Hi I'm Joni Eareckson Tada and welcome to Joni and Friends. You know, living over 40 years in this wheelchair, I have discovered that there are more important things in life than walking – and one of those important things is wisdom. I never quite understood that when I was first injured in that 1967 diving accident in which I broke my neck. And if there was ever such a thing as a time machine, oh I tell you I wish I could go back to that scared, angry, bitterly unhappy teenage girl named Joni Eareckson -- that frightened girl lying on the Stryker frame in the geriatric ward of the state institution -- I wish I could go back and show her, show that young girl a little of what could come of her sorrow . . . and her baby steps of faith. But time moves on, and there is no going back.
So I decided to share what I have learned about wisdom with you in my new book "A Lifetime of Wisdom" (it’s called). Each chapter opens with a story I have written in the first-person, writing from the perspective of that very young Joni, still struggling with the truth and reality of my disability. But then the rest of the chapter, I share what I have learned, talking to that younger version of myself, and encouraging her to look at things from a godly, a different, a biblical perspective... all in hopes that the reader, you picking up the book, will also grasp that insight of wisdom for living. And just what are some of those insights?
Well, I have learned over these 40 years: tell God what’s in your heart . . . all of it. I mean, go ahead and vent disappointment, express hurt, and even question the goodness of the Almighty. Just don’t talk behind His back. Engage Him if you’ve got questions, give Him your questions head on. When pain and grief and anxiety conspire to push you to the edge of despair, remember God’s mighty deeds in your life. That’s some wisdom right there. Remember. Reach back into your memory and pull out all those times you've seen Him work in wonderful ways... recall those times when you dropped to your knees in appreciation, overwhelmed by his goodness to you. Remember Him and keep on remembering His goodness. Remember His kindness; remember His special tailor-made graces just for you. It is oh so wise to keep calling to mind and to memory the good things God has done.
Well, I could go on and on here and I share all this with you because, well... in a way I want you to write your own book. And I'm not kidding. You have a story to tell and you have learned many things about the goodness of God. I know you have. So I encourage you to begin a journal... begin writing these things down, would you? Don't miss out a detail... record exactly how and when you have seen the goodness of God in your life. And then, in the future when you begin to "doubt what you now believe," then you will be able to remember, remember, and remember more easily just who God is and why it is the wise and best thing to trust him.
Now I don’t pretend to understand all of God’s workings and ways. I’m just one journeyman, just one sojourner like you on this path of following Jesus Christ. Yep, it's all about cultivating a lifetime of wisdom... and it's why I named my new book just that: more than 40 years in this wheelchair feels like more than a lifetime... and in those decades, I have cultivated just a little bit of wisdom. And why do I share this with you today? Well, because I want you to know, too, that there are – there really are – more important things in life than walking. I'm Joni Eareckson Tada and thanks for listening to God’s Wisdom.
Used by permission of
JONI AND FRIENDS
P.O. Box 3333
Agoura Hills, CA 91376
© Joni and Friends