“I have this unfading hope that, despite my injuries, I will live out God’s purpose for my life.”
– Glenn, South Africa
The last thing I remember before my accident is the car idling in the driveway. It was 2008 and I’d arrived home late and a bit tipsy after attending a friend’s wedding. Pulling up, I noticed the remote to the automatic gate wasn’t working so I decided to scale the 2-meter wall and open it from the other side. When I reached the top, I lost my footing and fell headfirst onto the cobblestone paving below. I cracked my skull and broke my neck. I was unconscious for six days. When I woke up, I felt as though I was in a straight jacket. I couldn’t breathe, swallow, or talk on my own. It was terrifying. Later, doctors came into the ICU with bad news. ‘You will be on a ventilator for the rest of your life,’ they told me. ‘And you may have to be institutionalized.’ The news was devastating. I had always been active and now I was a quadriplegic. ‘What about my five-year-old son,’ I recall thinking and ‘what chance do I have of being in a relationship again?’ I was such a lost soul. What got me through were visits from my pastor, who was helping me work through my divorce, plus being able to watch Christian TV. That’s where I first heard Pastor Brian Houston preaching. Years later, I discovered Hillsong Channel and I was so excited. On days when I am in chronic pain and on nights when I can’t sleep, I’ll switch on Hillsong Channel and immediately feel comforted and strengthened. If I can’t make it to church, I’ll watch the Channel. It’s what has kept my spirits alive. God has been incredibly faithful, and He’s worked so many miracles. Getting off my ventilator and being able to swallow is the biggest miracle of all. Surviving double pneumonia and three cardiac incidents in the hospital was a medical miracle, and it’s a miracle I was able to break a three-year opioid addiction. In 2012, I was baptized. I’m a member of Hillsong South Africa and hosting a connect group at my house. I have this unfading hope that, despite my injuries, I will live out God’s purpose for my life. I hold on tightly to Brian’s message: The best is yet to come!
Bishop James, USA
“It was the ministry of Hillsong Channel and music that helped us heal.”
David, USA
“I became a Hillsong Team Box supporter because I love the idea that spreading the gospel is a team effort.”