By Kayla DeKraker
Ruth Chou Simons is all too familiar with grief and trusting God in times of uncertainty.
Recently, the award-winning author opened up on actress Candace Cameron Bure’s podcast about a tragedy involving her then 18-year-old son that left her leaning on her faith in God.
“He went over the handlebars on this like mountain bike trail, landed on his head, cracked his very professional helmet,” she explained of her son’s four-wheeling accident.
As a mom of boys, Simons wasn’t too worried until an ER doctor explained the extent of her son’s injuries.
Related: ‘God Hates Death’: Candace Cameron Bure, Jennie Allen Share Hope in Suffering
“I’m on FaceTime, and he’s got all sorts of meds, so he’s looking fine or whatever. And the ER doctor comes, and he says, ‘We don’t even have the resources to deal with the kind of trauma he’s gone through. We have to send them to a bigger trauma unit. You guys need to get on the plane right now,’” she recalled.
Simons explained that multiple vertebrae in his spine were shattered and needed reconstruction.
“We were concerned if my son was going to walk,” she said. “And this was his freshman year of college.”
Coincidentally, Simons was writing a book during this time, and she believes God used this situation to teach her something.
“I ended up writing about it because I hadn’t finished completely this book that we’re talking about. And I thought, isn’t it like the Lord to give me firsthand experience with how to cast my anxieties on Him and know that I’m cared for, know that He loves my son more than I love my son, and whatever the outcome, that if I trust in the character of God, that God is loving, that God is kind, that He has purposes for all the ways in which He writes our stories, that I can take a deep breath and know I couldn’t even control anything.”
She explores anxiety more in her new book The Way of the Wildflower. In it, Simons “invites you to live like the flowers of the field through 30 gospel meditations covering five ways of the wildflower: Dependency, Freedom, Resilience, Unhurriedness, and Belovedness.” It’s inspired by Jesus’ words in Luke 12:25–28:
Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to your life? Since you cannot do this very little thing, why do you worry about the rest? “Consider how the wild flowers grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you, not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today, and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, how much more will he clothe you—you of little faith!
Now, over a year later, Simons’ son is well on his way to recovery.
“A year later, we’re praising God that he is continuing to improve, post spinal fusion surgery and complications. His story is not what we would’ve chosen but I’m continuing to learn to trust the Author — God who is sovereign,” she wrote on Instagram.
Simons and her son’s story reflect the beautiful truth about God found in Isaiah 61:3 that says He gives His people “a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.”
Read Next: Candace Cameron Bure and Trauma Therapist Talk Jesus, Emotions and Mental Health
Questions or comments? Please write to us here.
– Content: +1Share:
– Content: +4