A few minutes later, I was able to get in to see Ren\u00e9e in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). I don\u2019t know what I was expecting, but what I saw and heard was beyond reason. Ren\u00e9e looked tired and frazzled, but as soon as she saw me, she smiled and\u00a0that smile radiated to my very soul. When I got to her bedside, she looked up at me, and with a slight grin and a twinkle in her tired eyes, she whispered, \u201cWell honey, at least we\u2019ll get the good parking spots.\u201d And with that we both laughed. At that moment, I realized that even if Ren\u00e9e\u2019s body was broken, as long as her mind, her wit and her sense of humor were still intact, we had a chance to make this work.\u00a0<\/p>\n
God answered my prayers and kept Ren\u00e9e in this world until I could get to the hospital but better than that, He gave her the strength to encourage me.\u00a0\u00a0At that moment, I had an unbelievable sense of comfort.\u00a0 I knew that she was going to be okay.\u00a0 I didn\u2019t really understand what \u201cokay\u201d meant anymore, but the Holy Spirit gave me a sense of peace. Blind faith.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And so began our road of taking one day and even one minute at a time allowing us to maneuver through the obstacle course of this new life. Even though I knew the road ahead was going to be bumpy and full of tremendous challenge, Ren\u00e9e\u2019s smile and sense of humor gave me the encouragement to embrace each day. I began to pray more earnestly and started my daily dialog with God. \u201cOur\u201d injury challenged my faith and in kind of a silly way, I realized that the Lord had answered my simple prayer. He\u2019d kept Ren\u00e9e alive, so I continued to ask Him to watch over her and keep her safe.\u00a0 The weeks that followed were a blur. Late nights at the hospital, surgery to fuse the broken neck, prayer services with our local community and church, adjusting to my new job back in California and all while learning the world of quadriplegia \u2013 transferring her from the bed to wheelchair, bladder\/bowel issues and what to do when she became faint. During this entire time, I continued with my long conversations with God, expanding my prayers beyond just Ren\u00e9e to now asking for protection on both of us, praying for Our Lord\u2019s protection over us as a couple. Each<\/em> time I prayed, I received peace, knowing we were being carried and protected. Every<\/em> time, I received an inner peace. Our future was not clear, but our being together was certain. Through it all, we both struggled emotionally but we also laughed and prayed together. Several months later, we set a new wedding date for October 1989.<\/p>\n There is no question about it \u2013 following your heart is sometimes the toughest thing to do, but when we take a chance, covering it in constant prayer to Jesus, it opens us up to the most remarkable and rewarding experiences of our lives. The years that followed have included heartache, tears, pain and hardship\u2026but they have also been filled with more laughter, joy, peace and happiness than most people see in their lives. We are the most fortunate couple I know and our love for one another, since it is coupled with our faith in a very trustworthy God, is deeper and wider than anything that could have been. We are blessed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" My mind was a blur. Less than two hours earlier, I\u2019d been told that my fianc\u00e9e was in critical condition and might not survive. Now I was on a flight from Denver to Los Angeles racing to get to her … Continue reading ![\"Renee](\"https:\/\/www.reneebondi.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/06\/Renee-in-pain-at-the-hospital-Cropped.jpg\")
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