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  • Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 1
    2019/11/05
    Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 1Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 2Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 3Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 4FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Out of the Depths Day 1 of 4 Guest: Ed Harrell From the Series: The Sinking of the USS Indianapolis________________________________________________________________ Bob: Sixty years ago this week on the night of July 30, 1945, just weeks before the end of World War II, a Japanese submarine launched torpedoes that would sink the USS Indianapolis. Marine Ed Harrell was on board that night. Ed: When I actually left the ship, and there I prayed that somehow the Lord would see me through what lie ahead, and yet I had the foggiest idea that I'm going to be out there for four-and-a-half days. There's times when you pray, and there's times when you pray, and there is a difference. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Monday, August 1st. Our host is the president of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. Of the nearly 1,200 men who were onboard the Indianapolis on that night only 317 survived. Ed Harrell was one of the survivors, and we'll hear his story today. And welcome to FamilyLife Today, thanks for joining us on the Monday edition. Dennis? Dennis: Bob, I want you to imagine with me a pretty dramatic scene. Just consider yourself being 20 years old, you're a Marine, you're tough, you're physically fit, but you're alone, you're in the ocean, you've just lost your ship, and you and about 80 others are floating in the middle of the night in the ocean in lifejackets. We're going to hear a story – one of the most compelling stories I think I've ever heard from a gentleman who joins us on FamilyLife Today – one of the survivors of the USS Indianapolis. Bob: A man who doesn't have to imagine what you just described because he lived through it. Dennis: That's exactly right. Ed Harrell joins us on FamilyLife Today. Welcome to the broadcast, Ed. Ed: Thank you so much. It's a delight to be with you. Dennis: Ed is not only a survivor, but he was a businessman for 38 years. He's served as a member of the board of trustees at Moody Bible Institute, a great ministry. He and his wife Ola, who have been married since 1947 – that's a lot of years, that's a lot of years, live in Paris, Tennessee. They have two children, eight grandchildren, and four great-grandchildren. Ed: That's right. Dennis: You've lived quite a life, Ed, but you're one of the few, one of the few survivors of that tragedy. Take us back, first of all, to when you signed up. Why in the world did you sign up to be a Marine? It was 1943, is that right? Ed: That's right, 1943. I don't know that I can even know why I really did at the time, but I knew that the war was getting pretty close to home, it sounded to me. In fact, when I heard that the Japanese and the American forces were having quite a battle at Midway, I was thinking that Midway was maybe between San Francisco and Hawaii, and so I thought, you know, they're getting pretty close to America, so, actually, I had just finished my junior year in high school, and I volunteered then for the Marine Corps. Bob: You were 17, 18 years old? Ed: I was 18 when I – I actually became a Marine when I was 18. Bob: You know, Ed, my son is a junior in high school, and the thought of my son saying, "I'm going to sign up to be a Marine in the middle of this kind of conflict, as a parent, I'm not sure I'd endorse that plan. Were your parents behind it? Ed: Yes, I think they pretty much agreed. Dad pretty much agreed. They didn't necessarily want to see me leave, but they knew, too, the little Silvertone radio that we had was telling us quite a bit what was happening in the Pacific, and I didn't have much problem convincing them that I wanted to go. In fact, I have two grandsons in the Marine Corps today. Dennis: Do you remember that time when you said goodbye to your dad? Ed: I do. My dad was 37 or 39 years old, and I thought he was an old man then, but I told him goodbye at the bus station. Dennis: Did you hug? Ed: Yes, yes, we did. Dennis: Were there tears? Ed: There were some tears, there were some tears. Dennis: What did he say to you? Ed: I don't know that I can remember what he ...
