You know how we hear so much bad news? Well, wait till you hear this.
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and I have some good news; it’s quite an amazing report to share with you from a government newspaper published in Cuba. The article was sent to me after our Wheels for the World team had distributed Bibles and wheelchairs in Cuba – we’ve been going to that country now for 10 years (that’s a long time and a big investment for the kingdom in that Communist nation). Anyway, the article was written by José Paz. Even our Christian friends with whom we partner in Cuba were amazed at the article… and I think you’ll see why, because Mr. Paz (and this has been translated from Spanish into English), writes…
“Four hundred wheelchairs provided the excuse, for the tenth time, for Christian solidarity to pulverize the thick walls of politics [don’t you love that] and allow an embrace between the peoples of the United States and of Cuba. The ministry of Joni and her friends returned again to Ciego de Avila to distribute these wheelchairs for people with disabilities. The project enabled this group of [American] volunteers to interact with the common people. It was a significant gesture to the families who came to the capital city, to receive not only material assistance but also spiritual; as along with the wheelchairs, chaplains gave Bibles and other materials along with words of encouragement.” I think that’s fantastic, right there, but let me read more. He goes on to say…
“Translators, members of the local Immanuel Baptist Church also participated in the delivery. The president of the Cuban handicap association greatly appreciated the gesture ‘because we know the American people love us. These wheelchairs, besides providing security in the midst of hardship, raise our self-esteem and allow people with disabilities further integration within society.’”
Now, friend listening, mind you, this is a newspaper published in Cuba, a Communist nation on which the U.S. government has imposed an embargo for decades. But this journalist shines a bright light on our Wheels for the World outreach and writes favorably about our Cuban friends at the Baptist church who also help us with evangelism and translation… and he mentions the wheelchairs we distribute, the Bibles, the presence of chaplains, giving words of encouragement (which we all know really is giving the Gospel of Jesus Christ). And then he quotes the leader of the disability organization in Cuba (we have to work with them in order to find the truly needy people with disabilities), anyway, the article quotes this Cuban leader speaking favorably about the American people and how Cubans with disabilities have been blessed. This is miraculous, and I wanted to read this today to encourage you because it’s just one example of how the love of Jesus Christ is reaching into the darkest, most inaccessible corners of the world and making a huge difference for the kingdom.
So, I want to thank any listeners today who have ever joined us on a Wheels for the World outreach, if you have prayed for an outreach, you friends listening who have traveled with us or given the Gospel and distributed Bibles; if any physical therapists are listening right now who have shared the practical love of Jesus as you’ve fit each wheelchair to each disabled child… friend, you have done an enormous service in the kingdom of Christ. And this one article from a Communist newspaper in Cuba testifies to your heartfelt service and what God is doing to change the hearts and minds of people in a nation that does not revere God as so many nations do. Finally, please be in prayer as several more Wheels teams head out soon to Ukraine, West Africa, Brazil, India and, yes, for the 11th time, to Cuba. God is changing lives and changing the world through Wheels for the World!
Used by permission of
JONI AND FRIENDS
P.O. Box 3333
Agoura Hills, CA 91376
© Joni and Friends