Born Without Limbs’ Nick Vujicic encourages people to be ‘grateful regardless’
Due to a rare condition, Nick Vujicic was born without arms or legs. But, that certainly hasn’t stopped the Australian motivational speaker from living an incredible life.
“People can relate to a man without limbs, but not because they can relate to anything about my brokenness,” he told Natural News in 2012. “They look at my brokenness and they know I have credibility because I’m wearing a smile. I’ve got peace in my eyes. I have confidence in life and achievement and success. Everyone wants those things–and all of a sudden people are envious of a man without arms and legs.”
Nick was born with tetra-amelia syndrome, an extremely rare autosomal recessive congenital disorder caused by a gene mutation. Now 32, Nick said that when he was born, his dad had to leave the room to vomit and the doctor refused to show him to his mother.
“The whole church was mourning, like, ‘Why would God let the pastor’s son be born that way?’ My mom, at first, she didn’t want to hold me. She didn’t want to breastfeed me,” he told The Christian Broadcast Network in 2009. “She just felt very uncomfortable for the first four months. It took them quite a while before they could trust in God that He didn’t make a mistake–that He didn’t forget them or me.”
When he was eight, Nick said he attempted suicide out of despair.
“I just felt like I had no light at the end of the tunnel,” he said in 2012. “I didn’t really feel like there was any hope for me at all.”
Soon after that, he really found God — and a purpose. He was nominated for Young Australian of the Year in 2005 and founded a non-profit ministry, Life Without Limbs.
When he isn’t ministering, Nick is a family man. He is married to a beautiful woman named Kanae; the pair is expecting their second son in August.
Nick has said he keeps a pair of shoes in his closet because of his belief in miracles. He also constantly challenges himself to be more independent by trying to wash his own hair or brush his teeth. But, as he told CBN in 2009, he doesn’t need limbs to live a great life.
“I didn’t need my circumstance to change. I don’t need arms and legs. I need the wings of the Holy Spirit,” he said. “I’m flying, because I know Jesus is holding me up.”
Nick’s story will be featured in TLC special, Born Without Limbs, airing tonight at 9/8c.