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    25 分
  • Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 2
    2019/11/05
    Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 1Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 2Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 3Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 4FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Out of the Depths Day 2 of 4 Guest: Ed Harrell From the Series: Mercy at Sea________________________________________________________________ Bob: Sixty years ago this week, Ed Harrell was afloat in the Pacific. His ship, the cruiser USS Indianapolis, had been sunk by Japanese torpedoes. Many of the crew members had not escaped. Those who had, found themselves battling for their lives on the open seas with no help in sight. What was in sight were sharks. Ed: You can't imagine, and I can't explain, you know, the feeling that you have. You know that at any moment that the shark could get you, and you wonder, you know, am I going to be next? You know, you pray and you pray more, and you pour your heart out to the Lord, and just hope and pray that somehow, some way, that He will be faithful to the promise that you feel that He's made to you and that you'll be able to endure. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Tuesday, August 2nd. Our host is the president of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. We'll hear a powerful story today of courage and faith as we speak with one of the survivors of the USS Indianapolis. And welcome to FamilyLife Today, thanks for joining us. I somehow missed this in my study of U.S. history. I don't know that I ever was aware that on the night of July 30, 1945, just weeks before the end of World War II, a Japanese submarine, I-58, launched a spread of torpedoes at the USS Indianapolis in the Pacific Theater. Two of those torpedoes found their mark and, in less than 15 minutes, this cruiser sank in the Marianas, and there were almost 1,200 men on board the ship. More than 800 of those men did not survive the attack or the days that followed that attack. And I don't know, Dennis, that I'd ever heard about that battle or about the sinking of the ship, but it's truly a compelling story, especially when you consider that some 300 men were rescued days later. Dennis: Yes, and we have one of those men who was rescued back with us. Ed Harrell joins us again on FamilyLife Today. Ed, welcome back. Ed: Thank you. Dennis: I want to express my appreciation for you, as a veteran, just for serving our nation and also for coming here on our broadcast and telling the story, a dramatic story, of what has to be one of the most phenomenal survival stories, really, Bob, in all of the World War II and maybe in the history of the United States. I mean, what you had to endure and go through. But we'll get to that in just a moment. Ed is a businessman, was on the board of trustees of Moody Bible for a number of years. He and his wife Ola [ph] have a couple of children and a number of grandchildren and great-grandchildren, and he is a survivor of the USS Indianapolis. Ed, I want you to take our listeners back, because you shared earlier the story of standing on the deck of this boat – this great, massive boat, over 600 feet long, at midnight as it's sinking in less than 15 minutes. What were you hearing at that moment? It's pitch black, there's a little bit of light from the fires that are burning midship, but what was the sound like? Was it of screams of people? Were there explosions? Ed: There were still explosions going on for a good while. In fact, when the ship actually went under there were still explosions that were taking place below deck. I don't know that I'm waiting to listen to see what might be taking place. I am eager to get off, and I make my way, then, to the port side and hung onto that rail and said my prayer before I entered into the water, and I knew, beyond any shadow of doubt, that the Lord had, through the Spirit, was bearing witness with my spirit that He was with me and that I would make it, somehow, some way. I know, later on, when I was interviewed, they asked me, "What were you thinking out there? Did you think that you were going to make it?" And I said, "I thought of the 30-day leave that I would get for being a survivor and be able to go home," because I hadn't been home for a good while, and I was thinking about going home, frankly. Bob: You had one what you've described as a kapok jacket, a life preserver, is that what that was? Ed: That's right. Bob: And I guess I'm wondering – were there lifeboats on board the ship? Were there ...
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    25 分
  • Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 3
    2019/11/05
    Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 1Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 2Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 3Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 4FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Out of the Depths Day 3 of 4 Guest: Ed Harrell From the Series: Survival in the South Pacific ________________________________________________________________ Bob: Sixty years ago this week, Ed Harrell was one of a few hundred men floating in the Pacific following the sinking of the USS Indianapolis. In the four days that he was afloat, Ed saw some of his fellow sailors drift away from the group to be eaten by sharks. Some who tried to swim toward an imaginary shore who never came back. For Ed, the memories are vivid. Ed: I can see it today, and I think maybe I'd like to look at it and say that the Lord reminds me, even today, of those incidents, and as He reminds me of those, then they help to strengthen my faith and my resolve to live a life for Him today. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Wednesday, August 3rd. Our host is the president of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. Where did Ed Harrell's hope come from when it appeared all reason for hope was gone? Stay with us. And welcome to FamilyLife Today, thanks for joining us. You know, we've heard a story this week, Dennis, about a ship under attack. And then we've heard about the ongoing horror and terror of living in the middle of the ocean, bundled up with your buddies, hooked with your lifejackets to one another as the sharks encircle you in the waters and wondering, "Does anyone even know we're out here or will we die at sea?" No food, no fresh water except for a thundercloud that comes by and gives you a little bit of a rain shower. You hear a story like this, and you wonder where does the will to survive in the midst of that come from? I think of myself and think, "When would I just lay my head back and say, "Okay, I'm ready to die. I'd rather do that than keep living like this." Dennis: Yes, in fact, there's a story that Ed Harrell, who joins us again on FamilyLife Today. Ed, welcome back to the broadcast. Ed: