"When you pass through the waters,
I will be with you;
and when you pass through the rivers,
they will not sweep over you...
For I am the LORD, your God" ~ Isaiah 43:2
This passage of scripture become even more dear to my heart this past Saturday while participating in my first white water rafting experience.
"Today the waters are higher and faster than they have been all year. Who in this group still wants to go?" says the guide at the beginning of his safety talk.
"No really...I'm serious, who still wants to go?"
Needless to say all 28 of us rafters, regardless of our internalized fears yet without much hesitation, surprisingly conceded to the challenge. I was not familiar with the conflicting emotions that arose on that 20 minute drive up stream before we entered the roaring rapids...such complete panic overidden by extreme excitement as I anticipated the invigorating ride back down stream.
The picture above shows our first introduction with the real white water. At this particular point everyone in the back of the raft was whipped forward and everyone in the front of the raft was whipped back. This is when it happened....The helmet covered head of the guy in front of me smashed into my mouth knocking the uppper part of my body back and putting me into a daze of mere darkness. I was knocked out for a few moments when I felt someone helping me back into an upright position and heard the guide frantically trying to get the raft to calm waters and over to the bank of the river.
Next was the taste of blood filling my mouth and although I was still half way distraught my first thought was..."Do I have all my teeth?"
Thank God...no teeth missing but it did take a while for the bleeding to stop. I rinsed with the cold water from the river and applied pressure until we were certain I was not going to bleed to death. The rafting crew was anxious and needing to get back on the rapids. They gave me the option to get out there or continue on. Like a real trooper I voted to continue on...we still had at least another hour and a half of water to plow through and besides by this time I wasn't hurting only still dazed and numb, yet feeling my lip getting larger and larger by the moment.
We completed the float, experiencing some rapids that were close to Class V waters. After surveying the damage once on dry land I decided the wound needed to be looked at by a professional so by 7:00pm that evening I was at an urgent care clinic in Fort Collins getting the inside of my lip stiched up and for 4 days I sort of had that Angelina Joe Lee look going on.
All in all I finished the exciting trip and can confidently say I'd do it all over again regardless of the busted lip. It was incredible! Out of all 28 rafters in 4 or 5 rafts no one got dumped out...The Lord truly was with us as we passed through the waters and He faithfully kept the river from sweeping us over! Thank you God!
Watch this incredibly touching service from Hillside and be blessed!
