Nik Wallenda Constantly Prayed to Jesus During Successful Grand Canyon Tightrope Walk

Christian Post ^ | 06/24/2013 | Anugrah Kumar

[SeekAndFind]

High wire artist Nik Wallenda constantly prayed to Jesus as he walked without a harness on a 1,400-foot long high-wire across a 1,500-foot tall gorge near the Grand Canyon on Sunday, successfully completing the death-defying feat that was broadcast live on the Discovery Channel.

"Thank you Lord. Thank you for calming that cable, God," The Associated Press quoted Wallenda as saying as he had reached halfway through the tightrope. He had no safety tether attaching him to his line at a height taller than the Empire State Building, and was facing sudden wind gusts of over 20 mph.

Discovery chose to broadcast the event with a 10-second delay, not wanting to take a chance as even one wrong step could have proven fatal for Wallenda.

Wallenda murmured prayers to Jesus almost constantly along the way, and completed the walk in 22 minutes and 54 seconds.

"It took every bit of me to stay focused that entire time," Wallenda, 34, said, according to Reuters. "My arms are aching like you wouldn't believe."

He had to stop and crouch down twice due to the wind for the first time, and later the cable picked up an unsettling rhythm. But it "was a dream come true," he said. "This is what my family has done for 200 years, so it's part of my legacy."

The "#Skywire" hashtag received more than 700,000 tweets on Twitter.

Pastor Joel Osteen of Lakewood Church in Houston, Texas, tweeted just before the feat, saying, "Here at the Grand Canyon with my friend @NikWallenda. Praying for his success!" After the event, he tweeted again. "Congrats to @NikWallenda for making history. Your courage and faith is inspiring."

Pop music singer Keith Urban also tweeted, "GO NIK WALLENDA!!! Absolutely astounding feat AND faith!!!! We were with you every single step!!!! –KU."

Golfer Paul Azinger said on Twitter, "@NikWallenda Wow! You are physically smart and a mental giant." National Football League player JJ Watt said, "Really didn't think I would be this locked in. It's captivating."

The U.S. government did not allow the use of the Grand Canyon proper for the event. Therefore, Wallenda walked above a stretch of the Little Colorado River Gorge on Navajo Nation land, which was equally dangerous.

Wallenda, a married father of three, last summer became the first man in history to walk 1,800 feet on a tightrope across the roaring Niagara Falls from the U.S. to the Canadian side of the falls. Soon thereafter he announced his desire to cross the Grand Canyon.

He is the seventh generation of the legendary Great Wallendas and began walking the wire at age 4. His great-grandfather Karl Wallenda fell off a wire to his death in 1978.

In his memoir, Balance: A Story of Faith, Family, and Life on the Line, the high wire artist writes, "I believe that God gives us the power to transform any story from darkness to light."

Wallenda had earlier told The Christian Post, "I visualize myself crossing the Canyon over and over again. I visualize myself making that first step, quarter of a way, half way, three quarters of a way and then finishing that walk. That's really a lot of the mental prep."

He said he often talks to God while he is on the wire. "I find that peaceful and relaxing and He's the only one up there listening to me." He added that his faith plays a crucial role in what he does. "My life is based on my faith. I guess the biggest role that it plays is that if I do fall and die I know where I'm going."

[boatbums]

Joel Olsteen is a motivational speaker and IS NOT PREACHING CHRIST, at least not the BIBLICAL CHRIST — this is my point. And a false christ leads people to hell, not heaven. You will never hear Joel Olsteen preaching the cross in its proper context.

Though I am not sticking up for Joel Osteen nor do I listen to his broadcasts or read his books, he DOES seem to speak the truth about the Gospel at his official website http://www.joelosteen.com/Pages/WhatWeBelieve.aspx:

We Believe…

… the entire Bible is inspired by God, without error and the authority on which we base our faith, conduct and doctrine.

… in one God who exists in three distinct persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We believe Jesus Christ is the Son of God who came to this earth as Savior of the world.

… Jesus died on the cross and shed His blood for our sins. We believe that salvation is found by placing our faith in what Jesus did for us on the cross. We believe Jesus rose from the dead and is coming again.

… water baptism is a symbol of the cleansing power of the blood of Christ and a testimony to our faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

… in the regular taking of Communion as an act of remembering what the Lord Jesus did for us on the cross.

… every believer should be in a growing relationship with Jesus by obeying God’s Word, yielding to the Holy Spirit and by being conformed to the image of Christ.

… as children of God, we are overcomers and more than conquerors and God intends for each of us to experience the abundant life He has in store for us.

Didn't Jesus say that whoever is not against us is for us?

