My daughter Sarah, grandson Ruben, and I flew to Oklahoma City for Easter. We would be attending the Holy City of the Wichita Mountains Passion Play. It began in 1925 so this would be their 101st year. My best friend from college Diana was driving up from Texas to spend Easter with us at Elizabeth's home. That was the plan.
The flight from Atlanta was unremarkable. We actually landed a few minutes early. In pre-landing announcements the attendant announced there were storms in the area. Nothing unusual in that. Oklahoma is known for its storms. But all was about to change.
We loaded our things into Diana's car, excited about the visit. After we left the airport, the promised storm erupted--floods of rain, thunder vibrating, continual flashes of lightning that seemed as if a strobe light had been activated. Driving became more difficult for Elizabeth, our designated driver. Suddenly the sky in front of us lit with eerie green flashes. Immediately we were pelted with rain and wind and glass. We had driven directly into the path of a tornado! Our back window and back side window had blown in, I leaned over Ruben and Sarah covered both of us. Above the sound of the storm four adults were praying desperately. Elizabeth found an on ramp and drove down it, making it to a gas station as the tornado siren wailed. We brushed off glass as we sprinted for the station. The car and my luggage were wet and glass-filled. Every seat but one was filled with glass. You could see by the location of the glass fragments how the wind had swirled in the car.
I will not try to rehearse our emotions or raw nerves or every detail of the next few hours. I will tell you that God sent his ministering servants, from the convenience store workers who gave us tape and plastic to cover the windows, to the two men who helped my daughters cover the windows. One of them even drove home to get tape that he thought would hold the plastic better. My friend Diana brought me hot tea and gave me her jacket to cover my wet clothes. My sons-in-law from Atlanta, Georgia, and Fairbanks, Alaska, comforted their wives and tracked the storm for us.
When we finally headed for Elizabeth's again, the storms continued to batter, this time with rain so heavy that now the alerts were sounding for possible flooding. At 2:00 a.m. we pulled into Elizabeth and Bill's driveway in Cache.
When the insurance adjuster examined the car several days later, we were amazed. He totaled the car. The ceiling was slashed repeatedly, evidence of flying shards of glass. The upholstery also bore slashes, too much damage to repair.
But here is the miracle of April 3rd. Not one of the five in that car had a scratch or a cut. There was no blood. Obvious evidence of glass flying, but noone hurt.
Could God have kept us from the tornado? Could the storm have missed us completely? Absolutely. Instead He chose to say, "Look what I saved you from. Look what could have happened. I protect you all the time. This time I let you have a glimpse of what I protected you from." I heard Him loud and clear.
In the days since I have pondered His message. Isaiah 43:2 and 3a says "When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you. For I am the Lord, your God."
The night of April 3, 2026, He added, "When you go through the tornado, the wind will not hurt you, the glass will not cut you. I am the Lord and you are mine."
~~Faith Himes Lamb
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