For The Saving Of Many Lives
I’m Joni Eareckson Tada and I have got quite the morning routine.
Welcome to Joni and Friends where I so enjoy sharing my everyday experiences. And it’s all in hopes that what I learn from God’s Word in this wheelchair – it’s gonna encourage you. This radio program, I mean the whole ministry of Joni and Friends, is all about sharing hope through every hardship. And man do I need God’s hope, because my life is filled with hardship! I mean, just consider, okay, my get-up routine.
Every morning my get-up girl wakes me up, takes me off my breathing machine, gives me a bath, does toileting routines, straps on my corset so I can breathe, gets me dressed, helps lift me into my wheelchair. It’s nearly a two-hour routine, every morning, day in and day out. Now, part of that get-up routine while I’m still in bed, involves stretching and exercising my limbs. I go through knee bends, leg lifts, hip twists, the whole deal. And after about 15 minutes of all this, the routine concludes with stretching my heel cords. So, while I’m still lying flat, my get up girl holds my foot at a 90° angle, gently pushes it to relax my tight Achilles tendon. This prevents foot drop; it helps my feet, you know, be flat on the foot pedals of my wheelchair. All this to say – as she works on my heel cords, I always laugh and tell her, “Stretch ’em good; I might need ’em if I start walking today. You never know; I might just jump up out of this wheelchair, and I’m gonna need those heel cords to do their thing!”
It’s kind of an offhanded joke, but down deep we all laugh, and I confess to the Lord, “Jesus, if you really wanted to heal me today, just know I’m happy for you to do that, whatever you want.” Now, my heel cords – for that matter, my entire paralyzed body – has not worked for more than 52 years. After all that time, it’s not like I have this urgent desire to be physically healed. Frankly, although getting up out of this wheelchair would be great, it really is far more wonderful to see how Christ has used this wheelchair to advance his Gospel among disabled people around the world. That is a lot more exciting than walking. I mean, I’m like Joseph in the Old Testament who said, after all his suffering, that God intended it for good – now get this, he says, “…for the saving of many lives.” Right there shows God’s priority. There really are more important things in life than walking or even having use of your hands. And I’m not saying that walking wouldn’t be great, it’s just that “not walking” has provided this marvelous platform for hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities to hear about and respond to Jesus Christ. Think of all the people who have been saved as a result of this diving accident.
So, there’s my priority. However! I never want to be one to limit the Lord, and so, tomorrow morning when my get-up girl stretches my heel cords, I’ll say, “Get those feet in shape; you never know what God might be up to today!” I’m so grateful that the Lord has given me freedom and joy when it comes to either walking or not walking. “Lord Jesus, whatever your will is for me, I gladly receive it. And while I’m in this wheelchair, I’m going to keep partnering with your Holy Spirit to reach more people with the Gospel of your grace.” Oh, friend, that is a great way to live until that glorious Day described in Malachi chapter 4 when you and I will “go out and skip like calves released from the stall.” Until then I’m gonna get my heel cords ready to go out and skip alongside you and all the other calves. It’s what we do here at Joni and Friends, always sharing hope through every hardship. God bless you today, and thanks for listening to Joni and Friends!