Thank you. Dennis: There's a story you tell, Ed, of a Marine buddy who was ready to do the very thing Bob was talking about. He was ready to quit, and you kind of – the picture I had from reading your book was you kind of grabbed him by the life jacket and looked him in the eyes, and you gave him a reason to believe. Ed: I pretty much gave him an ultimatum, really, in that he had tried to convince me that he was going to commit suicide. He'd gone into the water head first and all of that oil in his eyes and then, you know, you can imagine – you take your hand, and you try to rub that oil out, but the more you rub your eye, you're rubbing salt in, and you're kind of taking that salt that's in the water, you're grinding your eyeballs with that. And then the sun then, you know, beaming off of that water, then through the daytime. By the second day, Spooner was determined that he was going to commit suicide, and he mentioned that two or three times. Anyway, I recall that I just got ahold of Spooner, and I turned him to me, and I kind of looked him squarely in the eye, and I said, "Spooner, there's only two of we Marines out here, and whenever a sailor is gone, there's still going to be two Marines, and you're going to be one of them with me," and I kind of turned him to me, and I fashioned – hooked his lifejacket then onto mine, and I swam with him then through that night, and then – it was sometime then the third morning that he wanted me to release him, and he made a vow to me that he would fight for life as long as there was breath in him because of him being able to survive as long as he had through that night, and I released him, then, the next day. Bob: You and some 300 of your shipmates survived in the waters in the Pacific from the time that your boat was attacked just after midnight on the 30th of July in 1945 when the Indianapolis went under in about 15 minutes. You survived for a period of, what was it, four days, five days? Ed: It was four-and-a-half days, yes. Bob: And you survived that, as you've already shared with us this week, there was – was it just a single rain shower that passed over that gave you a little bit of water? Ed: Right, that's all the rain that we had the whole time I was out there, that's right. Bob: So you're in salt water, you had a few tablespoons of fresh water ...
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    25 分
  • Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 4
    2019/11/05
    Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 1Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 2Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 3Stranded in Shark Infested Waters - Part 4FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Out of the Depths Day 4 of 4 Guest: Ed Harrell From the Series: Ducks on the Pond: Rescued at Last________________________________________________________________ Bob: Sixty years ago this week, Ed Harrell and a number of other sailors were pulled from the Pacific. They had survived four-and-a-half days afloat after the sinking of the USS Indianapolis. It's four days that, as you might imagine, Ed Harrell has never been able to forget. Ed: I have not had nightmares. I've had many times that I've awakened and have a vivid scene of the happenings, and yet I think my counteraction to that is "Thank you, Lord, for sparing my life and for bringing me through all of this." Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Thursday, August 4th. Our host is the president of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey, and I'm Bob Lepine. We'll hear how God spared Ed Harrell's life today, and we'll hear a remarkable story about a rescue in the middle of the Pacific. And welcome to FamilyLife Today, thanks for joining us. You know, Hollywood has told some tales of castaways left on a desert island, folks surviving in the middle of nowhere, and I've seen some of those movies, and you watch them, and they're interesting. They have never come close to telling the story that we've heard this week. Dennis: No, I agree, Bob. Ed Harrell has been with us all this week and has told a story, a compelling story of how God enabled him to survive an ordeal at sea after being a crew member on the USS Indianapolis, which was sunk on the night of July 30, 1945, by a Japanese submarine, and, Ed, I want to thank you again for your service as a veteran, but also for writing this book and for taking us there and giving us a greater appreciation not just for veterans and what they've done to protect our freedom as Americans but also for taking us there and showing us what tough-minded faith in Almighty God looks like. Because time and time again you've taken us to vivid scenes where you've been at a fork in the road where you've had to trust God, and you'd been at sea for four days in a life jacket. You'd only had a few tablespoons of water. You had some rotten potatoes that had come after you'd prayed for some food; been separated from your buddies, and on the fourth day you are virtually alone. Ed: No question. Even with my buddy at the time and, in fact, there were three of us at the tail end there that fourth day and the one then dropped his head in the water, and he's gone, and then it's just McKissock and myself. And my mind, by now, is beginning to fail me somewhat in that – McKissock, I know, would say to me, "Hey, Marine, you ever been to the Philippines?" And, "No, I've never been there." Well, he had, and he promised to kind of take me under his wing when we got there. And yet I knew him. I knew who he was. I'd served under him, and he was a peach of a guy, and yet, to me, he was Uncle Edwin, and I called him Uncle Edwin. I had an uncle two years older than me. I guess I was thinking of the good times in my mind with someone back home, and yet McKissock was Uncle Edwin to me. And then it was sometime then that afternoon, you know, we had seen the planes, heard them at 30,000 feet, and I say to McKissock, "I hear a plane." And he said, "I hear one, too," and if you can imagine somewhat that you hear a plane, and you know that it's somewhere coming closer, and yet you don't know which direction it is. And we began to look all around and, finally, we could detect that it's coming from that direction. Dennis: Was it coming toward you? Ed: It was coming toward us, and it was flying about 8,000 feet and, well, what do you do? I tell you what you do. You scream, you splash water, you make all kinds of contortions there in the water, hoping and praying that he can see you. But here he is flying over us, and had he come any further, he would have gone over us, but when he got, like a quarter of a mile or so out here, flying at 8,000 feet, he headed it straight down toward us as if he knew we were there. But he didn't know we were there – impossible for him to see us. If we'd had on deer-hunter orange, and he knew we were there, he could not have seen us. In fact, the pilot that later picked us up, he said the possibility of him seeing ...
