Most of you remember John Wayne as an actor. You may not know what
happened to him before he died. This is that story!
Robert Schuller's teenage daughter, Cindy, was in a motorcycle
accident and had to have her leg amputated. John Wayne is a big fan
of Robert Schuller. He heard Dr. Schuller say on one of his programs
that his daughter had been in an accident and had to have her leg
amputated.
John Wayne wrote a note to her saying: Dear Cindy, sorry to hear
about your accident. Hope you will be all right. Signed, John Wayne
The note was delivered to her and she decided she wanted to write
John Wayne a note in reply. She wrote: Dear Mr. Wayne, I got your
note. Thanks for writing to me. I like you very much. I am going to
be all right because Jesus is going to help me. Mr. Wayne, do you
know Jesus? I sure hope you know Jesus, Mr. Wayne, because I cannot
imagine Heaven being complete without John Wayne being there. I hope,
if you don't know Jesus, that you will give your heart to Jesus right
now. See you in Heaven. And she signed her name. She had just put
that letter in an envelope, sealed it, and written across the front
of it "John Wayne" when a visitor came into her room to see her.
He said to her, "What are you doing?"
She said, "I just wrote a letter to John Wayne, but I don't know how
to get it to him."
He said, "That's funny, I am going to have dinner with John Wayne
tonight at the Newport Club down at Newport Beach. Give it to me and
I will give it to him."
She gave him the letter and he put it in his coat pocket.
There were twelve of them that night sitting around the table for
dinner. hey were laughing and cutting up and the guy happened to
reach in his pocket and felt that letter and remembered. John Wayne
was seated at the end of the table and the guy took the letter out
and said, "Hey, Duke, I was in Schuller's daughter's room today and
she wrote you a letter and wanted me to give it to you. Here it is."
They passed it down to John Wayne and he opened it. They kept on
laughing and cutting up and someone happened to look down at John
Wayne. He was crying. One of them said, "Hey, Duke, what is the
matter?"
He said (and can't you hear him saying it), "I want to read you
this letter." He read the letter. Then he began to weep. He folded
it, put it in his pocket, and he pointed to the man who delivered it
to him and said, "You go tell that little girl that right now, in
this restaurant, right here, John Wayne gives his heart to Jesus
Christ and I will see her in heaven."
Three weeks later, John Wayne died.
You never know how your witness to another will effect their
eternity!
"To everything there is a season and a time to every purpose under
the heaven. (Ecclesiastes 3:1)
