In 2015, I was in a car accident that changed my life forever. It wasn't that the accident was horrible or anything, but it was the lessons learned from the accident that changed my life.
On April 30, 2015, my mom and I went car shopping for my very first car. I had waited so long for this day and I was so excited because I had worked hard to earn money to pay for my first car all by myself. I had been car shopping several times just to see which car I felt the most comfortable in. I finally had it narrowed down to a Buick LaCrosse, Chevy Malibu, and a Chevy Cruz. So, on April 30th, my mom and I decided that I was finally ready to make a decision between these three cars.
We went to the dealership and the car salesman allowed me to drive a Chevy Cruz, and I fell in love. However, my mom wasn't so thrilled. Maybe it was because of how she saw how easily I picked up speed, or maybe it was how little space was in the car, I don't know, but she did not have a good feeling about it.
To try and convince her that this was the perfect car for me, the salesman suggested she take it for a drive. She honestly had no desire to, but she hopped in the driver's seat anyway. The car was parked right beside the sidewalk with a huge truck parked on the sidewalk for display. When mom started the car and tried to ease out of the parking spot, she hit the curb. Afraid that she actually hit the truck, she turned around to see what she hit. Instead of putting her foot on the break, she accidentally hit the gas and we slammed into a brand new Chevy Silverado. You can probably just picture the embarrassment.
I was sitting in the front passenger seat and the salesman was sitting in the backseat on the driver's side. He nor my mom were hurt, but I, on the other hand, had major pain in my right knee. When I stepped out of the car, I realized I couldn't walk. The salesman called the paramedics immediately. When they arrived, they cut my jeans up to my knee and took off my shoe to get a better look. When they looked at my foot, they asked me if my foot always looked like that. I looked down and noticed that my foot was crooked from the middle of my foot to my toes. The paramedics loaded me into the ambulance and started towards the hospital.
When we arrived at the hospital, there were about five different doctors who looked at my foot and about 8 doctors in training there observing. The conclusion of the injury was a mid-foot dislocation without fracture, which isn't good. I was told that I hit my knee so hard on the dashboard, that it knocked my foot out of place without breaking it. I was told it would be easier to fix if I had broken it. They performed a closed reduction on my foot and sent me home.
My foot dislocated about 10 more times between April of 2015 and February of 2016. I visited about 5 different doctors to try to decide the best solution for the foot and got 5 different answers from each one. It took a lot of prayer and faith to finally choose the doctor and the best method of treatment. It was decided that I would be having surgery on March 11, 2016 to replace a tendon and put two temporary screws in to hold my foot in place. I wouldn't be walking for 6 weeks, but that shouldn't be a problem.
About two weeks before my scheduled surgery, my mom and I were in another car accident. We were sitting at a red light and the light turned green and we started go. When we started, another lady came flying through her red light and swiped the front of our car. She decided it was not necessary to stop and carried on to her eye doctor appointment. Thankfully, we had two witnesses. One followed the lady and got her tag number and the other stayed with us while we waited on the police to arrive.
Unfortunately, my foot dislocated again in that wreck and I also endured a broken hand. On March 11, 2016, I had foot surgery. Things went as planned. The tendon was replaced and two screws were placed in my foot. The plan was for the two screws to be removed at my 6 week check-up and to then begin physical therapy and start walking. Unfortunately, things don't always go as planned.
At my 6 week check-up, I had too much spasticity in my foot and the muscle was still trying to pull my foot inwards, as it did before surgery. The doctor was afraid that if we removed the screws too soon, that the foot would fall back out of place. So, the screws had to stay in at least 4 more weeks and I was told I could not walk until those came out.
Two weeks later, I noticed a bump pop up on the back of my foot. It was causing a lot of pain and I was afraid to think about what it might be. My mom took me to the E.R. where I was taken straight back for x-rays. When the E.R. doctor came in, he was in disbelief as he told me one of the screws had come loose and fallen to the back of my foot. The screw was trying it's best to push its way through the back of my heel. I wanted to cry. Not only was I in pain, but I had been in a wheelchair for 8 weeks and it just didn't seem like anything was going right.
Since it was a Friday night, the E.R. doctor called my doctor to find out what needed to be done. My orthopedist ordered the E.R. to send me home because of the fear that my foot would come out of place again if the screw was taken out.
