. Truly this is the happiest way I have found to live, and I look forward to the final reward with Him.

I began to see that everything normally considered an advantage for success is contrary to the path these men followed. The city or suburban environment with houses on all sides; traffic; constant noises from TVs and radios, sirens, trains, and airplanes; the endless streetlights and neon lights – all keep the senses constantly stimulated. Home life is always extravagant and plush. Idleness and entertainment are sought after, leading individuals and families to be rushed, short on time, and stressed. Time with God and the perception of His loving presence are lacking in the lives of even professing Christians.

Many people are drawn into this lifestyle even when they live in the countryside. This is visible in the demanding, impatient, disrespectful, disobedient character of children and adults alike. Although these results are not planned, they naturally lead to the exclusion of God from one's heart and life. Sadly, they lead to present emptiness and eternal perdition.

By studying Inspiration, I have seen the contrast between two lifestyles. Even if it's not possible for someone to reside in the quietness of the countryside, there's no need to accept and live according to the world's standards. What we choose to do in our home life is the key to the direction we, as well as our children, will follow. If we choose to connect with God in our current circumstances and allow Him to direct and guide us, He will not only direct our steps, but also strengthen us to fulfill His will. He is a loving and personal God.

I am understanding more and more the guidance of God's still, small voice – the silent impression on my heart. What seemed strange fifteen years ago, before the accident, I now recognize as my loving and personal God guiding me in the details of my life. I have come to know His call to my heart. As I learn, He speaks to me through His written voice. He always brings to my mind the things He shows me in my time of communion with Him, and helps me choose the best path. He continues to seek my heart so that, as a mother in cooperation with Him, I may raise my children in His ways. He reveals the character traits that honor Him, and helps me understand how to cultivate them in my own heart as well as in my children's.

Obedience, motivated by love for Him, is the foundation of a vital and real relationship. As I learn to respond to His love, He helps me understand how to raise my children through love to be obedient to both parents and God. This experience continues to grow even during the teenage years.

Recently, we were helping a family with young children gather wood for winter. On one of the trips back home with a truck full of wood, I asked the mother if her little girl could ride in the truck bed with us. The girl was delighted with the invitation and her mother's approval. We drove very slowly, and she really enjoyed the new experience. After loading the truck bed again and being ready to return with the load, I felt strongly impressed not to ride in the truck bed, nor to let the little girl go either. Who do you think gave me this thought? I know it was my loving and personal God. Of course, the little girl wanted to go in the back again, but I told her mother that I felt we shouldn't go in the back this time.

A few seconds after the truck started up the hill, the load shifted and fell right where we would have been sitting. How grateful I was for having listened to my loving and personal God and for having consented without questioning or disregarding His message. How grateful I was also that the little girl chose to obey my refusal to ride in the back without fussing or crying.

I consider my time of communion with God and the study of His Word as preparation for my day. I find encouragement and strength to face every challenge as I walk with God throughout the day. He has given me hope in moments of despair. He has strengthened me when I find myself weak. He has instructed me when circumstances seem confusing and uncertain. He is a personal God, and I am learning each day to trust Him more and to respond to His love with love. I am challenged and motivated to be everything He desires me to be.

Have you experienced His love? Are you aware of His personal direction in your life? If not, it can be real for you. It requires a simple choice to say, “Lord, I want it to be real for me in my life.” And He will be! But you must understand that He will want to guide you in all areas of your life – not only in those you can't manage, but also in those you have been managing. You need to surrender everything! Then, He will be everything and in everything for you. Each day you will fall more and more in love with Him, spending time with Him in His Word and in conscious fellowship even in the small things, whether you are leaving a parking lot, or in the bed of a pickup truck with a load of wood. He is a loving, personal God!

One thing that has helped me see the lessons God wants to teach me through His Word is to put them on paper. For example, when I was studying how various men in the Bible responded to God's love, I made a simple outline of my findings and titled it 'Attributes Especially Necessary for Children'. This allowed me to see at a glance what God wants me to see and understand. This practice has helped me stay focused day after day.

One day, just for fun, I asked my family to associate each Bible character with the corresponding description of their home life and character. I read each descriptive list, and they identified the person. Then we examined the results. What a motivation it was for all of us! Try this with your own family!

I think the example of this simple outline can also help you, as you study, to extract from the Bible what God might be trying to communicate to you. You can use this as a springboard for many areas of personal study. Then use it in your family and encourage everyone with the thought that God is personally interested in us, our choices, our destiny, for He is a loving and personal God.

Attributes Especially Necessary For Children

Have some fun and try to associate the man (David, John the Baptist, Jesus, Elijah, or Joseph) with the inspired description and personalize it for your life and family.

Place of Residence:

Small mountain village

Quiet countryside

Secluded

Lived on the plain

Isolated region

Home life:

Calm, simple, unpretentious; experienced scarcity, poverty, and hardship; helped parents; instructed by his mother

Raised with simple habits, pure worship, and practical daily life

Faced risks and hardships, lived a humble life, worked for God, had daily communion

Simple, pure, joyful; became a slave; endured trials and suffering; instructed by his father

In the countryside, simplicity, self-denial, studious, daily duties

Character qualities developed:

Helpful, hardworking, selfless, faithful, pleasant, steadfast in principle, patient

Calm, gentle, energetic, faithful in small things, cooperative

Joyful, courageous, faithful, persistent, a worshipper of God, reverent

Obedient, truthful, gentle, faithful, strong moral character

Supportive, faithful, steadfast; frank, accurate, and hopeful words; self-denial

Results:

Not my will, but God's be done

God honored, complete trust in God

Heart and mind strengthened

Protected, simplicity, and faithfulness to God

Knew how to reach men with truth in love

All were faithful to God and His calling, for God was to them a loving and personal God!

Written by Alane Waters. Translated by Dawerne Bazan with permission from Restoration International (http://www.restoration-international.org/).

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