Today, I was studying in John 11:1-42 about when Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead. This amazing account really hit home to me. For I also have had a near death experience. A drowning incident that happen to me on February 28, 2008 while mowing the Broward Church lawn.

It was a Friday about 6:30PM and I was finishing up what as much as I could do for my lawn team, who was scheduled to be there the next day in my absence. Seat-belted in the commercial green Zero-Turn John Deer riding tractor lawn mower, I was making the final precarious cut around the lake is in front of the building. This cut is always precarious because you want to do a good job by cutting as close to edge a possible. But, not too close as you do not want to go into the lake. This is what I was doing when it happened. The ground gave way and the back tires of the mower slid down into the lake. The engine was still running at full speed and I thought, “ I am in the lake! I should not be in the lake. I am going to drive this mower out of here.” Then I cried out to God, “God please help me!’ and pushed both steering handles forward.

The next thing I remember is looking at and feeling with my feet, the sand on the bottom of the lake, that was now in front of my head. I realized that I was upside down, hanging by my seatbelt under the tractor, submerged and pinned to the bottom if the lake. Apparently, when I pushed the steering handles forward, trying to drive out, the front tires of the mower hit the bank and flipped the mower over my head. The roll bar behind my seat saved me from being crushed by the mower, but it ended up launching me out into a deeper part of the lake.

After fully realizing I was upside-down,  seat-belted to this lawn mower that was now sitting at the bottom of the lake, I tried my best to find the seat-belt release switch which was somewhere on my left side. Perhaps, because I was hanging from the seatbelt, I could not find the release button! So, I tried to push the lawn mower over on its side. Putting my feet on the ground and pushing with all my might with my legs against the sandy bottom, the mower did not budge. I quickly realized that this was a waist of energy against the some 900 pound weight of the mower.

It soon became apparent that I was going to need some air. So, I stretched myself out, as much as my seatbelt restrains would allow, trying to reach the surface of the water. Only to find the surface of the water within inches of my face! I thought, “Oh, this is not good!” So I took my hand and splashed it down in front of my face while screaming, “Help! Help!” But then is hit me and I submerged back under the tractor thinking…”Nobody knows I am here.” “Nobody saw me go into the lake.” “Nobody is at the church building at this time, I am here all alone…this is how I am going to die.”

It was what you would call the ultimate surrender. When you know there is nothing you can do to stop the wheels that have been put in motion. I was completely at peace, as I thought about and started praying for the person who was going to find me, dead and bloated, strapped to this lawn mower. I remember looking around the blurry murky water thinking, “Well, at least I don’t have to wonder any more how I am going to die.” Then with one last involuntary urge to breath, took in a lung full of water and everything went totally black and silent as I passed out.

The next thing I hear is this voice urgently saying, “Sir, open your eyes. Open your eyes, sir.” Then when I opened my eyes, this voice said, “Look at me!” I looked at him and he said, “Oh, you’re going to be okay.” But that is not what I was feeling. I did not feel okay. I felt like I had the worst hangover in my life. My head was pounding and I had no idea what had just happened or why I was coughing up all this water. I had no recall of what had happened, until I saw the police car and ambulance and said, “Did someone get hurt, do you need some help?” And the paramedic said to me, “Sir, you had an accident on the lawn mower and you fell into the lake!”

I freaked out! And exclaimed, “You mean I am still alive!” “How am I still alive?!” “Who saved me?” They had to settle me while they put my head in a brace and put a board under my body. I was looking around trying to figure out what happened but they needed me to be still as they cut off my clothes. Even in the ambulance the paramedic said, “Sir, you are going to feel a prick now, as I am going to start an IV.” I said, “Yes, I want to feel a prick! I should be dead! Please prick both arms!” All the way to the hospital I am asking if they have any idea how I am still alive. No one knew anything. 

At the hospital emergency room my wife, Cheryl arrives with a kiss. After a short exchange, I ask her, “Honey, how am I still alive?” She says to me, “What, you haven’t heard?!” I said, “No baby, I have been too busy drowning.” Then she said, “The horses saved you,” and told me what she herd.

You see the Broward Church is located at 9191 Orange Drive in Davie, Florida. Davie is a big horse town with a lot of horse owners and stables. Right next to the Church lake are some paddocks the neighbors rent out to horse owners. There where three horses in those paddocks that unforgettable day. Two beautiful brown horses and a beautiful white Arabian female mare named Rasha. 

