The Masters Voice Darrick Lareva

The Story

 

I (Darrick R. Lareva) have seen my fair share of trials, but each trail has brought along purpose and a greater plan. February 1, 1995 would be the day that would get my “preparation” rolling. On that day, my father was traveling to a town about one hour away when he was struck head on by another driver who had a heart attack at the wheel, claiming the life of my father. This started a chain of events that would make me a stronger man, yet soften my own heart to the call of God.

          Throughout the course of my high school days, I would again see tragedy and heart break, combined with more learning. Five of my high school peers where killed in the four-year time frame of school. It was as if God was preparing me to become, in a way, like soft mold ready for the potter’s hands.

          In 1998, I began working at an Investment firm (Edward Jones Investments) with the hopes and dreams of one day becoming a broker. In 2001 my dream came true, or so I thought. In a business meeting, I was told by my regional manager I could become a broker, but I would need to finish college first.

          Un-sure if this was still the career I was supposed to dedicate the rest of my life to, I went to a Christian college in New Brunswick, Canada. It was at Bethany Bible College that I found my true call in life, and to my temporary disappointment it was not to become a broker.

          I was in a group at Bethany Bible College called Extreme Discipleship, where we traveled to New York City to do some work for God. But God had other plans in mind for me on this trip. This plan that God had would send my life forever on a new adventure full of twists and turns.

          It was a beautiful, warm, sunny spring day. When I, and the rest of the Extreme Discipleship team were sitting outside in front of the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange). The same place I had once hoped to work for. God came and met me at the NYSE that day. I felt God was telling me to give up my dreams of one day becoming a rich businessman and come follow him. I felt like one of the fisherman from the Bible story. God told me to give up “fishing” for myself and come and fish for him. So that day I gave it all up and told God I would “fish” for him.  To this day I have never felt so sure about something in my life. But God was not done preparing me yet.

          On December 14, 2002 in Skowhegan, ME about one hour west of Bangor. The car I was a passenger in left the ice covered roads and plunged over a large embankment full of trees. The car took out some smaller less grown trees, before finding a large tree near the bottom of the hill. The tree hit my side of the car with such force it broke the seat I was in, pushing it backwards and breaking the feet of a passenger behind me.

          But the mighty hand of God would not let me slip through His fingers so easy. He arranged a carload of medical professionals to be traveling directly behind my car at the time of the accident. They were able to provide me with the support I needed until the ambulance arrived.

          When the Doctor at the hospital in Skowhegan saw me, he concluded there was not much they could do for me, so they sent me off to Bangor, Maine. There, I was given a cat scan; then rushed into emergency surgery to remove the four blood clots, and seven large bone fragments they found in my brain.

Through a series of God only events, my mother found out about the accident and called the hospital in Maine. The only thing the doctor’s would say was “It is very imperative you get here as soon as you can.” Only knowing that I had passed the threshold, my mother made the eight-hour flight to Bangor, ME.

When my mother got to the hospital in Bangor, The Emergency room doctor came in and told her that my body was doing normal house keeping duties, and that I may live.

          However, the same doctor who told her this came in the next week to inform her that my central brain had shut down, she was told to get used to seeing me in a coma, that I would never come out of it.

          I was moved from Bangor, ME to Grand Rapids, MI, where I did eventually come out of the coma. There, the doctor in Grand Rapids told my mother that he was unsure of my long-term recovery, but he would try to give me some sort of quality of life. He told her that I would never drive again, make any sort of financial decisions, and never return to school. But God had other plans.

          At Mary Free Bed hospital in Grand Rapids, MI my family was told I should be in that hospital a minimum of six months. And once again the Master Physician had other plans. I was only there for three months, when God brought me to a level that they could no longer help me progress.

          After the hospital, I went to a Rehab home in Grand Rapids. There I was told many of the same things, that I would never to return to school, never drive, and never make any financial decisions again.

          After only five months at the rehabilitation home, I did in fact return to a Community College in Grand Rapids. Then, that October I began work on being able to drive again. By that December I was fully able and legal to drive again

          A year after the day of my horrible injury I spoke in my home church of Fremont, MI. There, I spoke of Gods plan. I told how we all have handicaps in one way or another, but that God can and will help us overcome them if we allow Him to.

          A year and a month after my accident, my mother and I walked into the doctor’s office in Bangor, Maine. We came to see the doctor who first told my mother to get used to seeing me in a coma.

          Putting the exclamation point on my recovery, just a year and one month post injury God brought me back to Bethany Bible College in Sussex, New Brunswick, Canada. There I continued to pursue my call into the ministry. God did not give up on me (Philippians 1:6), who am I to give up on God?

          My life has been one miracle after the other, as seen in more detail during my presentation. God has brought me from being the young man who would never do anything. To being a man who has graduated from college, drives, and married with 2 children.

          Due to my severity of injuries, I have lost the ability to speak “normal.” But God has given this preacher a new glorious voice, and an even bigger vision of doing His will. Many hear the message that God has given to me. Soft spoken, they all hear of God’s Victory, and how when we are weak, He is strong.

          I have begun speaking to churches and groups. I have spoken in such places as churches, youth homes, prisons, and youth groups. I speak on Paul’s Thorn in the flesh and how my handicap may be very noticeable and a hindrance to my every day tasks, but we all have handicaps. Either way God can use you.

          The passing out of thumbtacks closes the service; these thumbtacks represent thorns that we all have. I state that a person’s thorn could be physical like mine, or maybe it is emotional, or more of a spiritual thorn. We all have thorns to some degree, it just depends on whether a person is willing to look for their thorn and fix it.

Finally a cross that is standing in front of the congregation is brought to everyone’s attention. As I sing the song Victory In Jesus and the thumbtacks are being handed out; I encourage the congregation to think about their thorns and what God would have them do with them. On the third verse of Victory I invite the congregation to join me in singing and to pin their thorns on the cross if they feel led. Their thorns belong on the cross anyways.

I am available to speak to your church or group. I speak to anyone or any group that is willing to have me. I feel I have been given a message of God’s healing power; and God’s promise that “He who began a good work is faithful to complete it in you. (Philippians 1:6)”

In His Service,

Darrick Lareva