The name of the LORD is a fortified tower; the righteous run to it and are safe. Proverbs 18:10 (NIV)

When my wife and I were first married, we spent one Christmas with our extended family that lived across the country. After the holidays, we headed home to Minnesota pulling a trailer on the back of our car. It was loaded up with furniture.

Staring at the snowflakes just ahead of the headlights only worsened my fight to stay awake as we drove through the barren hilly landscape. I could tell it was getting colder as we drove late into the night. We were both tired and looking forward to sleeping in our own warm bed.

I was unprepared for what lay ahead of us as we crested a steep hill. The pavement on the backside of the hill had been frosted over by a north wind. The car immediately went into a spin, and panic swept over us. The car spun first to the right and then to the left. I could feel the weight of the trailer violently jerking us back and forth. At one point the nose of the car slid just over the shoulder. I imagined we would slide off the road and down the steep embankment. This hill was etched into my memory from previous trips and even though I couldn’t see over the edge, I remembered the bottom was several hundred feet down.

The second we went into the skid, I started praying asking God to spare my young bride and me. Miraculously, the car slowed down. As we neared the bottom of the hill, both the car and trailer were pointing straight down the road in the right direction! The only explanation I have to offer is God’s protection in answer to my prayer.

One of the greatest promises that God has made to the believer is for protection. Thank him today that we can find protection in him.