2005 was a very different year for us in many ways. Just after returning from an exciting and successful mission trip to Nicaragua, we received a call: the call parents dread. Our son had suffered a motorcycle accident and was in the hospital. Thank the Lord, it wasn’t as terrible as we had first imagined but broken wrists, a fractured leg, and a torn ACL tendon is bad enough. To help him recover during this difficult and trying time, we drove the twenty-five hundred mile trip from Chicago to San Diego.
During our stay in CA, which stretched to a couple of months, our normal busy lifestyle & activities were limited. This allowed Martha more time to communicate by e-mail with our many friends and the people we had just met in Nicaragua; sending inspirational materials for them to read.
A couple of them began sending Power Point Slide Shows to us with catchy, interesting messages on a variety of subjects; some about God, others about politics, humor & some just plain, silly stuff. I thought, “Wow! Wouldn’t it be terrific if we could make slide shows from the beautiful, inspirational messages we have?” We should do that! Only one problem: I’d never worked with PowerPoint & was clueless where to start. Brian had some knowledge of the program & taught me to use it a bit, yet we didn’t do much with it right then.
Once back in Chicago, the afflictions began…one after another. I suffered from Labyrinthitis & vertigo off & on for a few months. Then the doctor found a mass in my breast that had to be removed. Other minor health problems popped up here & there, too. Definitely, it was a trying time but my faith muscles were being strengthened.
I became frustrated, discouraged, & felt useless because I was unable to participate in most of my usual activities. It was then that the story of Tommy occurred to me; the crippled boy that found a way to share the Gospel with others despite his limitations. I’d read that story many times before but this time it became so real and spoke personally to me. I could truly identify with Tommy & the way God had showed him to be useful because now God had showed me how, in my present condition, to reach out to others.
That’s what sparked this ‘cyber’ ministry of “Tommy’s Window” and since that beginning we, Brian & I, have been producing PPS (Power Point Slide Shows) & sending them out weekly to a network of fellow missionaries & friends. After five years, it has grown and we now have thousands of subscribers around the world receiving the Tommy’s Window slideshows every week. Many of these dear persons, in turn, pass the slideshows on to their friends, which causes a continuing chain reaction that has the potential to reach, and has been reaching, even the uttermost parts of the earth.
These slideshows (PPS) messages are power-packed with illustrated messages to enlighten hearts & minds with God’s love & truth. We may not know now how far any of these messages go initially, or the total effect they’re having but we have had people write us from the far ends of the earth where they have received them. There is something we do know for sure: God’s Word never returns void & it will always accomplish His purpose. His Word in the Bible says, “As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” (Isaiah 55:10-11)
For us, all the labor and costs involved in preparing and distributing the messages via email and our website are worth it because we know they contain words of life that are encouraging countless souls and guiding them to the One Who makes a world of difference in your life when you receive Him into your life!
You too can help us get out the Word by sharing these messages with your friends and family, or anyone you believe may appreciate them. You can also help with your support. Simply follow the link ‘Support Tommy’s Window’ or ‘Donate’. Thank you so much & may the Lord bless you for doing your part.
Martha