A Florida couple is recovering after a lightning strike left them critically injured during an evening walk, and they believe God has carried them through the ordeal.
We never know what a day will bring, but even in frightening situations we can find comfort in God’s presence and the help of people around us.
On September 2, Aaron, 48, and Clare Walenga, 43, had dropped their three children off at a church youth group gathering in Winter Garden, Florida. The couple often used this time as a date night. They went out for dinner and then took a walk along the West Orange Trail.
As they walked hand in hand, a storm moved into the area and lightning struck them. Both collapsed. Aaron later said he woke up in severe pain, confused about what had happened and unable to move normally.
“My first thought was that we got hit by a car,” he said. “I thought maybe a car just ran us over from behind because getting struck by lightning is nothing that would even enter our minds.”
Aaron’s thoughts soon turned to his wife. He wanted to reach Clare but could barely move.
“I couldn’t move the way I wanted to,” he said. “I’m trying to get up. I am trying to get to Clare … I’m trying to talk, and I’m not really able to.”
Four bystanders rushed to help. Amber McManus and Charlotte Sachetti Weyand were among those who witnessed the strike. They called 911 and helped the couple.
Clare had turned blue and stopped breathing for several minutes and bystanders performed CPR until emergency responders arrived. Both were taken to Orlando Regional Medical Center in critical condition.
The lightning strike left Aaron with fractured eye sockets, a broken nose, damaged teeth, facial cuts and burns on his hand and wrists. Clare suffered a concussion and short-term memory loss.
The couple said doctors found brain bleeds in both of them and heart damage in Clare. They later reported that follow-up examinations two days afterward showed the brain bleeds had healed without lasting damage and Clare’s heart condition had resolved. She also regained her full memory.
“We’re just seeing miracle after miracle and just too many divine things in this unfortunate circumstance to not be noted,” Clare said.
“God’s not done with me yet,” she added.
The couple said prayer helped them through their recovery. Clare told WESH 2, “Between all the prayer, I’ve never felt my spirit soar like it has,” adding that she could constantly feel the Lord’s presence during the first three to five days.
Their church community also stepped in to help. Their pastor brought their children home safely that evening, while neighbors cared for their yard and pool. Aaron said the support showed him that church is about more than a building. It is about people caring for one another.
“We’ve never asked ‘Why me?’” Aaron said. “We never got upset, we never felt hopeless. We really felt like even though it was a hard situation… God’s been with us and there’s a purpose behind it.”
The couple hopes to return to the trail for another walk.
We may never know how many times God has protected us on an ordinary day. We walk out the door, we drive to work, we take the kids to church, and we never see the dangers He moves out of our way. But every now and then, God lets us see His hand plainly, and the Walenga family saw it on that trail.
The lightning came without warning, but God was already there. He had four strangers walking that same path at that same hour. He gave them the courage to turn toward a fence that had just lit up. He brought Clare back after she stopped breathing, and two days later the doctors could not find the damage they had seen before. That is the God we serve! The Bible says, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble” (Psalm 46:1). The storm still came for Aaron and Clare, but help was already there on that trail.
And when the struggle comes, His love does not let us fall. Deuteronomy 33:27 says, “The eternal God is your refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms.” Aaron could not get up from that ground, but God’s arms were underneath that family the whole time. That’s why they could say they never once asked, “Why me?”
Some of us are lying on the ground right now in a different kind of storm. Maybe it’s a diagnosis, a broken home or a fear we can’t shake. The same God who stood over that couple on the West Orange Trail is standing over you. He is not done with you yet! Let us lift our eyes and trust Him again today.
Please join us in praying for Aaron and Clare’s full healing, for their three children and for the brave Samaritans God used that night.
WATCH: Good Samaritans Rush to Save Couple Struck by Lightning on Florida Trail
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