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    25 分
  • I Survived My Suicide - Part 1
    2019/11/05
    I Survived My Suicide - Part 1I Survived My Suicide - Part 2I Survived My Suicide - Part 3FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Life in Spite of MeDay 1 of 3 Guest: Kristen Jane Anderson From the Series: On the Edge of Hopelessness________________________________________________________________­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Bob: Kristen Jane Anderson was 17 years old and was ready for life…to be over. When she heard a ‘Freight Train’ approaching at the park where she was sitting; she decided to lay her body across the tracks. Kristen: When the train stopped I wasn’t sure if I was alive or dead. I remember just opening my eyes and unclenching my fists and starting to look around because I didn’t know what to think. I didn’t know what it was like to die! Obviously I just had no idea what to think. When I was looking around, I looked behind me; to my right…and I saw my legs about 10 feet behind me on my right. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Wednesday, September 8th. Our host is the President of FamilyLife and I am Bob Lepine. Kristen Jane Anderson joins with us today to share a remarkable story of survival and of faith. And welcome to FamilyLife Today! Thanks for joining us on the Wednesday edition. We are going to hear a remarkable story today. A story of where there is hope! Actually to start things off, I want to read a Bible verse. This is one of my favorite Bible verses. Dennis: I would feel better if you had a real Bible opened; I mean, instead of reading it off your iPhone. Bob: I love carrying this around. Dennis: You do! You really do! You get a grin on your face when you scroll down to the passage Bob: It is a little awkward when I am up front in my church reading from my iphone, but it is…. Dennis: You do it there too? Bob: Yeah! This is the way I read my Bible now. And I love it! Dennis: Okay! Bob: 1 Peter 2:9 says, “You are a chosen race a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for His own possession …. ‘(And this is the part that I love)’ …….that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” I think the story we are going to hear about this week is one of those out of darkness into marvelous light stories. Dennis: I think you are right, Bob, and I think that our listeners; regardless if they are dealing with something troubling or challenging in their lives right now or rather if things are going well, they need to hear this story. It is the story of a young lady who joins us on FamilyLife Today, Kristen Jane Anderson, joins us today on FamilyLife Today. Kristen, welcome to the broadcast! Kristen: Thank you for having me on. Dennis: Kristen is a graduate of Moody, almost; right? Kristen: Right! Dennis: Almost a graduate of Moody Bible Institute! She is a popular speaker to college students and women’s events all around the country. She has been featured on Oprah, which we had some fun talking about before we came on the air here. Bob: She was comparing you and Oprah …wasn’t she? Dennis: She was! She was! She was…. And you actually asked her, “which was a bigger treat, to be on our broadcast …… or her (Oprah) TV program? Bob: And let’s move on shall we? Dennis: She has written a book called, Life In Spite of Me. I am just going to cut right to the chase here. Kristen, I am going to ask you to take us to January 2. You were in a park and it was dark and it was icy cold there and it was the most dramatic day of your life. Kristen: Yes! I was at the park and I was there because I didn’t feel like I could go home. I didn’t want to go home. I didn’t want to get in trouble and I thought I was going to disappoint my parents again. I was at the park just kind of trying to waste time and to figure out what I was going to do next and I was swinging on the swings and as I was there I started to think about why I was there. Why did I feel like I couldn’t go home? Why did I feel the way that I did inside? I was struggling and then I remembered that in the park that I was in that you were supposed to be out of the park after the sun goes down. I knew that the police come and patrol the park and if you’re in the park after dark they make you leave. The reason I was there is that I didn’t want to go home, so I looked around to see where else I could go and I saw that there had been a set of train cars parked on the edge of the park. I knew that they had been there for about 3 weeks. I walked over to the train cars and I sat on one of them. Then I started to think about a thought process that I had had about 3 months beforehand. It was after one of my friends had taken his ...
