Have you ever asked how a good God could let bad things happen? Where is God in the midst of suffering? Is there any hope left for me? One moment Caitie Crowley was an ordinary 24-year-old driving home from work, and then next moment her life would be changed forever. Due to a poor decision of another driver, Crowley was in a rollover car accident a little over two years ago. As a result, she was hospitalized for 11 days and had multiple surgical repairs. She spent time in a wheelchair and had to rely on crutches, braces, and other assisted devices to relearn how to walk again. She couldn’t walk for 10 months. Even once she could walk, it was not easy or normal to walk for almost another year.
During that time, she wrote a book about her experiences and how her faith in God carried her through her pain. Her book takes the reader through Crowley’s physical struggle of learning to walk again and her interior struggle of learning to walk with God through the cross.
“There were many long, difficult days. Days where nothing seemed to change, nothing seemed to get better,” relayed Crowley. “I didn’t know if I was ever going to get better. Despite all circumstances that seemed rather bleak, I knew I had to put my trust in God.”
Her book focuses not only on her medical and rehabilitation journey but also on redemptive suffering. That is that even through difficulty there is hope and that even through difficulty God can bring good out of it. “There were months that seemed to drag on so slowly. At some points, I didn’t even know if I would ever recover,” described Crowley. “It’s amazing to think about how I felt then and what was still yet to come. I wouldn’t have believed it if you told me at the beginning.”
A year and a half after the traumatic car accident, Crowley went on to graduate summa cum laude in information design and strategy from Northwestern University and landed her dream job doing human resource communications at a Fortune 100 company. Crowley remarked, “Even if you can’t see what is ahead and you don’t see how things could ever get better. Through Him, you can find hope when it appears hopeless.”
Submitted by Caitie Crowley
For more information please visit: enroutebooksandmedia.com/steppingup/
This article is also featured in our 2021 Fall Issue of Sharing our Recovery
The Crash Support Network is a truly unique platform that brings together survivor-focused support and road safety education in one accessible space. Created for individuals and families affected by motor vehicle collisions, it offers online support groups, a crash survivor blog, a quarterly newsletter “ Sharing Our Recovery,” and a growing library of informative articles. Built on a foundation of connection and compassion while amplifying the importance of road safety, the Crash Support Network goes beyond a website; it’s a community united around support, education and making our roads safer for everyone.
