Listen in as Joni’s friend Andrew will inspire you that no matter how great your suffering, there is always a reason to praise the Lord!
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SHAUNA: I’m Shauna with Joni Eareckson Tada: Sharing Hope. Here’s Joni with a special word. It’s a beautiful day here in Southern California! Oh Joni, how are you feeling on this wonderful, sunny day?
JONI: Doin’ great! And you know what? Coming into the office this morning, I was so blessed [I don’t know if you heard them] but as I came through the door I could hear the birds singing up in the tree. It sounded like they were singing praises to God. It was as though they just could not contain themselves – sweet, sweet little bird notes. It was beautiful.
SHAUNA: Oh, my goodness. Yes Joni, there’s something special in the air this morning and you know I almost wonder if those birds were singing Psalm 150 just “Let everything that has breath praise the Lord!”
JONI: Absolutely!
SHAUNA: And you know, every time I think of Psalm 150, I think of my friend Andrew, who I met at Family Retreat many years ago.
JONI: Well, you’ve got to tell me about him.
SHAUNA: Well, I’m happy to, Joni. Andrew had a very severe case of cerebral palsy; he used a power wheelchair to get around. He really couldn’t use his body much. He could talk a little bit, but those who were listening to him had a very hard time understanding him. And I knew that was frustrating for Andrew. Well, over time Andrew’s disability – it became more and more of a challenge, and he was able to control less and less of his body. But he never let his suffering, or his disability get in the way of praising the Lord.
JONI: Wow.
SHAUNA: In fact, during Talent Night at Family Retreat Andrew had the chance every time to lead worship. And you know how he would do that?
JONI: Tell me.
SHAUNA: Well, alright. You know that little musical instrument the triangle?
JONI: Yes, I had one of those in elementary school – a little “dingy, dingy, dingy” thing.
SHAUNA: Exactly. Alright. Well, somebody would hold that up for Andrew and they would put the wand to the triangle in between the toes of his right foot.
JONI: Okay, wait a minute. I’ve got to imagine this. So, he is in his wheelchair, and Andrew has his foot up and somebody puts the little wand in between his toes?
SHAUNA: You got it, you got it! His right foot was really the only part of his body he had total control over and so that’s where the wand went. And then somebody would hold the triangle nearby and Andrew would play the musical instrument, the triangle, lead worship for all of us. You know, we’ve heard about praising the Lord with our mouths, but Andrew taught us you can praise the Lord with your toes.
JONI: I love that!
SHAUNA: He also taught us that no matter what our suffering, no matter what we’re going through there is always a reason to praise God.
JONI: Yes.
SHAUNA: And you know, Joni, as the mom of a child with severe disabilities myself, I always needed to hear that.
JONI: Well, what happened to Andrew?
SHAUNA: When Andrew was just ten years old, the Lord decided to take him home to heaven, and that was a few years ago now, but there is not a day that goes by that I don’t think about my friend, Andrew and the beautiful way he taught me that there’s always a reason to praise the Lord and I still can’t hear or even think about Psalm 150 without picturing Andrew leading worship. You know, Psalm 150 says, “Praise Him for His mighty works, praise His unequaled greatness! Praise Him with a blast of the ram’s horn, praise Him with the harp and [think it could even say] praise Him with the triangle!”
JONI: I love that! Let everything that has breath praise the Lord! Well, Shauna, do you happen to have a photo of Andrew that we could see?
SHAUNA: I do, Joni. I’ve got a great picture of Andrew and I’d be so happy to share that with you and you know, you make me think of just how important Family Retreat really is. So friend, if you’re checking us out to see that picture of Andrew, I hope you’ll check out the opportunities you might have to serve at Family Retreat, because who knows, you could hold the triangle for somebody just like Andrew.
JONI: I love it and you could find out all the details about how you can serve at Family Retreat just visiting us at joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends