CHRISTIAN, MAKE YOUR HANDICAP A PULPIT
Many of you reading this tract have some type of handicap. Maybe yours is only a broken bone, or perhaps it is of a more serious and permanent nature. Whatever may be the extent of your disability, you can if you will, make it a pulpit. By this I mean that you can make your illness an opportunity to bear witness to the grace of God manifested in Christ Jesus. This truth was brought forcibly home to me one day about two years ago as I, with only head protruding, lay in an iron-lung in the polio ward of the Cincinnati General Hospital. For about a month after entering the hospital, all I could think of was my sad condition. Then, one never-to-be-forgotten day, an idea flashed across my mind. Why not make this iron-lung my pulpit? Immediately, I had plaques and Scripture passages pasted on the front of the lung in plain view of all who passed. The same day I told my physical therapist that God loved her and that Jesus died for her sins. Today, almost two years later, having traded the iron-lung for a portable chest respirator and a wheelchair, I am trying, with God's help, to make these my pulpit.
You, too, can make your ill circumstance preach Christ. For Biblical illustration of this, note the statement of the apostle Paul, where he speaks of his own sickness. "There was given to me a thorn in the flesh . . . and he [God] said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me. Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities . . . for Christ's sake" (2 Corinthians 12:7, 9, 10). Again in Philippians 1:12, 20, Paul says, "I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel . . . so now also Christ shall be magnified in my body, whether it be by life, or by death."
Let me now briefly suggest just three ways in which your infirmity can become an avenue of blessing to others.
First, your illness will no doubt put you in contact with people you would not ordinarily meet. Instead of lying there bemoaning your fate, remember, many of those ministering to your body are lost in their sins and have no knowledge of the love of God in Christ Jesus. During thirteen months of hospitalization, I had the thrilling experience of leading fifteen precious souls to the Saviour and witnessing to many others. Begin witnessing immediately concerning your hope in Christ to those with whom you have been thrown into contact. I dare say, you will be astonished at the results, and very pleased. Also, you will discover that you feel much better for your effort.
Second, when your friends and relatives see and hear your radiant testimony, your triumphant and victorious faith, they will begin to realize that faith in Christ is not a hollow boast made by a "fair-weather Christian." Only eternity will reveal the influence you have had as a suffering saint. Do not think that your loving personality and your persistent patience will go unrewarded. At times you will become discouraged and think your testimony void, but you can be sure that it is not. Very often, the fruit from a consistent Christian life is not immediately apparent, but it is there, even if only to be revealed at the judgment seat of Christ.
Finally, in your condition, you have an opportunity to study the Word of God and pray as never before. As you lie there alone in your room, you will find that the Bible is your best companion, next to Jesus Christ Himself. Having meditated upon its message, prayer follows naturally. Now that you have time, give yourself diligently to the study of God's Word, depending not on source books, but on the Holy Spirit, to be your Teacher. As God speaks to your heart you will find yourself drawing close to Him in fervent, earnest, intercessory prayer. Witnessing to others by lip and life is blessed, but even more blessed is this close communion with God through the Word and through prayer. Can we class this as a pulpit? We surely can! You are enabled through intercessory prayer to span the globe. In fact, I believe those who have been laid aside tend to have more of a world vision than those who are in good health and active in their local work.
The world with its unnumbered millions is your field of service. There in your room you can pray down God's power upon a mission station in Africa, a congregation in the heart of Russia, an evangelist traveling from country to country. Unlimited are your opportunities. Get in touch with God through His Word and then begin in earnest to pray the prayer of intercession for the world.
-- Arthur E. Gordon
