Nick Vujicic to Share the “Power of Becoming” at Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast

Nick-VujicicPicture a man who has no arms or legs balancing on a surf board as he cuts through the waves with a grin from ear to ear, and you will catch a glimpse into the zest for life that exudes from Nick Vujicic, an inspirational speaker and international evangelist who is capturing the hearts of youth and adults worldwide.

Questions about Nick Vujicic

“People say to me, ‘How can you smile?’ Then they realize there’s got to be more to life than meets the eye if a guy without arms and legs is living a fuller life than I am,” said Vujicic.

The bestselling author of Life Without Limbs, Vujicic will speak on the “Power of Becoming” at the 53rd Annual Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast at 7:30 a.m. on March 19 at the Broward County Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale. With a passion for the next generation, Vujicic speaks out against depression and teen suicide. He shares the message that “You are loved and have meaning and worth.”

Born in adversity

Vujicic was born in Melbourne, Australia, in 1982 with no arms and no legs. His parents had no idea that he would be missing “a few bits and pieces” as his mother was known to say, and at first it was a shock to them. There was no medical reason for it.

As a result Vujicic had to overcome much adversity. His parents did their best to keep him in the mainstream school system and to give him every opportunity to live a full life. Yet at age eight, Vujicic said he could not see a bright future ahead for himself.

“How could I support myself and have a family? I couldn’t imagine any woman wanting to marry someone who could not hold their child and provide for them,” Vujicic thought. He became depressed and even attempted to end his own life by drowning in a bathtub, but could not bring himself to hurt his family.

Receiving an answer

After many years of asking God, “Why was I born this way,” God answered Vujicic very clearly through John Chapter 9. “I gave my life to Jesus at 15 after reading about how Jesus came across a man who was blind from birth and no one knew why he was born that way. I thought, ‘hold on a second this is interesting.’ Then in verse three of the ninth chapter, Jesus said, ‘it was done so the works of God would be revealed through him.’ And I was like, ‘Wow, God! If you had a plan for that blind man, you do have a plan for me.’ That was the beginning of my personal relationship with Jesus.”

A passion ignited
When he was 17, a janitor at Vujicic’s high school inspired him to start speaking about his faith and overcoming adversity. Two years later he found himself nervously appearing in front of 300 sophomore students. Within minutes most of the girls were crying and one girl, who was sobbing heavily, raised her hand and said, “I’m so sorry to interrupt, but can I come up and hug you.” As she sobbed on Vujicic’s shoulder, she whispered in his ear, “Thank you, thank you, thank you. No one has ever told me that they loved me and that I am beautiful the way I am.”

Her gratitude inspired Vujicic. “I couldn’t believe it. It changed my life and at that moment I knew that God was ministering to her through me. It’s not by my speech or my power. It was God, and my heart was ignited with a passion. It was an awesome day to see one soul transformed forever. That was when I knew I was called to be a worldwide evangelist.”

In the first seven years of his ministry Vujicic has had opportunities to speak more than 2,000 times in 44 countries over six continents. He has spoken on university campuses, to 40,000 students in China, to sex slaves in India, to crowds in the jungle, in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, to leaders in Columbia and Costa Rica, in Korea and the Eastern European countries of Serbia, Croatia and Sylvania. He has even had open doors in the Middle East and the Arab world.

Through his ministry Life without Limbs, Vujicic has seen half a million souls say yes to Jesus and connect to a local church, and his goal is to preach to every single soul in the world, which amounts to 7 billion people.

Connecting with youth

Vujicic’s story is one of redemption, and he is bringing a message to the next generation that they can overcome depression and suicide, they should never give up and they can live a life without limits. In his latest book, Stand Strong,Vujicic shares his struggles during adolescence when he was faced with bullying and sends a message that today’s youth can stand strong and step up to stop bullying.

“I realized that we all need love and hope and that I was in a unique position to share that with people around the world,” he said.

Soon youth groups were starting to call, churches were starting to call and opportunities were opening everywhere for him to share his testimony.

“Faith, whether it is faith in yourself and your purpose or faith in your Creator, is a powerful beacon, but you have to let its light shine. You cannot let it be dimmed by neglect,” said Vujicic. “At one time I had allowed my faith to become like a car in neutral. It was there, but it was not engaged. Having faith in yourself and your abilities is critical, but you must have the patience, humility and understanding that you cannot do anything without the help of others. In the end, all credit goes to God.”

For more information about the Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast and how to purchase tickets, visit www.ftlpray.org.

For more articles by Shelly Pond, please visit goodnewsfl.org/author/shelly/

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