God redeems even the most difficult of situations. No one is too far gone for his hand of salvation to reach! Share the Gospel with someone today.
God redeems even the most difficult of situations. No one is too far gone for his hand of salvation to reach! Share the Gospel with someone today.
----
Joni’s 73rd birthday is coming up and you can join her in celebrating God’s faithfulness!
Celebrate with Joni
Looking for more encouragement? Follow Joni on Facebook and subscribe to her daily devotional.
Listen to all of Joni's 4-minute and 1-minute programs at joniradio.org!
Joni and Friends envisions a world where every person with a disability finds hope, dignity, and their place in the body of Christ. Get involved at joniandfriends.org or on TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Hi, this is Joni Eareckson Tada with a story about the Joni movie.
That’s right, some of you may remember many years ago when the Billy Graham Association produced a movie about my life. They called it Joni. It was made back in the late 70s and shown in movie theaters across the country in 1979. You know, I was only in my early 20s when I took part in that movie that depicted how I, you know, rose up out of depression after the accident in which I broke my neck. And when I played my part in that film, never – I mean never – did I imagine that God would use it in so many lives, honestly. The Billy Graham people have told me that more than 250,000 individuals prayed to receive Christ as a result of that movie.
Believe me, I am always, always touched and inspired when I hear from people who have come to Christ from watching that film. In fact, just the other day I met a small-town pastor from up in Oregon. Pastor Chuck, that was his name – and Chuck told me that back in 1979, he helped distribute the Joni movie in theaters in Klamath Falls, Oregon. He described Klamath Falls as kind of a cowboy and a logger town with a small Native American population – I gather there’s an Indian reservation on the edge of town. Well, Pastor Chuck told me that, back then, a significant percentage of the Indians struggled with alcohol. And there was even one Indian woman named Sally who was labeled as the town prostitute. Although this pastor had tried to befriend Sally, everyone else in town knew who she really was – and like any prostitute, she was pretty much scorned, pretty much ridiculed.
Well, this is what Pastor Chuck told me – that a “client,” as you would put it, was tripping out on drugs. And Pastor Chuck went to her little house to help steady the man and get him on his feet. And after he left, he turned and told Sally about this movie that was coming to town, the Joni movie. He said, “I even gave her a flyer for the film and invited her to come to the first showing.”
Apparently, Sally did not come that first night that the Joni movie showed, and Pastor Chuck was worried that she had forgotten his invitation, or maybe she’d be embarrassed to show her face, or maybe she had invited a man into her home that night. Whatever, Sally did not show up. However, on the second night of the showing of the Joni movie, he got quite a surprise. The theater was full, and after the film was over, Chuck stood up at the front and gave an invitation for people to receive Jesus Christ as their Savior. And you can imagine this man’s amazement when he looked up the aisle and he saw Sally, all cleaned up and sober, coming down front to accept Jesus Christ. She told Pastor Chuck up front that “If that white girl up on the screen could overcome so many obstacles, so could she.” And the next night Sally was back at the Joni film with three big, tough Klamath Falls Indians – some of her former clients – and at the end of the film, they responded to the altar call, too. In time, Sally got a job as a waitress and joined a small Assemblies of God Church; and what’s more, she led many of her people to Jesus over the next few years.
Sally’s story proves that more scenes are always being added to the Joni movie. And if you’d like to know more about the ministry of this film, then visit our store at joniradio.org. Oh, and one more thing – I want to send you a copy of our Joni and Friends newsletter, so just go to joniradio.org. The newsletter is filled with opportunities for you to serve people with disabilities in the name of Jesus!
© Joni and Friends