At the age of 23, one year after studying agriculture at UBC, I had purchased my own agricultural business, and had firm plans for a major expansion. Young, aggressive and full of new knowledge, my goals and priorities were first and foremost my business, cars, and sports.
March 19th, 1971 was a beautiful day—my work was nearly done and I was anticipating an evening with friends. With only one thing left to do before my work day was over, I was surprised that my newest piece of equipment had broken down again. So, 30 feet up a ladder I went to repair and restart the machine. I pressed the button and the massive chain started to turn. Relieved that the repair had been a simple one, I stepped over the chain to make my way back down the ladder, but my pants got caught. Almost immediately my pant leg was dragged into the chain and it tore at my leg like a massive grinder. “God, Help!" was my first reaction. The pain was excruciating and in that moment of powerlessness, a hundred thoughts went through my head: “Was I going to make it—did I still have a purpose on earth or was my time up?" I felt myself go faint and knew that I was staring death in the face and in that moment, I felt the closeness of God that I knew I would not experience again until that day when I will meet Him face to face.
God had a plan for me.
What happened in the next minutes was God’s doing. Somehow I managed to get out of that machine through jammed doors and get down the 30 ft ladder while attempting to staunch the flow of blood from my mangled leg. I dragged myself across the dirty cattle yard to a phone. As a neighbor rushed me to the hospital, I prayed that God would heal my leg because, without it, I did not want to live. Then darkness set in.
When I awoke the next day, my Mom and Dad were standing by my bed. The outcome of that long night in the operating room was evident in their tear-filled eyes. It was gone: my leg, my sports, my dreams of expansion, my touch football on Sunday afternoon with my friends, and so many other things. I felt like life could not get any worse and the days that followed would be the darkest of my life.
As I lay in my hospital bed over the next weeks, I nursed my despair until one day a man stood on his wooden leg at my hospital bed and spoke some of the most hurtful words I would ever hear: “Life is going to be hard and painful—with no short cuts; there will be many hard days—days you can’t even walk–but if you choose to, you will see the grace of God."
These hurtful words changed my life.
The process was harder than I would have ever expected. It took four months of intensive rehabilitation before I received my first prosthesis, and the complete physical and mental healing process took years. But it was during this painful process that I totally committed my life to Jesus.
Little did I know that when I prayed for His will to be done, His answer would be one I would never have expected. And little did I expect that through the agony of His answer I would find such joy.
Through my constant communication with God over the next months, I felt him saying: “DON’T CONCENTRATE ON WHAT YOU HAVE LOST – CONCENTRATE ON WHAT YOU HAVE LEFT."
What did I have left? LIFE! When one has been so close to death, the wonder of life never leaves. It is a daily reminder that every minute on this earth is a gift from a loving God.
It’s amazing how a life can turn around.
What changed because of March of 1971? Everything. It changed my priorities: first my God, then my wife, my family, my neighbors, and then my job. My merciful God gave me a chance to reorder my life, and that chance has made all the difference in my life. The amount of time spent with my family has brought more rewards than I could have ever wished for. It is their encouragement and support that has allowed us to enjoy activities like swimming, camping, skiing, and our family business despite my physical challenges.
I am grateful for the way God has changed me through my leg amputation. It taught me the greatest lessons of my life. Everyday I wake up grateful for one more day. The pain and struggle forces me every day, moment by moment, to lean on God, family and neighbors whether I like it or not. But most of all it taught me that although he doesn’t necessarily protect me from pain, and can sometimes even seem nonexistent or out of reach, He sees me, comforts me, and remembers me. And I know that His Grace is sufficient for any challenge that this life brings.
For me, I want to make sure the rest of my time on earth is well lived, for the question is not how much time I have to live, but what I will do with that time.
I would challenge you to ask yourself: if this was your last day or year on earth, how would you live it? What thoughts would run through your mind? What would steer your actions? Would you choose to change your priorities? Choose today to allow Christ to prove himself in your life and allow Him to guide your steps. You will never regret it.