Rasha’s owner, Mary, was there watching her horse eat her bucket of oats. It appears when the lawn mower flipped over into the lake, the other horses started going crazy. Neighing and bucking and carrying on. Mary told me, “Richard, I have had Rasha for over twenty years. I have seen dogs come up to her bark and nip at her legs while she is eating. Nothing has ever distracted her from her eating her oats. But, when she reared up from her half eaten bucket of oats, ran out and started going crazy with the other horses. I had to see what was happening. So I went around the pen to investigate.” She said, “That is when I heard your cry for help and I saw the mower upside down in the lake.”

Mary being physically unable to do very much, immediately called over to her friend and neighbor next door, Ron. From across the fence she screamed, “Ron, get over here someone just had an accident on a lawn mower and fell into the lake!”

(Ron told me he has not been home at that hour of the afternoon in years. He works as an architect till 9 or 10 pm every night. He happened to have a dinner engagement with his daughter that evening.) Ron, promptly ran and jumped over the fence and they both headed to the edge of the lake where my John Deer hat was floating in the calm water. “Maybe he got out,” Mary said. Ron said, “No, Mary he is under the tractor!” Then he threw his cell phone on the bank and splashed down into the water toward the tractor. He then proceeded to try and pull my unconscious blue body out from under the lawn mower, not realizing I was seat-belted in. (I now know why my left shoulder was so sore while I was in the hospital.) When that did not work, he pushed with all his might and was able to get enough leverage from the roll bar to push the tractor over on its side. Lifting my head up out of the water, he spotted the seatbelt release button. “Thank God it was red,” he later told me. After pushing the release button, Ron began to drag my 260 pounds of dead weight body to the shore.

“Mary, I need some help!” Ron cried. Meanwhile, Mary is franticly trying to flag someone down from the Orange Drive road in front of the church. And who does God put there? But an off duty police officer, Al and his daughter Jackie coming from Bandford Park. “Dad, stop! This woman needs some help!” Jackie says, spotting Mary’s heroic actions. Al jumps out of the car and runs down to Ron while Jackie is consoling Mary who was understandably upset.  Both Al and Ron start to roll my blue unconscious body up the bank of the lake. At some point they tried to pick me up by my hands and feet, but I slipped out and fell on the ground. This helped knock a lot of water out of my lungs and I started coughing and breathing on my own without CPR.

Al’s voice was the next thing I heard. “Sir, open your eyes. Open your eyes, sir.” I will never forget those words or the next words he said, “Sir, look at me.” And when I looked at him, his words, “Oh, you’re going to be okay.” And as I said before I sure did not feel okay.

Understandable, I call Mary, Ron and Al my heroes. I do my best to call them on the phone, every 28th of the month and thank them all for pulling me out of that lake. After being released from the hospital for possible pulmonary edema, I was granted the opportunity to give the message the next Sunday at church and introduce my heroes to my church family. My message was called “Close to the Edge.” Every visit to the church building for some time after that, I would first stop at Whole Foods and pick up a few organic carrots and apples to feed and thank my now most favorite life saving animals, the horses. The saddest part is Rasha died just weeks after this happened due to a possible head injury. We were devastated for Mary. But, I know I will see her again in heaven.

Open Your Eyes

John 11:1-42; RLB 8/21/23

When the light fades too black, at the curtains final fall.

You know it will mean our final act, life’s physical last call.

Yes, everything will change, in the twinkling of an eye.

Life’s music will slowly fade, as we say our last goodbye.

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But, what will happen next? Well, that does all depend,

On relationships we’ve had, and who’s our closest friend.

Lazarus was a man we read, who was just like you and me.

He became sick and died, then placed, in a tomb for all to see.

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Three days he laid, and no one came. Only his sisters with a few.

But on the fourth day things changed. Jesus knew just what to do.

Giving thanks to God so we’d believe, he called out with loud cries,

“Lazarus come out of the tomb, my dear friend, open your eyes!”

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When the day light fades too black, and the curtains finally fall.

When you suddenly will realize, this is it! Life’s last and final call.

I pray the first thing we all hear after death, is not a groan or a sigh.

But Jesus’ voice calling our name, saying “My child Open you eyes!”