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    29 分
  • I Survived My Suicide - Part 2
    2019/11/05
    I Survived My Suicide - Part 1I Survived My Suicide - Part 2I Survived My Suicide - Part 3FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Life in Spite of MeDay 2 of 3 Guest: Kristen Jane Anderson From the Series: A Flicker of Hope________________________________________________________________­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Bob: When she was 17 years old, Kristen Jane Anderson sought to end her life by lying across a railroad track as the train was approaching. Miraculously, she survived; although her legs were severed. She was soon to realize that God had a purpose for her life. Kristen: Three months after I lost my legs, I was out of the hospital. We went back to church that Sunday. A woman came up to me who had heard about what happened to me. She told me that I would have gone to hell if I died. It was very difficult at the time, but I am very grateful that she was that bold at the time because it helped me see my need for Him. It helped me think about where I would have gone eternally. “If I had died, where would I go?” I had never thought about it more than at that time in my life. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Thursday, September 9th. Our host is the President of FamilyLife Dennis Rainey, and I’m Bob Lepine. Kristen Jane Anderson joins us today to share a story of beauty from ashes and redemption from tragedy. Welcome to FamilyLife Today; thanks for joining us. I have read the statistics about teenage suicide, about teens who overdose on a handful of pills from the medicine cabinet or who do violence to themselves in some way to take their own lives. Dennis: Right. Bob: I don’t know that I have ever heard a story like the one we are hearing this week. Dennis: Yes. We have a guest with us this week who is willing to tell a profound story, quite a drama. Kristen Jane Anderson joins us on FamilyLife Today. Welcome back. Kristen: Thank you. Dennis: Kristen, you have written a book called Life, In Spite of Me. As our listeners heard earlier, that really is an understatement. A lot of things had taken place in your life that had left you hopeless, right? Kristen: Yes. A lot of things happened. Dennis: Yes. Your father was struggling from depression as you grew up as a little girl and as a teenager. You had three friends, as a teenager, who lost their lives—one to suicide. You had a couple of guys stalking you—one who raped you. You were hopeless and no one knew it. Kristen: No. My family especially knew something was wrong with me because it wasn’t in my character to not come home when I was supposed to. I had started drinking and smoking and things like that. That wasn’t anything I had done before. I also stopped playing soccer. That was something that I loved to do, and so they knew something was wrong with me. They just didn’t know how much was wrong inside and how I was feeling. Bob: You say they knew something was wrong. If you were to look back and say, “There had been something going back in my heart and soul for a month...three months...six months.” What? Kristen: I think that it was a lot going on that whole period of time, but I think the last six months before my attempt were the worst. I think I just kind of died inside. I didn’t care about my life or anything anymore. I drove around hoping somebody would hit me. I wanted my life to end. I didn’t want to take it, though. People would ask me how I was doing. I would say, “I’m here.’ Kind of like, “Isn’t that good enough?” I had just a much more negative and a little bit of a bitter attitude. That wasn’t my normal demeanor, but at the same time I still had a smile on my face. So people really were confused. Bob: Here it is the second day of the New Millennium, January 2, 2000. It is a cold day. You left the house, sitting in a park, just thinking about life. The impulse—really—it was an impulse hits you. Dennis: Yes. I want to make a comment about that because I have read this before that a number of suicides that occur among young people are done, not in a sense of really thinking it through, but just deciding at the spur of the moment. Kristen: Right. For me, it was. I could never have made that as a rational decision. If I was going to do it, it would have had to be impulsive. I think that most people would think that way. I think most kids, especially. They know that suicide is wrong. They can never rationalize it enough to think it is okay or it is right. Bob: You didn’t think about writing a note saying, “It’s all over.” You didn’t have time. Kristen: No. I didn’t have time and I wasn’t worried about other people. I was in a very selfish ...
