My Friend Steve
Hi, I’m Joni Eareckson Tada. And it’s National Friendship Week!
They say that “A true friendship can transform one’s life in a positive direction.” And isn’t it great to have such a friend? When I look back several precious people immediately come to mind, Christians that God used to transform my life and set me on a course that I am still traveling to this day. One such friend is Steve Estes.
I met him just as I was getting out of the hospital after breaking my neck. The permanence of my paralysis had a massive effect on my life, which I finally had to accept. I knew I would be sitting down in a wheelchair for the rest of my life without the use of my hands or legs, and the whole idea thoroughly, completely depressed me. But at that point, I also knew that the God of the Bible was my only answer. His Word was supposed to be my source of hope and help. The trouble was, I still had so many questions for God, and I had no idea where to even look in the Bible! I kinda realized vaguely that it held wonderful insights and secrets, but who was there to guide me? Who had the time or the inclination to sit long hours next to a quadriplegic, open a Bible, and dig out its treasures for me?
Now you think God would have brought me back then a tall, tanned, handsome youth director or a seminary student working on his Master’s; someone who could really manhandle tough, hard questions about depression and healing and how and to what extent God was really in control. Like, is God setting the agenda in this broken, deceased world or is Satan running the show? Like, where was God when I took that reckless dive? If He knew it meant a life-altering accident that would land me in a wheelchair for the rest of my life, why didn’t God dispatch a couple of angels to prevent my dive; or, at least, maybe soften it a bit so I could at least keep the use of my hands? Well, God didn’t give me a seminary student to help answer those questions. He gave me a seventeen-year-old kid, tall and somewhat gangly, who understood God’s Word in a way I had never seen anyone understand it before, or since. Steve Estes was able to satisfy my every question by his astute and Spirit-blessed handle on the Bible. This young teenager was an excellent example of Isaiah Chapter 50, where it says, “The Sovereign LORD has given me a well-instructed tongue, to know the word that sustains the weary.”
Now, I could share with you the answers Steve gave me, but I tell you what, Joni and Friends recently videoed Steve Estes when he gave a presentation to our team. He, of course, is no longer the young man that met after I got out of the hospital decades ago. Steve is now the pastor of a thriving church. He and his wife Verna are parents to eight children and who knows how many grandkids. And in this video, Steve Estes shares sage wisdom about how he counseled me, a depressed teenager, to leave the fog of despair behind and rise to a new level of trust and confidence in the Lord. I posted the video today at joniradio.org, so when you have a few minutes, take a look and be inspired (especially if you are hurting and struggling with questions about God). Look, if I was helped by this dear friend, I know you will be, as well. So celebrate friendship week with my friend Steve Estes. His words of encouragement are waiting for you today at joniradio.org. God bless you today and thanks for listening to Joni and Friends.
© Joni and Friends
