With dreams of becoming a rich dentist, traveling the world on holidays and playing golf on Wednesdays, Barry Funnell, who loved bodybuilding and being the class clown was in his second year of school when all of that changed. He and a buddy wanted to impress some girls, so they decided to climb onto the roof of a gymnasium which was adjacent to the female dormitory. Unable to find an opening, they decided to turn back. That’s when Barry’s foot slipped through a skylight.

Hours later Barry woke up in the hospital with his spinal cord completely severed. Unable to feel his legs, his thoughts raced back to his days as a boy when he gave his life to Christ, was baptized by his dad and then how he ran away from God to pursue all sorts of other pleasures. He was haunted by the thought that he had never shared the love of Jesus with anyone. He had been “too cool” for that, he realized. He laid in the hospital for weeks and months reading his Bible, recommitting his life to Christ and leaning on God for encouragement.

“Lying paralyzed in my hospital bed, I recommitted my life fully to God. I repented of my wrongdoings, my pride. I asked God to forgive me and to pick up the broken pieces of my life and use me as he saw fit. I felt embarrassed that I had so often endangered myself due to seeking an adrenaline rush and wanting to impress others instead of living my life for him. My spinal cord completely severed, I had to face the prospect of spending the rest of my life in a wheelchair. A major part of my rehab was gaining the ability to empty my bladder via self-catheterization and also to evacuate my bowel manually. I can say this was, and still is, the most difficult and awkward aspect of paraplegia.”

In preparing for some really neat things at PrayFit, including the new education center - PrayFit U - to help fund the charity and the new wheelchair campaign - The Wheelhouse - for the purpose of wheelchair purchases and distribution, I came across the story of Barry. I’ve been diving deep into the subject of weakness and how God uses the weak, and how Paul and Job and Jacob and Moses all had disabilities or chronic illnesses to reveal God’s power and to help them realize their smallness and dependence. Fascinating. I think we all have the tendency to go through life searching for our strengths that we fail to realize we’re looking too hard.

Guys, my team and I are trying some things far too big for us unless God is in them. All of our efforts are to support the non-profit so that we can continue the mission of bringing the fitness industry to the doorstep of disability. But it’s not to rescue those impacted with special needs, but to be rescued ourselves. That conversation is for another time, but I covet your prayers as we begin unveiling our work.

As far as Barry, well, in his fourth year of dental studies he met his future wife Julia. They became medical missionaries but grew a passion for Bible translation. “People do need good health and strong teeth, but we sensed our passion was to instead give them a lasting gift; the Word of God which will never pass away.”

Along with their three adopted children, they have checked over fifty different Bible translations for accuracy and travel to South East Asia and Africa ten times a year. He relies on God to help him in every situation in developing countries. From waiting on buses or in getting help on airplanes, his dependence on God in the mundane only grows his faith. He once hand-cycled 1600km to raise money for Bible translation. It took him 23 days.

“My joy in life does not come from being physically fit, and God’s love is not dependent on my ability to walk. My disability has taught me how insignificant working legs are in the light of souls and their eternal wellbeing.”

Guys, this is faith and fitness. Faith and fitness isn’t on Instagram. You can’t fit it on a shirt, drink it in a supplement, or grasp it in a CrossFit workout. Faith and fitness happens in the work that will last. Isn’t it funny that we won’t need either in Heaven?

But I see it in people like Barry Funnell. Thrust into God’s work and sent to the mission field as a paraplegic, the former bodybuilder doesn’t let his body distract him from honoring God with it. He travels the world and translates the Bible, and all he needs is help with stairs. And in case you were wondering, Barry stays active to keep fit for the mission field. He swims twice a week and took up sailing. And yes, he plays golf once a week; usually on Wednesdays.

- Jimmy Peña

P.S.
I read Barry’s story in a wonderful book called, “Disability in Mission: The Church’s Hidden Treasure” by David Deuel. It’s a powerful book published by the amazing team at Joni & Friends International Disability Center.