I Could Sing of Your Love Forever

I knew it was going to be a good day at church when we walked in and the band was starting to sing I Could Sing of Your Love Forever. I should rephrase that. Every day is a good day at this church and we leave feeling like we can take on the world. They did a cute Blessing of the Backpacks today too. The kids (and a few adults) went to the front with their backpacks and we all prayed together for a great school year.

Back to my original thought. In November 1998, Leslie and I were driving to Lufkin to go shopping in my red Pontiac Grand Am. It was raining and I was getting a little freaked out. We were almost to our exit and then my world changed forever. I hit a puddle of water and lost control of my car. The car started spinning and I could see the world going by in slow motion. I know I saw the "light." The car stopped when we hit a guard rail and rolled over it several times. My car landed on its side with Leslie hanging over me, held in by her seat belt.

Here's how I know God was riding with us that day. While we were spinning, there were no other cars were in our path. We hit a metal guard rail which was only about 10-15 feet away from the concrete barrier. The metal gave while my car rolled, the concrete would not have been so gracious. Leslie and I were able to crawl out the back window of my car. Most of the windows were broken and glass was everywhere. We didnt' have a scratch on us, just very shaken up. My car was toast however. Another blessing was that it was just the two of us and no one was in the back seat where seat belts were optional. I know these things weren't due to luck. God decided to keep us safe and that it wasn't our time to go.

The cops were not very nice to 2 college girls who almost died. We had called my mom and she was on her way, but 2 hours away. Well I tried to call my mom but couldn't talk so Leslie told her what happened. Lufkin is about 20 miles from Nacogdoches and they refused to drive us back to town. There we were stranded in Lufkin. After giving me a nice ticket for failure to control speed and joking with us about the roller coaster ride we just endured, they were kind enough to drive us to the police station in the back of the cruiser. We waited in the Lufkin police station until we could get a hold of our friend Connie to come pick us up.

That Sunday we went to church. They played I Could Sing of Your Love Forever and for whatever reason it got to both of us. I rememember crying in church and just remembering how God protected us during this accident.

So that is the story of how this became one of my favorite songs.

Over the mountains and the sea,
Your river runs with love for me,
and I will open up my heart
and let the Healer set me free.
I'm happy to be in the truth,
and I will daily lift my hands:
for I will always sing of when
Your love came down. [Yeah!]

I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever,
I could sing of Your love forever. [Repeat]

Oh, I feel like dancing -
it's foolishness I know;
but, when the world has seen the light,
they will dance with joy,
like we're dancing now.

Written by Martin Smith ©1994