Free Wheelchair Mission

As we continue in Mobility Awareness Month, I wanted to share a website with you all. My friend Brad shared this with me earlier and I was so excited! I wnant to be involved in this more than just donating money but it's a place to start. I'll let their website mission and vision speak for itself but basically they have manufactured a wheelchair out of cheap products to give to people in other countries who need it for a mere $63.94. Now just so we're clear, I generally spend about $2500. This is an awesome mission they have!!! Read more here: http://www.freewheelchairmission.org/site/c.fgLFIXOJKtF/b.4916275/k.BE91/Home.htm

I encourage you to give and help others!!!

Semi-Finalist!!!!

So if you haven't already seen in my million faceboook posts, I have been in a contest which is promoting Mobility Awareness Month to win an adapted vehicle. The contest ran for 43 days with a steady enrollment. Over 1,600 people submitted their stories of needs for a van, my story being one of them. In order to be a semi-finalist and further considered for one of the vehicle, you had to be within the top 10 percent of voters. They really had no idea how many people would join the contest so they had no way of tracking who was in the top 10 percent because the more people joined, the more people that were in the top 10 percent. Let me tell you I was amazed at how many people I had behind me and supporting me in this contest. I cannot even say enough thanks and will dedicate an entire post to that so be on the lookout.

So what is next?

Since I made it to the top 10 percent, an individual committee is reviewing our profiles. And to my understanding they will make the decision from there as to who they give the three vans to.

I go through moments of completely thinking I got this and other moments of I've never will win this. It's actually an awesome picture of giving all of my control and hopes to God rather than trying to control it myself. I literally can't do anything else to help in the decision making but pray. I know I have put this up before I'll remind myself: "11 For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11 NIV


God has it all planned out and I need to rest in that promise.


I'll keep you all up to date. Thanks for your votes.
Bek

What Faith Can do

This morning I was really encouraged by this song and it calmed my nerves. With the van contest I've been super nervous to win but this helped bring things back to perspective and more important back to God. Look up a video and read these lyrics. Be encouraged.

What Faith Can Do:
Everybody falls sometimes
Gotta find the strength to rise
From the ashes
And make a new beginning

Anyone can feel the ache
You think it's more than you can take
But you're stronger
Stronger than you know

Don't you give up now
The sun will soon be shining
You gotta face the clouds
To find the silver lining

I've seen dreams that move the mountains
Hope that doesn't ever end
Even when the sky is falling
I've seen miracles just happen
Silent prayers get answered
Broken hearts become brand new
That's what faith can do

It doesn't matter what you've heard
Impossible is not a word
It's just a reason
For someone not to try

Everybody's scared to death
When they decide to take that step
Out on the water
It'll be alright

Life is so much more
Than what your eyes are seeing
You will find your way
If you keep believing

I've seen dreams that move the mountains
Hope that doesn't ever end
Even when the sky is falling
I've seen miracles just happen
Silent prayers get answered
Broken hearts become brand new
That's what faith can do

Overcome the odds
You don't have a chance
(That's what faith can do)
When the world says you can't
It'll tell you that you can

I've seen dreams that move the mountains
Hope that doesn't ever end
Even when the sky is falling
And I've seen miracles just happen
Silent prayers get answered
Broken hearts become brand new
That's what faith can do
That's what faith can do

Even if you fall sometimes
You will have the strength to rise

Series: 10 lame Questions

So I've come up with a focus to the blog - aka living and loving life in a wheelchair. I am constantly saying "failing to plan is to planning to fail." And this is kind of what I have been doing with my blog and that changes today. I am reading this new blogger, Jeff Goins, and really like his feedback and suggestions on how to grow as a writer Last night I was also thinking this through and realized beyond the focus of living and loving life in a wheelchair to inform and bring about awareness to others of what it is like to live in the wheels of me. I needed a series to keep my focus and hopefully capture an audience.

So , I came up with "10 lame questions." And yes that is supposed to be funny.

They are two common reactions people portray when they begin to become my friend. Often times either they choose to not ask any questions for a long time and basically until I bring it up. The second reaction or response I get is the asking tons, some may be inappropriate questions about how I shower, get into cars, and what I have (often times when this question is asked, I want to say I have wheelchair!). What response do I appreciate more? Hmmm...I would say it tends to depend on the situation but most of the time, the second response.

Ultimately these questions are going to be asked whether I've known you for 5 minutes or 5 years. I still have my friends who have known me forever asking these questions so maybe it's better to just ask them at the beginning. I mean it makes for a heck of an icebreaker which I think can cause for a closer relationship.
What question has been bugging you since knowing me and let me answer it!! I have the first couple planned but open to suggestions and questions.

Momentary Marriage Video

My sister shared this video with me and told me to be prepared with tissues. I didn't believe her but I was downright bawling in it. Please take a few minutes from John Piper's Desiring God blog to watch the touching story of Ian and Larissa.

Rollin in the rain

It's been a very rainy spring this year. Like I feel like I am living in Florida because it probably rains once a day. In the evenings, I often roll either around town, to the bank, to starbucks, etc. Often times I will get stuck in the rain and sometimes even lightening storms. I get yelled at to not roll around in those kind of storms. My response, "What it's not like I am pushing around a big metal thing...oh wait." Will you help me avoid rolling around in these kind of storms by voting for me to win an adapted van here? We have only one more week to vote and then the judges decide!!! It would be extremely awesome to win one of the three - Use a promo code: 889, 890, 891, etc.!!! THANKS!!!

Wheels & Writin'

Over the past 6 months I haven't written much in my blog. One reason being, I didn't have a personal laptop - the other being I was on a journey.
*cute dramatic voice* I was on an epic quest. I have always loved writing and not long after graduating college decided
To start a blog. I am going to be rich and famous through this blog - I decided but with little direction. So I needed to figure out what the focus on my blog would be.

(This isn't a bad thing, mind you. Direction and definition are key components to a life.)
In my mind, it needed to be important, special, uber-spiritual, and ultra famous. You know what I ended up doing on this journey? Nothing. Yup absolutely nothing. I pretended to be contemplating my ultimate purpose but really I just was not writing. Reading other blogs for sure but not my own. I wanted to be the subject-matter-expert on something but I didn't know what. I wanted to wow and bedazzle people with my wit. I didn't want to fail or have an unread blog. So I had a non-blog. A pretend place where I could look at it occasionally and be like-" seem, I write sometimes."

Really my blog did have a focus with the title I gave it but I pretended to want to write more than just being in a wheelchair because I am more than just a person in a wheelchair. Yet God has given me great passion and desire that He has placed me in a wheelchair in life to share His story and how much my physical weakness is a picture of how our human race weakness is in need of His great strength and grace. Why should I try and find some other niche to write about like baking or something else I clearly can't do. (P.s. there is nothing wrong with baking blogs - I love them and what people create from them) But I am officially embracing my wheels and writin' focus and moving forward. It encompasses so much off my life that I promise it won't just be, "so…. today I wheeled out of my room and my left wheel fell off!" So here I go troking, wheeling, rolling, strolling, sitting, and all the other words I can possibly use AND loving life!!

Come journey with me if you choose!