Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a story that will touch your heart.
And it can’t help but touch your heart when you hear it. Because it’s stories about children with disabilities that really hit home. And today I'm thinking of 11-year-old Maria from Peru. No one is really sure exactly what to call Maria’s disability—when she was born, she never received any medical treatment. There are no clinics in the poor little village where Maria’s parents live. And so, they just did the best they could, which wasn’t much. Maria’s mother and father both had to work all day in the fields, but they made certain their child was, at least, cared for; and so, Maria’s grandmother would stay all day with her. But basically that meant this child had to stay in bed, day after day while her parents worked in the fields. That was her life. Her bedroom was her world.
To be sure, when her mother returned from working in the fields to prepare dinner, Maria was carried into the little kitchen area and left on a blanket on the floor. It, no doubt, was the highlight of her day just to have someone lift her out of her bed! Can you imagine? Until the time Maria was 11 years old, this child (all because of her disability) had to stay in bed all day … how sad!
But recently, Maria’s mother and father heard that our Wheels for the World team would be coming to a town near their village. News had spread that the impossible just might happen: maybe, just maybe, there would be a wheelchair for Maria. And the morning that her mother took off work in order to bring Maria to our wheelchair distribution … that morning, the family’s prayers were answered. We were able to fit this little girl with a zip-a-dee-doo-dah, beautiful, junior-sized wheelchair that she cannot only sit up in, but she is able to wheel it by herself! She doesn’t need to stay in bed all day anymore; with her grandmother there to help, Maria can even push herself outside in the sunshine! She can even wheel herself into the little kitchen area and sit up by her mother as she prepares dinner. And, oh, you’ve just got to visit my radio page at joniandfriends.org to see a photo of this remarkable child in her new wheelchair.
So it is no surprise at all that this wheelchair is what God used to open up the hearts of this family to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. What’s more, the pastor of the church near their village has made a connection with Maria’s family.
Oh, friend, this child’s story is such a great example of how we Christians must proclaim the Gospel, and portray it; not only declare it, but demonstrate it. We don’t merely tell people about Jesus, we show them in a hands-on way what His love looks like. It’s what we’re supposed to do, after all in James chapter 2 it says, “Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, ‘Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed,’ but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is that?” Well I think that’s why I'm 100% behind our Wheels for the World outreach here at Joni and Friends—because we do something about the physical needs of disabled children like Maria, and I invite you to join us by cheering us on with your prayers ... how about it! Or you can sign up on a Wheels for the World team, you can get all the info at joniandfriends.org. And if you visit our radio page, I have a brochure that explains all about Wheels for the World outreach. Oh and by the way, this week we have a Wheels for the World team giving wheelchairs and the Gospel in China and also another Wheels for the World team in Brazil. So, thank you for praying as we reach many more children just like Maria, and don’t forget to check her out at joniandfriends.org.
Until next time, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and you’re listening to Joni and Friends.
Used by permission of
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Agoura Hills, CA 91376
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