I really admire Nick Vujicic. He has redefined masculinity for the modern world: what it is to be a real man. Courage is masculinity; and I do not mean that ego-centric type of foolhardy bravado that is always on display in stupid reality shows, or the annoying machismo and chest thumping of the NFL, or the over-sexed narcissism in those softcore male underwear advertisements. I am praising the type of masculinity displayed by Nick: the Love of Jesus and knowing (humbly) that all strength comes from Him. Here are some favorite excerpts from an interview Nick did last year:
“...last year I spoke at a church and there was this little boy with no arms and no legs. The doctors had told his parents, "We don't now why he was born that way. He's going to be a vegetable for the rest of his life. He's not going to walk, he's not going to go to school, and he's not going to do anything. They had no idea of any other baby that was born that way. Then, I just happened to be at their church last year and there we were. The father brought him up on stage and you could hear a pin drop in front of three thousand people. They all started clapping because they saw a miracle with their own eyes...I have no arms and no legs and no matter what pain I go though, I can be a miracle to someone else and my hope is nothing less than my salvation in Jesus Christ. You can pop out my eyes, take off my nose, pull out my tongue, chop off my ears and burn my body, but you can never take away my salvation, joy and peace that I have inside...It's not that I don't have fear. Fear has zero affect on me, because my courage is bigger than my fear. Courage is not the absence of fear. Courage is being able to do things even when you are afraid, not relying on your strength, but on God's strength.”