When You Walk Through the Fire...

The smoke as it rose over our house in the hours before we evacuated.

...you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you. For I am the Lord your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. Isaiah 43:2

Even though a month has gone by since the events of that day, I am still processing through some of the feelings and experiences of it all. Underneath the fear and sorrow, I am struck again by how faithful God was to us. His presence gave us peace. He graciously provided for our every need. And He continues to use the whole experience to remind us what really matters and how carefully He holds our lives in His hands.

We first saw the Waldo Canon Fire when the kids and I were out shopping on Saturday. By late afternoon, some mandatory evacuation orders had been made. Andy's parent's home is in the upper portion of Mountain Shadows. It was not yet under mandatory evacuation, but the streets nearby were. Since his mom had recently had surgery and was still on oxygen, we felt like it would be best to get them packed up and moved while there was plenty of time. We ended up going with them to my parent's house where we spent the night.

On Sunday things seemed about the same, and they chose to go home. We also returned to our home which is a just a couple of miles east of theirs (and thus farther from the fire.) We spent a couple of nervous days watching the news and talking with them about what they should do.

Tuesday morning Andy went to work and I ran an errand (leaving some of my kids home!) When I got home, I spoke with Andy's parents and expressed my concern that things looked worse. Just after four o'clock the fire came over the ridge near their house. The evacuation order became urgent for them and mandatory for us. I didn't have time to get up there to help them and busied myself getting our essentials together and getting the kids out the door. I was frantic. I was praying aloud and trying to think clearly. I went up in our study which is the highest room in our house and glanced out the window. I could clearly see the fire racing down the foothills towards my mother and father in law's neighborhood.  We got in the car and drove to my parent's house. Sometime along the way we spoke with Andy and he was able to reach his parents. They had gotten into their car and headed down the hill with fire literally on their heels. They headed north to the home of some friends. When Andy arrived at my parent's house, we decided the air quality there was poor enough that we should go further out. We ended up at my sister's house in Peyton. It was just a blessing to be there. It was far enough away that it gave all of us a feeling of safety and we couldn't have had a more comfortable place to stay. My niece and her family were also there, so it was a houseful. They were so gracious and we felt the peace of the Lord as our extended family ministered to us.

We assumed Andy's parent's  house was gone and wondered about ours through the night. But on Wednesday morning we got word that both their house and ours were spared. They were not able to return for several weeks, and what a sight awaited them! Many of their neighbors lost their homes. The beautiful ravine across the street from their home is completely black. Yet their house didn't even smell smoky. God was so gracious to them and we are so thankful. His mom continues to struggle with her health, so we are so glad they didn't have to add the stress of rebuilding. Our house was fine as well. Just a fine layer of soot on everything.

God really protected the kid's hearts through it all. I was amazed at how well they all handled it. I realized that Joshua was most concerned that we would have enough to eat. I went to the store and stocked us up on some of his favorites and that really helped him to feel safe. Isaac and Moriah seemed comforted to know that we were all together and that we would take care of them whether we were at home or somewhere else. Each of them had a lot of trauma in their early lives, so I was amazed at how calm they remained. God was so gracious. It helped that my sister's house is out in the country and there are lots of fun things to do and places to explore. The older kids talked a lot about what they would miss if we lost everything, but continued to rest in the Lord's sovereignty and to be thankful that we were all together. They were a real example to me!

It is hard to see our familiar places so changed. The blackened mountain is never far from view and reminds us daily of all that happened. It reminds us of our dependency on God for our safety and our very breath. Cleanup and rebuilding have already begun up there. Our prayers continue for those who lost so much.

We were so thankful to get back into our house and get re-settled because we knew in just two weeks we would face yet another big event for our family.