Pastor's wife: 'I can’t imagine the sheer terror as she hung over the side of the bridge'

Dawn Reed

She reached out and took his hand.  She did not fall. She did not slip. She held fast to her rescuer.  When she put her life literally in his hands, he lifted her out of the dangerously perched semi to a safe place up on the bridge. ”

The pictures were terrifying.  A few weeks ago, half of a tractor trailer dangled over the side of the Clark Memorial Bridge which connects Kentucky to southern Indiana at Louisville.  Far below was the Ohio River.  Reporters flocked and spectators stared in horror as emergency workers rushed to the scene.

The driver, a woman, was still strapped in the front seat.  As the truck teetered, it looked at any moment the vehicle would tear free from the mangled bridge plunging her to her death.

Just when it seemed her life was ebbing away, a man named Bryce Carden, wrapped in a firefighter’s uniform and rope, came from above to save her.  He was her only hope.   

She reached out and took his hand.  She did not fall. She did not slip. She held fast to her rescuer.  When she put her life literally in his hands, he lifted her out of the dangerously perched semi to a safe place up on the bridge. 

I can’t imagine the sheer terror as she hung over the side of the bridge.  The driver was in trouble.  She had no hope.  She could not save herself.

It sounds straight out of Psalm 18.  David wrote, “The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me.  The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.  In my distress I called to the Lord; I cried to my God for help.  He reached down from on high and took hold of me. … He rescued me.”

The firefighter said the truck driver was praying when he got to her.  That’s a good idea in time of crisis and all other times.  We can always count on the Lord hearing us and coming to our aid.

The truck driver had a choice.  She could have said, “I’ve got this.  I’m fine.” But that would have been lying to herself.  She chose to reach out to the firefighter.  She wanted to be rescued.

God knew we were sinking in sin and needed a Rescuer, a Savior, so He sent One.  His name is Jesus.  He came down from above wrapped in flesh and bone.  Born in Bethlehem and laid in a manger, He was the Messiah who was first promised in the book of Genesis.  As an adult, He didn’t just risk his life, He gave His life for us.  If we will reach out to Him, He will save us.  He will forgive us of our sins, walk with us daily, and take us to heaven when we die. 

As Resurrection Day approaches, let us remember the sacrifice of the Savior.  We put our trust in many people and things, but there is only One who can rescue us from sin. 

The truck driver will never forget the day Bryce Carden rescued her.  I will never forget the day Jesus rescued me:  August 20, 1971.
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Dawn Reed is a pastor's wife and newspaper columnist. Reach her at preacherswife7@yahoo.com.