Just back from NRB 2017 and though not anxious to unpack my luggage, unpacking the many highlights of this year’s convention couldn’t wait.
One of my highlights was time spent with Joni Eareckson Tada and ministry station partners. As the ministry marks its 35th year of “Joni and Friends” radio, we gathered at NRB to give thanks for the decades of outreach the Lord has provided, the lives impacted by the daily 4:00 messages and, at the same time, prayed about the future opportunities to encourage listeners on the air waves.
We also reflected on the 10 years of ministry through the 1:00 daily “Diamonds in the Dust” and the Lord’s favor in growing the network to a nearly 700 outlets nationwide!
There’s also the significant marker of Joni’s 50th year in a wheelchair. As Joni shared recently with CBN News, “Every single morning when I wake up I need Jesus so badly. I just can’t tolerate the thought of another day as a quadriplegic with someone else giving me a bed bath and exercising my legs and toileting routines and it all just seems too overwhelming.”
And then, she prays …
“Jesus, I need you. I can’t do this. I cannot do quadriplegia but I can do all things through you.”
That decades-long struggle motivated Joni to write a new devotional book, “A Spectacle of Glory: God’s Light Shining Through Me Every Day.” Tada writes that those suffering with disabilities can put God’s glory on display by committing to not complaining and willingly following God down even the most difficult paths.
Blessed by the time I spent with Joni at NRB, much of what she shared is seared in my memory (and heart!) . . . including these three quotes which you may want to share as well:
God wrote the book on suffering and it’s called Jesus, Joni Eareckson Tada @JoniandFriends (Tweet this.)
You won’t experience the love of Christ until you share the love of Christ. Joni Eareckson Tada @JoniandFriends (Tweet this.)
No relative scale for suffering. Joni Eareckson Tada @JoniandFriends (Tweet this.)
