Hi, this is Joni Eareckson Tada with a special anniversary coming up.
I think I told you earlier this week that I'm about to crest 45 years—four and a half decades in this wheelchair. Oh, my goodness, when did that happen?! Yikes! In some ways, it seems like (or I should say it feels like) a very long time, especially on days when I'm experiencing pain. But most days those 45 years are like a blink of the eye; they’ve flown by so fast. Which is why I really, really want to make my days in this wheelchair count—and count, they do!
Part of making them count is, well, just living with quadriplegia in such a way as to encourage others—whether they have a disability or not. Like, I hope that my life in this wheelchair—the smiles I’ve shared, the struggles and victories—I hope all of it has been used of the Lord to build you up. To help you to face your struggles with the confidence that God's grace really is sufficient, that his strength really is enough, that his presence truly is adequate to help you pass through every dark valley.
But I must admit, I truly feel like my life counts when I see how God uses my wheelchair to refresh the hearts of other quadriplegics; and it happened just recently when we were delivering wheelchairs and Bibles in Ghana, West Africa. A 21-year-old young woman named Esther was waiting in a long line for a wheelchair—her parents had brought her in on a blanket, and she lay there, hopeful and very happy that soon she, too, might be able to have her very own wheelchair. And, yes, our physical therapists prepared the perfect chair for Esther, and when this 21 year old was seated in her new chariot, her eyes widened, her smile got so big, and she kept gushing, “Thank you, thank you … thank you so much!”
But then, a Wheels for the World team member gave her a copy of the Joni book. All of a sudden, Esther’s excitement over her new wheelchair somewhat subsided and when they explained that, “this is a book about a lady just like you who lives in America. She broke her neck just like you and can’t use her hands or legs either. Here’s her story that tells how she came to trust in Jesus, just like you can!” Oh, my goodness, the Wheels for the World team member helped her flip slowly through the section of photographs in the book, taking time to point out Joni in the hospital … Joni depressed … here’s a photo of Joni in a Bible study with her friends … and here’s one of her smiling with her family. Oh my, Esther was wide-eyed in amazement. Her eyes were glued to these photographs and more. She became very still and gathering tears in her eyes; she looked up to our Wheels for the World team member and whispered, “This lady she is just like me.”
Now, can you begin to imagine how that touches my heart?! To think that my story could resonate with a poor disabled 21-year-old in Africa, and to know that Esther thinks that I am “just like her.” Oh, what an honor! What a privilege! When the Joni book was first written back in 1976 I thought my aunt and uncle and some neighbors and friends might read it, but someone in an impoverished rural village in Africa, someone lying on a blanket in the dirt? I thank God that my story has led Esther to Christ, not to mention to a new wheelchair. And friend, I would be honored if you would visit my radio page today at joniandfriends.org and pick up 5 Gospel tracts that include my story—tracts you can give to people like Esther who need the help and hope of our Savior. It’s one way to make your life count—really count—for all of eternity.
© Joni and Friends
Used by permission of Joni and Friends
P.O. Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376