Tim Tebow - Through My Eyes: A Quarterbacks Journey : Young Readers Edition

Let another praise you, and not your own mouth; a stranger, and not your own lips. Proverbs 27:2 (NASB)

M Y DAD HAS PREACHED a lot in America, but one of his favorite places to preach is a country in Asia called the Philippines. Before I was born, my family was living in Mindanao, in the Philippines, and my dad was doing mission work there. Anyone who talks to others about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ is doing mission work.

One day when my dad was out preaching in the jungle, he prayed, Father, if You want another preacher in this world, You give him to me. You give me Timmy, and I will raise him to be a preacher.

Dad returned home and told my family about his prayer. He invited them to join him in praying for me by name, and they all prayed for me. The name Timothy means honoring God.

A few months later, my mom realized that she was pregnant. From the start, it was a difficult pregnancy. A number of times they were certain they had lost me. Mom and Dad went to the best doctor in their area of Mindanao and listened to her lay out their optionsin her opinionfor how to save my moms life. The doctor was brutally honest about her opinion of my moms chances. She said that the pregnancy was going to be hard and dangerous.

When my parents walked out of her office, they were in shock and felt a bit numb. They knew that Mom would have to be very brave and trust God. Her strongest recollection of those moments, which must have been overwhelming for her, was an unexpected and indescribable peace. Gods peace, she later told me, is what helped her through the next eight months of her pregnancy.

And while they waited for me to be born, my mom and brothers and sisters would sing Bible verses together. Mom thought that putting verses to tunes helped us to learn and retain them. Later, they taught these verses to me:

Wait for the Lord, be strong and let your heart take courage. Wait for the Lord, wait for the Lord. I wait for the Lord, my soul does wait. And in His Word do I hope.

Psalm 27:14, 130:5

Miraculously, later on in the pregnancy, a surprise blessing occurred. Mom, who had been very sick, began to feel better, even well enough to fly, along with my siblings, Christy, Katie, Robby, and Peter, to Manila. There, at the Makati Medical Center, she met with an American-trained doctor. She had not seen a doctor for many months.

My familys waiting was over on August 14, 1987, when I was delivered by the doctor my parents trusted. The doctor spoke first to my dad. Mr. Tebow, your child is a miracle baby. I cant explain how it happened, but despite all odds, he beat them.

My mom, dad, and family were so grateful for my safe arrival and thanked the Lord for His protection of both my mom and me. But the drama was not over yetfor either of us.

That first week, I lost weight instead of gaining it and had to remain in the hospital. My parents asked our friends and family in America to pray that I would grow big and strong. I guess their prayers were answered!

Mom also struggled physically and needed ongoing care, but slowly, she got better.

We are all so grateful Mom survived the pregnancy and childbirth. My parents knew that Mom might not survive, but they trusted God with her pregnancy. Trusting God is how they started their marriage and how they have continued to this day. My dad always tells us that faith is like a muscle. You trust God for the small things and when He comes through, your muscle grows. It grows whether He comes through in ways that you hoped for or notyou learn that Hes always there through good or bad. This enables you to trust God for the bigger things, in fact, for all things.

My memories of my lifeat least those I myself can rememberbegin in Jacksonville, Florida. We returned from the Philippines when I was three.

It was great growing up with two older sisters and two older brothers always around to play with. Actually, all of us were very competitive, including my parents and all my siblings. It didnt matter if it was Monopoly or chess inside with my sisters or baseball or basketball outside with my brothersor if I was only four and the rest of them were far older. The rules applied equally to all. There was no letting someone win because he was younger, or to cheer her up or encourage her to keep playing. The first time I won any of those games or contests, I earned it.

It was something I remembered.

Most of my first clear memories seem to revolve around sports and all the crazy stuff I did trying to be just like Robby and Peter. I wanted to do everything they did, despite the fact that they were nine and six years old when we returned from the Philippines and I was three. We were in constant motion, always playing whatever game was in season or, if for some reason one of those didnt interest us, just the ones that we made up ourselves.