When nothing else matters....

This afternoon Bryan and I were driving to my uncle's funeral when we drove up on a really terrible accident. A black SUV was laying upside down in the middle of the highway. It had just happened. There were no cops or EMTs or anything. So, we decided to get out and see if there was anything we could do to help. As we walked up I noticed little girl shoes, french fries, blankets, broken car seats, water bottles, and glass laying all around the car. Apparently when the SUV landed everything flew out of the shattered windows. When I saw those little girl shoes, my heart nearly broke. As we walked behind the SUV we saw a dad on his knees holding his 2 small children, probably around ages 2 and 4. They were safe. The dad had a banged up elbow but overall, they looked just fine. After seeing the SUV and all that laid around it, I couldn't believe they had gotten out of there. It was truly a miracle at that all 3 of them were unharmed for the most part.

There wasn't much we could do to help. All I did was pray. But, that was enough. As I stood there praising my God for protecting these children and their father, I noticed the crowd that gathered around. No police or first responders were present yet but concerned citizens lined the edge of the highway. The look on every face was the same.  A little bit of fear and a whole lot of relief that those babies were ok. I looked around and saw people of every race and all different ages. Suddenly, we were all just humans. We were all just people. None of the differences that plague our nation mattered in that moment. People that would normally disagree and call each other names, stood there for the same reason, with the same compassion. 

When it came down to it, none of the cultural, economic, racial, social, or political differences mattered anymore. No one in the crowd knew the man or his children but everyone there cared deeply for them in that moment. I won't even tell you what race the family was, because it didn't matter one bit.  It didn't matter anymore because that's not who God created us to be. He never intended for us to spend our lives hating each other, even if the other "side" has it all wrong. He created us to love one another and that is what I witnessed today.

Today I am grateful that those sweet children and their daddy were safe. I truly believe God's angels must have been protecting them. I am also thankful for the glimpse of Heaven I saw today. People of every race, gender, and age, standing together without any anger or prejudices. God's children just caring for one another. Love winning. 

That's the way it will be in Heaven and that's what God wants for us now. Every life matters. And when "real life" happens like it did today, I think deep down we all know that.