Hi, this is Joni Eareckson Tada and I want to tell you why I wished we lived a little closer together. If you lived near me and Ken, I would want to introduce you to a couple of my friends like my friend, Brian Bushway. I’ve got to tell you about him… this guy is young, he’s energetic, he plays guitar, and he’s getting fantastic grades at Pepperdine and, he is a world-class mountain biker. But that’s not all. Brian is totally blind. Isn’t that something?
Brian had his sight up until the age of about 14 years old; then he slowly began losing his vision and now Brian does not see at all. Now I just bet you are wondering how a blind kid rides a mountain bike… even makes it to the ranks of world-class? Well, I saw it for myself. Joni and Friends produced a television episode on Brian earlier this year and, oh my nerves, there he was riding his mountain bike along a rocky path on the crest of a ridge. His secret?Well, it’s something he calls echolocation. The biker in front of Brian clips a stiff card on his spokes so that when Brian follows behind him, he can hear that rat-tat-tat-tat, and Brian just follows the noise.
The guy is nothing short of amazing. Something else is pretty amazing… Brian’s testimony in Jesus Christ. During the interview, he said – now get this – “People keep wanting to pray for my healing but I keep telling them that I have already experienced the biggest miracle ever – salvation in Jesus.” I just smiled and shook my head… especially when Brian went on to talk about all that he has learned from his blindness, and he really caught me up short when he said, “God designed me this way.” Whew! I mean a statement like that seems unbelievable to many… even to lots of Christians.
I mean God just didn’t allow but he designs you to be blind? Well, Brian has thought it through. He even quoted Psalm 139 where it says, “You, God, created my innermost being. You knit me together in my mother’s womb.” So Brian went on to explain that his was a genetic disorder. Before he was born, he carried that gene for his particular disease of the eye, and when God knit Brian together in his mother’s womb, God knew all about that defective gene.
Friend, what is true for this young blind man is true for you. You may have a genetic disorder like Brian. You may even carry some gene that could be passed on to your children. Perhaps you deal with Huntington’s disease, or Crohn’s disease, or some other inherited condition. Can you say God designed you that way? Well, if you can’t, quick flip over to Psalm 139, ’cause nothing touches your life – nothing encroaches except that God, the designer of the universe, purposed it from before you were born.
And if you want to test that truth, just hop on a mountain bike behind Brian Bushway and, hey, let me tell you something, if you’d like to see a great little video clip of Brian actually out there on his mountain bike – you’re not going to believe it – then please visit me today at joniandfriends.org. It is amazing. In fact, if you are inspired by what you see, then I invite you to jot my friend, Brian, a quick line or two of encouragement when you visit our Joni and Friends radio page. There’s not a Christian with a disability who does not appreciate a few uplifting words. So, come by and visit me today on our radio page at joniandfriends.org and be inspired by Brian’s video. And then, let us hear from you. Until next time, thank you for listening to Joni and Friends.
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