During life’s most difficult moments, God will always give you an assurance of his presence. Ask him to open your eyes to see the many ways he draws close to you.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a special memory to share.
Actually, I shouldn’t say the word special. This memory was more like traumatic. But as is often the case with traumatic things that happen, I ended up receiving the biggest blessing. This incident occurred some years ago when I was scheduled to speak at the graduation ceremony at Lancaster Bible College. This was going to be a great trip, I love Lancaster County in Eastern Pennsylvania, and I had been looking forward to the journey. Ken and I were on our way to the airport when, on the freeway, a car suddenly veered in front of us. My husband had to slam on the brakes, and that caused my chest restraints to snap. Immediately, my body tumbled forward out of my wheelchair, and I landed on the floor!
We quickly pulled over, and Ken carefully lifted me back in my wheelchair. Breathless and nervous, we waited to see if I would develop what we call "sweats," it’s kind of a pain signal that indicates whether or not I've sprained or broken something. Well after ten minutes or so, all seemed fine, so we cautiously proceeded on to the airport. But midway through our flight, my leg began to swell. Thankfully, the flight attendant was able to provide lots of ice, and since I was sitting in a bulkhead seat, I could prop up my leg. Everyone could tell I was in big trouble, and so the pilot radioed ahead to alert the airport. When we arrived at BWI in Maryland, an ambulance was waiting for me. They took me right away to the hospital where X-rays confirmed I had broken my leg.
To calm my nerves there in the emergency room, I asked God to give me a hymn to sing. And immediately, the Spirit answered that prayer, and I began humming, Lord, lift me up and let me stand, / by faith on heaven's tableland; / a higher plain than I have found / Lord, plant my feet on higher ground. Now I hadn’t sung that hymn in years, but I thought it was the perfect hymn, given my condition with my broken leg – “Lord, plant my feet [even though I can’t stand on them] plant them on higher ground!” It was 3:30 a.m. by the time they put on a cast and released me to go back to our hotel, but all along the way, even though it was late and I was tired, the hymn remained on my heart.
The next day we drove up to Lancaster Bible College where I was scheduled to give the commencement address the next morning. Well, there I was, bright and early the next day, sitting on the platform, my leg in a cast, and the graduation program about to begin, and the first thing on the program, was a congregational hymn. The audience stood and sang, [and I couldn't believe it!] Still praying as I'm onward bound, / Lord, plant my feet on higher ground. It was all I could do to fight back the tears – for me, oh my goodness, that God would inspire that congregation to sing that hymn. It was such a beautiful assurance from the Lord. And the same is true for you.
Hebrews 12:13 says in the JB Phillips paraphrase, “Take a fresh grip on life and brace your trembling limbs. Don’t wander away from the path but forge steadily onward. On the right path the limping foot recovers strength and does not collapse.”Isn’t that the truth?! So please know, during your most difficult challenges, God will always give you an assurance of his presence – maybe through a phone call from a friend, a flower by the path, a butterfly flitting by, or an inspirational song on the radio. Today, if you are facing hardship or heartache, ask God to open your eyes to recognize the many ways he draws near to you. Finally, I want to thank this station for granting me these precious minutes in which I can share hope through your hardship every day. And I do pray you found my words hopeful today.
© Joni and Friends