By Joelle Akiki Barkanian

Aug. 4 was a day like none other in Beirut, Lebanon.

6:08 p.m. was a time that I won’t soon forgot.

I had just finished cleaning our home in preparation to welcome friends whom we haven’t seen for some time because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

My eldest son, 7-year-old James, was so excited that he prepared a welcome picture and hung it on the door for when the guests arrived on the campus of the Seventh-day Adventist Church’s Middle East University, where I work as a business teacher.

“Welcome,” read the picture, which included three hand-drawn faces, three hearts, and a red-and-yellow sticker of a star in the corner.

I noticed that the trash still needed to be collected and, picking up a trash bag, went around the rooms. As I reached the door to throw out the bag, the whole house suddenly shook like never before. I turned my eyes toward the window to see what was happening and saw James staring out the sliding glass door to the balcony, also wondering what was going on.

“Move away from the glass!” I shouted.

I barely finished speaking when a second explosion caused the double-glassed door to shatter and crash down on James.

My other two children, 4-year-old Peter and 2-year-old Katelyn, started shrieking. Reaching under the broken glass, my husband lifted James up by the shoulder and ran with him outside the house.

From what I saw in that split moment, I knew that James could not have survived. I raced outside and held James tightly in my arms for a few minutes, assuming that he was gone. I was in complete shock, crying, and hearing nothing but a high-pitched ring in my ears. Then my husband’s voice broke through.

“James is fine,” he repeated over and over. “He is safe in your arms.”

On Aug. 4 at 6:08 p.m., God sent angels to protect my son from the glass. James was barefoot and wearing shorts and a T-shirt, yet he did not suffer a single scratch. Angels shielded him. “For He will command His angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways” (Psalm 91:11; NIV).

That night, James prayed a special prayer before going to bed.

“Dear Jesus,” he said, “please bless this day and every day. And please don’t let this thing that happened with the glass ever happen again. And help us to be safe. Stay with us. Amen.”

My son’s prayer makes my heart ache for the soon return of Jesus. Our eyes should always be focused on the Almighty, for in Him alone do we find peace and shelter.

The next day, after I finished cleaning up the mess, I removed the welcome picture from the door. I will treasure it always. Sometimes, we focus on the big things and forget how our plans could change in seconds, our dreams could shatter, and our loved ones could be lost. We need to be ready for the Lord’s return at every minute of every day. Until then, let’s pray, listen to God’s voice, watch, and be sober.

Listen to 7-year-old James pray the night after the explosion in Beirut, Lebanon, on Aug. 4, 2020. (Family recording / Adventist Mission)