Going Through the Fire
Developing a Faith that Perseveres
by
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During the day I am constantly around family or
hospital personnel. If I did not have
tremendous encouragement from both, I don’t know how I could continue. I focus on the people around me and my
spirits are generally upbeat. But
during the night, as I lie in my bed that rotates slowly, first to the right
and then to the left, I am alone. It is
quiet, with only the normal hospital background noises, but my mind is not
quiet. It is moving at a feverish
pitch. Unnamed feelings well up in
waves from deep within me, almost overcoming me with their power. Family has always been a top priority with
Marcia and me. Even before our first
child was born we committed that Marcia would be a stay-at-home mom. My family eats breakfast and dinner together
nearly every morning and evening. I
coach most of my sons’ sports teams.
Marcia and I are counselors at our children’s camps every summer and
winter. We have invested our lives
building a strong family. It has paid
big dividends. Our children are doing
well with their peers, with us and with God.
A bowling ball has now smashed my family. Marcia and I have been taken out with one blow. My children will be subject to the
whirlwinds that follow. All I have
built has been taken and crushed. There
are no words to express my pain. No
words.
“How could
this have happened?” The question
reverberates in my mind. It is directed
at God, but I don't formally address it to Him. My family’s ministries had really come together...my law practice,
Marcia and Alana in counseling kids at church, our work with the youth and many
other areas. I really thought we were
making a difference in the lives of people.
In the blink of an eye it is all gone.
In my mind I know God is in control, but I don't understand. I feel a great emptiness toward God. I have lots of time to pray, but I look the
other way. I know thousands of people
all across the country are praying for us and I am thankful. Still, it will be many months before I am
able to seek God in my time alone.
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About the Book
Going Through
The Fire is
an amazing account of one man’s faith--faith in his family, faith in his friends
and faith in God.
Going Through The Fire is also a love story. It will inspire you to love your spouse and
children more and to love God more.
Every word that David Treat has written caused me to
examine my own life.
Could I be doing more as a husband and father?
Could I be spending more time with my wife and
children?
Could I hug more, laugh more, play more?
As a child of God, could I be in higher service to
humanity?
While David’s accident may have been tragic, his
re-telling of the events since 1993 is a triumph.
Going Through
The Fire
will enhance your faith in your family and friends; empower you to believe in
yourself even more; and be in high celebration of the Glory of God!
I encourage all of our sixty-five million readers of Chicken Soup For The Soul to read Going Through The Fire and to give at
least one copy to someone they love.
Barry Spilchuk
Co-author: A Cup Of Chicken Soup For The Soul
Founder “Let’s Talk--”
About the Author
David Treat is a native of Phoenix, Arizona where he
and his wife of 31 years, Marcia, have raised their four children. He graduated from law school at the
University of Arizona in 1977. In 1993
his family was involved in a serious auto accident leaving him a quadriplegic
on a vent and his wife with a very significant brain injury. David’s physical, emotional and spiritual
journey following this accident provides the backdrop for Going Through The Fire,
Developing A Faith That Perseveres.