Speaker* Creativity* Inspiration* Motivation

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I consider myself very blessed to be alive. Over the years, I've heard remarks that being paralyzed is worse than death, and it doesn't help when some of those remarks come from the medical community. Well, it doesn't surprise me that some people just don't know what the Holy Spirit can do. I am a living example that blessings rise out of tragedies. It's not by my strength, but God's. Little did I know how God would use me in ways that are only supernatural. Through my injury, lives were changed.

I did not grow up in a "leave it to beaver home". I had a great childhood and really have no complaints, but we were lacking in spiritual direction. Having a personal relationship with God was the last thing on my mind. I remember from an early age I would jump into bed and say a very quick prayer not knowing who I was praying to. Before my eyes would close for the night, my prayers would last all of ten seconds. God was not the most important thing in my life at that time; I was feeding the inner being. It was the inner prideful man doing what he wanted to do. Feeding my ego was first and foremost.

After my injury, I was in and out of the hospital with numerous bladder infections. One of my hospital stays resulted in a 103 temperature due to a uro-sepsis, which is a bloodstream infection due to a bladder infection (UTI).

I met someone from the Jacksonville Chapel. Vincent sat next to my bed, opened the Bible and turned to the book of John. He proceeded to share the gospel with me saying that I could have a personal relationship with Jesus. I had never heard that before. I had always thought that you needed to be a good person to get to heaven. I figured I was a good kid and besides that, I was paralyzed - how bad of a person could I be?

Those 10 minutes turned into 10 hours; literally. Vincent explained that Jesus was the only way to get to heaven. I agreed with that. Then he explained that the demons also believe in God. He quoted John 14:6 where Jesus stated “I am the truth and the life; nobody gets to the Father except through Me”. Then he read John chapter 3 and explained that you must be born again to get to heaven. I had never heard that before. Growing up non religious, I had always thought that good works would get you to heaven. Now I had to rely on Jesus, not myself. I accepted Jesus in my heart in July 1983. I did not see any angels or hear any trumpets, but I knew my life was different and it had a purpose. Life and my accident began to make sense.