When you stop to help others in need, you infuse iron into the faith of those you are helping.
I’m Joni Eareckson Tada with a story of one amazing volunteer.
You know, quadriplegia really taxes my breathing, and so, I was winded after giving my speech at the Ligonier Conference some years ago. But there was no time to recoup. I had to race to an interview across the massive church campus. I wheeled to an exit but saw steps on the other side. Glancing this way and that, I fumed, “Oh, my goodness, there must be a door with a ramp somewhere.” Well, I found one and zipped outside, but halfway down a long walkway, I sensed a man running to keep up with me. And when we arrived at another set of steps, my heart sank. I was lost in a labyrinth of walkways and stairs, and I gave this man a bewildered look – maybe he was the groundskeeper who knew the way – and he said, “Quick, follow me!” and within minutes we reached the correct building and made a dash for the media room. My new friend wasn’t about to leave my side until I reached my destination, and I kept wondering, “Who is this amazing guy?”
Well, it was my first encounter with Tim Keesee. Although an important presenter at the conference himself with his own busy schedule, he had dropped everything to help a disabled woman in distress. That’s the way Tim is wired. He gladly participates in the hardships of others. When he spots a need, he happily puts aside what he’s working on to practice a little Christianity with its sleeves rolled up.
And this man is all about encouraging others to do the same, because Tim knows that with every hard effort bravely faced, with every gentle word spoken to a wounded heart, with every cross cheerfully shouldered, the church is enriched; it’s made better, stronger; the church is ratcheted up to a higher level. When Christians stop to help others in urgent need, they infuse iron into the faith of those they’re helping. They spread hope. They give people confidence in God and his Word. When brothers and sisters in Christ go the extra mile to support, serve, volunteer, guide, help, and lift the burden, it gives everyone confidence that God is, indeed, compassionate and tender toward the needy.
You know, this is National Volunteer Week, and I just know there are people like Tim listening to me right now. Like him, I believe you are an Isaiah 58 kind of person: the sort of Christian who delights in lifting the burden, untying the yoke, and providing help and hope to people who have very little; people who cannot find their way; people who, without your assistance, would be stuck. You know, it’s exactly why I love enlisting friends like Tim to serve with us at Joni and Friends. Our ministry ministers among thousands of people with disabilities and their families, but we depend on co-laborers like Tim Keesee to make it happen – people who do not mind lending a hand to meet a need, just like me in my wheelchair when I was lost that day at the conference. There are plenty of opportunities at Joni and Friends to practice Christianity with its sleeves rolled up, like serving at this summer’s Family Retreats, helping disabled kids, giving their parents a little respite, playing basketball with young people who have Down syndrome, holding a tray in the cafeteria line for a wheelchair user, or helping a blind person find their way to the worship center. You name it, we can put you to work, friend. And so, on this National Volunteer Week, oh, please, would you pray about serving with Joni and Friends this summer? Visit joniradio.org today, where I have provided a link to our programs that need your support and involvement. So come on, be a Tim Keesee today, and visit joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends