"You had angel wings." I had never heard that expression used before, but I knew what she meant. While cycling downhill at a fairly high speed, I lost control of my bike, and crashed. The bike struck a metal reflector pole, while my body grazed it as I flipped and landed on my helmet covered head. For a fall of such magnitude I escaped with relatively few scrapes and bruises. The bike is another matter. When I told this story to a friend who works at a bike shop, she said, "You had angel wings."
In my gut I knew it could have ended quite differently. In actuality this was a near death experience, and for some reason God had preserved my life. I know a statement like that might be troubling to some, and I make it with a great deal of hesitation. I know that it sounds like God singled me out to have my life preserved, while there are others who may not have experienced the hand of God that way. I know of fellow cyclists whose lives were lost in crashes and car accidents. The whole question of why me and not others raises its head. Why I was spared the consequences of a broken imperfect world while others are not is a mystery. It is tempting to think that God has something great or special yet for me to do. I have spoken with some people who have interpreted their near death experiences that way. There are some who have used their near death experiences as a second chance at life. Tragically, I knew one person who was still wondering what great thing God had spared him for, while he died of cancer.
Whether God has something great for me yet to do, is up to God. I am still trying do what God has asked of me at this moment, and I am not egotistical enough to think that there is something far greater than what I am currently doing. Impacting lives for eternity is huge regardless of where one does it. Which brings us back to the reason God preserved my life.
It has been said that the problem with atheism is that you don't have anyone to thank. Thankfully I do.
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