Sherry was sitting at the back of an old microbus after spending a long day going from home to home, checking on the progress of orphaned children in Samalout, and delivering free health insurance cards to children. The cards gave each child rare coverage for high quality medical care.
She had cards for 250 more children in the bag she held tightly on her lap against the bustle of passengers stacked together—unbuckled—throughout the bus.
Just before they crossed over to Mallawi, the bus’s brakes screeched. It hit the car ahead with a crunch and a jerk. Passengers slammed backwards and piled into Sherry as she felt the bus swing around. Their weight became crushing as the front of the bus tilted wildly. She knew they were falling in the Nile.
They hit the Nile with a smack. Glass shattered and poured into the bus with cascades of water.
She prayed and reminded herself that God is in control – the God of Jonah is her God, too. With that, she closed her eyes.
Men pulled Sherry out the window of the bus, and she emerged without broken bones or major injuries. Only the tenderness of minor bruises reminding her of God’s tender care days later.
But the story doesn’t end here.
Two weeks later, the police called. They found a plastic envelope that had her name on it. The envelope had the precious health insurance cards for Not Alone program participants in her area.
“Because I am serving God’s children, He rescued me from drowning. And because Coptic Orphans’ children are His own, He returned their health insurance cards safely – 15 days later, and from the bottom of the Nile.” She said.
Accidents happen all the time in Egypt: one of the many dangers our staff brave daily. Yet for us, this was no mere accident. It was proof of God’s loving protection.
When laboring for God, we know we’re in good hands. May our Father richly reward you for caring for the fatherless and the widow.