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Perhaps you feel there is no hope.…<br />
I’ve felt as useless and as worthless<br />
as one could possibly feel. But<br />
I’m here to tell you, there is Hope<br />
and Hope’s name is Jesus.<br />
Ron Curll, author of Wheels<br />
of Faith, is an internationally<br />
ranked swimmer, gold medalist<br />
Paralympian, and wheelchair<br />
athlete. Ron resides in Greenville,<br />
NC with his wife, Sue. He still<br />
enjoys competing in 5k and 10k<br />
road races and hand cycling<br />
races, as well as water skiing,<br />
kayaking, basketball and scuba<br />
diving. He is a sought-after<br />
guest speaker for civic<br />
organizations, as well as<br />
church and student groups.<br />
3Her response was a large smile that really<br />
made my heart sink. It wasn't until then, that I realized<br />
how far down I had drug her spiritually.<br />
I remember entering the church and being ushered<br />
into the sanctuary. There were no cutouts for<br />
wheelchairs, so I had to sit in the main<br />
aisle. I was both scared and embarrassed.<br />
Scared because I was in God's house after<br />
removing Him from my life; embarrassed<br />
because I felt that I was on display for the<br />
whole world to see.<br />
But as the service started, a peace came over me.<br />
It was as if God was standing beside me with His<br />
arms around me saying, “Welcome back my child.”<br />
In Luke 15, Jesus tells the Parable of the Lost Sheep.<br />
That day, I felt like He had left the 99 sheep to bring<br />
me, the lost sheep, home. I truly felt His love and His<br />
forgiveness. I rededicated my life to Christ and vowed<br />
to love, serve, and to obey Him. I vowed to bring Him<br />
glory through every area of my life, especially through<br />
my athletic success.<br />
As I’ve been willing, God has opened doors to<br />
share about His love in ways I could have never<br />
imagined. He has shown me that through Him, I have<br />
worth, and with Him, I can do anything. A far cry<br />
from the “useless and worthless” life I had imagined<br />
I would experience in a wheelchair. With God, all<br />
things are possible!<br />
The Bible is full of passages that promise that God<br />
will NEVER forsake us. As I look back over my life I realize<br />
just how true that is. Even when we forsake<br />
Him, He is still faithful. I’ll never forget how God<br />
saved me from ending my life. Even when I had given<br />
up hope, God had not given up on me. He had a plan<br />
for my life and He was just waiting patiently for me<br />
to follow Him.<br />
Perhaps you feel there is no hope. I know how you<br />
feel because I’ve been there. I’ve been in that place<br />
where life seems to have come to an end, where<br />
there seems to be no future worth living for. I’ve felt<br />
as useless and as worthless as one could possibly feel.<br />
But I’m here to tell you, there is Hope and Hope’s<br />
name is Jesus. In Him you will find life. In Him you will<br />
find worth. In Him you have a hope and a future. v<br />
www.championsheart.org 13
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