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    25 分
  • I Survived My Suicide - Part 3
    2019/11/04
    I Survived My Suicide - Part 1I Survived My Suicide - Part 2I Survived My Suicide - Part 3FamilyLife Today® Radio TranscriptReferences to conferences, resources, or other special promotions may be obsolete. Life in Spite of MeDay 3 of 3 Guest: Kristen Jane Anderson From the Series: And Then God...________________________________________________________________­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Bob: At age 17, Kristen Jane Anderson survived a suicide attempt. Today, more than ten years later, she has a powerful message for those who find themselves in despair. Kristen: If you’re struggling with pain in your life or with suicidal thoughts or with depression, I want you to know that there’s a reason you are here, that God created you for a purpose. No matter what you’re going through, it’s temporary. You’re not alone. He has tremendous plans for us, every single one of us. Nobody is an accident including you. There is a reason you’re here. So, I just want to encourage you to hold on, to seek God with all of your heart, and I know that you will find Him. He will bring you out of the depths of despair like he has me. Bob: This is FamilyLife Today for Friday, September 10th. Our host is the President of FamilyLife, Dennis Rainey and I'm Bob Lepine. Kristen Anderson joins us today to give a reason for the hope that is within her. And welcome to FamilyLife Today, thanks for joining us. We’ve been hearing a remarkable story of God’s redeeming work in the heart and the life of a young woman this week. A young woman who attempted suicide by laying across railroad tracks, and miraculously, God spared her life. But, I’m just thinking, here we are at a point in the unfolding of this story where all of a sudden, life has meaning and purpose, joy and hope. There’s just this one bummer, and that is, “I don’t have legs anymore.” I don’t mean to sound crass or trivial about it but… Dennis: It’s the result of what took place. Bob: Here is hope re-dawning but, I’m in a wheelchair with no legs. Life is going to be very different from here on out because of a decision I made—an impulsive decision—trying to end my own life. Dennis: Well, that young lady joins us again on FamilyLife Today; she’s the author of the book, Life in Spite Of Me. Kristen Jane Anderson joins us again on FamilyLife Today, Kristen welcome back. I just have to tell you, I really appreciate your willingness to go back and revisit some very painful moments both emotionally and physically as you shared about that attempt at suicide. Kristen: Thank you; I really appreciate you having me on. Dennis: I wanted to ask you, just as you have processed the loss of your legs like Bob is talking about here, people who lose a limb experience what’s called “phantom pain”? Kristen: Yes. Dennis: Or they have the feeling, the phantom is as though their legs are still there? Kristen: Right. Dennis: Do you experience that? Kristen: Yes. I always feel like my legs are still there. It’s really interesting. It’s not like they feel normal or anything. But it feels like they’re still there. It’s very interesting. Bob: Are there times you’ll wake up in the middle of the night and without stopping to think about it, think “I’ll just swing my legs out and get up out of bed”? Kristen: Not as often as I used to. In the beginning I used to always be really surprised by my wheelchair next to my bed. But now I’m pretty used to it. Every once in a while I’ll think, “I want to go for a run.” Or something like that, that I can’t do any more. Bob: The thing that I keep thinking about here is, at a point when your life experienced a radical transformation, you trusted Christ, you began to understand what it means to follow Him and to give your life to Him, and you’re a new creation in Christ. The thing is, the old you had legs, the new you doesn’t. Kristen: Right. Bob: How do you process that? Kristen: The thing that helped me the most was learning that I was whole in Christ, whether or not I had legs isn’t what made me whole. He was more than enough for all of me, I didn’t need anything more. The more that I trusted Him, and I put my faith in Him, the more I just felt whole. I realized I was going to fine without my legs. I was going to be fine as long as I had Him. I didn’t need them as much as I needed Him. Dennis: You said before we came into the studio, that you’ve been working with—is it a physician who creates prosthetics? Kristen: Yes, he’s called a prosthetist. Dennis: You’ve been working with him for four years? Kristen: Longer actually.Dennis: Actually longer than that? Yet, it’s interesting to see your demeanor. You have some opinions about why they have not been ...
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    25 分
  • Shot Down in Vietnam - The Bruce Bickel Story
    2019/11/04

    No Transcript Available

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    25 分