by Tripp Johnston and Brian Davidson
6 January 2006
I met Joshua on my visit to Nigeria. He attended a meeting we hosted for about 200 Christian leaders interested in learning more about sports ministry. Joshua was one of the first people to arrive for the meeting, but unlike anyone else at the conference, he arrived being pulled on a small, handcrafted wooden wagon. You see, Joshua is severely handicapped; in fact, he is the most physically handicapped person I have ever met.

Joshua has a normal sized head and chest, but everything else seems deformed. He has small withered arms and hands, and his torso ends at his waist with no legs. Joshua can't sit up on his wagon because he doesn't have a lap. He lies on his wagon in the same position day and night. Even before I met Joshua, I was touched by the love and commitment of three teenage boys who were his companions. They pulled his wagon, dabbed the sweat off his brow, and held the Bible in front of his face where he could see it and read it.

Brian and I went over to meet Joshua before the conference started. We wanted to hear his story and understand why he was attending a conference focused on sports ministry. We were amazed at his story!

Joshua runs a sports ministry program called Joshua's Soccer Academy. He works with 30 boys, ages 8 to 15. He has recruited all of the boys from his neighborhood and an able-bodied coach to work with them. After each soccer practice, all of the boys gather around Joshua's wagon, and Joshua teaches them from the Word of God. As one of the boys holds the Bible in front of Joshua's face, he explains the love of God and how Jesus can bring them joy and purpose just as He has in Joshua's own life.

As Joshua relayed his story, I was totally overwhelmed that this severely handicapped young man would minister to athletic teenagers through soccer, a sport he had never, and would never, play. I was touched and challenged by Joshua's attitude. He radiated the love of God; he had no hint of anger or bitterness towards God; he lived his life to make a difference in the lives of the boys on his soccer team! In fact, he encouraged us to come to Nigeria and use the powerful platform of sports to help change the nation for the glory of God!

Brian and I were so impressed by this young man that we went and visited him several days later at the soccer field where his boys were practicing. We had the chance to observe his team, to share a message with the boys, and to encourage Joshua by presenting him with a new soccer ball. It was obvious how much the boys loved and respected Joshua. A group of boys not yet old enough to be on Joshua's team gathered around Joshua's wagon as the older boys played. They talked with Joshua and held his little withered hands.

As I have thought about Joshua and his story, I have thought about how often I want to tell God that I am not qualified or able to do something He is leading me to do. Lord, I'm not a preacher or theologian. How can I be a missionary? How can I help lead a sports ministry when I have no sports ministry experience? How can I move to Africa when I have three teenagers? When God called Moses to lead His people out of Egypt, Moses said that he was slow of speech and tongue and to please send someone else to do this work. But God said, ". . . Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say."

Imagine the arguments Joshua could have used with God. God, how can I minister to athletes when I only have half a body? Lord, I can't even read from a Bible without someone to hold it for me! Lord, surely there is someone else better qualified and able to do this work. Yet, Joshua has fully surrendered his life to the work of the Lord and has said, "Lord, here am I; use me." And God is using Joshua in a powerful way. He can work through even the weakest of vessels to bring glory to His name.