The following Monday, I went to the doctor where he removed the one screw. He observed my foot and still felt that there was too much spasticity in it for the other screw to be removed. Therefore, I still could not put weight on my foot.
The check-ups were the same over the next 12 weeks. On week 16, I had a Botox injection put into my foot that was supposed to loosen the muscle so that I could obtain movement again. On recovery week 19, another knot popped up on my foot and I knew exactly what it was. We went to the doctor and sure enough, the second screw was trying to work its way out of the top of my foot. Due to the position of the screw, I was informed that it was going to have to be removed surgically. At this same appointment, my doctor was giving up hope that this surgery had fixed my foot. He told us after the screw was removed, we would look at a plan B to get my foot moving again. At the moment, my foot had zero range of motion and he told us he had no explanation for it. It was just a unique injury.
I left that appointment with little to no hope. There were several days that I would just cry because at that time, I didn't know if I would ever walk again. It seemed like everything that could go wrong, did. It seemed like I couldn't get anyone to understand my frustration and my broken heart. Sure, it's just a foot. But try telling that to someone who hasn't walked in 6 months.
On recovery week 20, I had surgery to remove the second screw. It had been 4 weeks since the Botox injection and I still had zero movement which wasn't a good sign. After surgery, the doctor told us he would see us back in two weeks to see how my progress was and discuss the next plan. Due to limited movement, he told me to continue being non-weight bearing.
Over the next two weeks, I had several people tell me they were praying for me, and I thanked them and just hoped that God would change things. I had become comfortable in living this life with the expectancy of bad news from each doctor's appointment. My faith had shrunk and my hope was gone. I noticed myself becoming more frustrated with people, and I found it even harder to praise God even in the storm. Finally, one day, I just said a prayer and asked God to show me His plan and if He was going to use this to touch others, then it will be worth it. I had to die to my own desires to submit to His. Ultimately, He had a bigger plan for my life that I couldn't see. I was more worried about my agenda than His.
The day before my appointment, two sweet ladies who are amazing prayer warriors, asked me about my foot. I told them that I had an appointment the next day and could really use prayers for guidance for my doctor to be guided in the next plan. Instead of shrugging it off like it was nothing, they laid hands on my foot right there and prayed a prayer that sent chill bumps up and down my arms. I could feel the Spirit of God touch me right there.
James 5:14 says, "Is anyone among you sick? Let them call the elders of the church to pray over them and anoint them with oil in the name of the Lord."
God's Word doesn't tell us to do anything unless there's a good reason behind it. Our elders have lived this life a lot longer than we have and they have wisdom we haven't yet touched. They've been fighting spiritual battles throughout their lifetime, and I believe they really bend the Lord's ear when they have a request. They are our saints. And when we're sick, or in pain, we can't think as clearly as someone who is well and wise.
Anyway, the next day, I went into my appointment expecting my doctor to suggest another surgery or something. But when he started trying to move my foot, his eyes grew wide in shock of what he was seeing. I had movement in my foot! After 6 long months of no movement and no walking, my foot suddenly gained movement! He looked at me and admitted he had no explanation for what was happening. He told me he wanted me to start walking and start physical therapy immediately so that it could continue to strengthen.
God worked yet another miracle in my life, and I'm so ashamed that I ever doubted Him. After all, I wasn't even supposed to be here today, but He intervened then, so what made me think He couldn't intervene now? After this, my faith began to grow. I started reading my Bible even more and I fell in love with The Lord all over again.
Two days after I was told I could walk again, I was in another car accident. While I'm sure the enemy meant for that to discourage me and make me turn away from God, I instead turned towards God.
Now that I'm walking again, I need to obey the orders of the doctor and exercise my foot in order for it to strengthen so that my walking will become more secure. If I don't, my foot will weaken and it is likely it could come out of place again. I have no desire to revisit that place of pain.
In the same way, in order for my faith to grow, I must stay in God's Word and obey His commands. By doing this, my spiritual walk with The Lord will grow more secure. His Word will be hidden in my heart so that when the enemy does attack, I will be ready next time. If I don't put effort into strengthening my walk with The Lord, my faith will become weak. And once again, I have no desire to revisit that place of uncertainty and pain. Just like I enjoy being able to walk physically, I enjoy walking this walk with The Lord. I enjoy knowing that He is here for me and knowing that He holds my future in His hands. He never left me, He never forsakes me, He has loved me, healed me, and made me new.