[driftdiver]

Just goes to show that you can never please everyone. A man praying on national tv. A man praising jesus. And someone will find a problem with it.

[antceecee]

Oh for goodness sake give it a rest. He was praying to make it across... you are the kind of person that would complain if they hung you with a new rope.

[sakic]

No, the difference is that the Wallendas like to continually tempt death and whether they are religious or not has nothing to do with how bright they are.

This stuff exists because it makes for “good” entertainment and ratings and no one who isn’t religious is going to become religious because of a family with a group death wish.

Sane people understand how precious life is. I’m not saying this stuff shouldn’t be allowed, but it’s not helping anyone except those profiting from it.

[presently no screen name]

but it’s not helping anyone except those profiting from it.

WHO is profiting from it?? And are you against profit?

I think you are bent out of shape over it because it mentions he prayed to Jesus the whole way through. I doubt you care what he does for a living if dangerous or not.

[presently no screen name]

I suggest you read Ron Chernow’s biography, “Titan.” Many years ago , I read Nevins’s go at his life. But Chernow makes the man come to life. Consider how huge an enterprise Standard Oil became, They used to speak of Captains of Industry. Men like him, and Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, Tom Scott , and Carnegie deserve that description, because what they were doing was empire building..literally.

Oh please! I see what impresses you! I'd rather focus on the UNNAMED widow in the bible who gave her last penny - that impressed JESUS. Your thoughts and interests are so worldly!

[RobbyS]

It is called giving the devil his due. We should hold capitalists like Rockefeller to the same standards to the standards that we hold all great men and vice versa. Ironically, Rockefeller himself agreed that great men should be held to the same standards as ordinary people, that we cannot separate private and public morality. He did examine his conscience and rightly or wrongly was able to reconcile his faith with his works as a businessman. And in his defense, it was an age of industrial warfare, and like Grant and Lee during the civil war, did what he thought he had to do. That was to rationalize an industry that was the epitome of Dog-eat-dog.

[Hebrews 11:6]

How’s Jesus going to give him the answer?

I'll assume your question is serious.

Jesus, being God, has innumerable means at His disposal. Among those more commonly experienced by His disciples are applications of relevant Scripture, promptings of the indwelling Holy Spirit, circumstances, counsel of other mature believers, pronouncements by those in authority, personal intervention by the Lord Himself, etc. All of these means and more are vividly illustrated in the Bible.

[evangmlw]

No, I’m the kind of person who understands what it is to be spiritually sick on false doctrine. I have been there and I have been set free. And there are multitudes who are bound to false doctrine, spiritually sick, and not even aware of it. I don’t expect you to understand, but I am bound by duty, as one who was delivered from it, to expose it. I fulfill my faithfulness to expose it, and leave the rest to God. Imagine yourself going to the doctor, being diagnosed with a cancer that could be cured, but because the Doctor doesn’t want to offend you, he says, “ah, it’s ok, go on home, be at ease, don’t worry about it.” He refuses to tell you, “we have to treat it,” because he doesn’t want you to be hurt by his words and therefore will withold the truth from you. What kind of love is that? Now,k I have done my duty, and I’M FINISHED WITH THIS POST.

[SeekAndFind]

1) I can’t speak about promptings of the Holy Spirit because I am not the person in question.

2) Circumstances. Mr. Wallenda is in this specific circumstance because he placed himself there. He need not be in it.

3) Counsel of Mature believers. Wise counsel will of course not be in contradiction to God’s revealed word too.

So, Having said that, I do know this... The Spirit and mature Christians will not prompt a person to do something in contradiction to God’s revealed word.

2) What does the revealed word say?

“Thou Shalt Not Tempt the Lord Thy God”.

Next question -— is needlessly risking one’s life in some dangerous feat WITHOUT A SAFETY NET not tempting God?

[Hebrews 11:6]

Perhaps I wasn’t clear enough in my original post. I wrote to suggest that I consider it doubtful that Wallenda did pray beforehand, however much he may have during. I was criticizing his judgment. Therefore, apparently we agree.

[sakic]

I am not bent out of shape by Wallenda’s faith in Jesus. In fact, it is something to admire, but I don’t believe Jesus protects him because he prays.

Because when he falls, as he probably one day will, I will not believe that Jesus decided that it was time to send a gust of wind in Mr. Wallenda’s direction.

Just because he is a believer does not mean he can’t be doing stupid things.

I am not against profit. I like profit. The more, the better.

The one making the big profits are the ones broadcasting it.

[presently no screen name]

I am not bent out of shape by Wallenda’s faith in Jesus. In fact, it is something to admire, but I don’t believe Jesus protects him because he prays.

Now that is a mixed message. Jesus protects - you need to get over it.

Just because he is a believer does not mean he can’t be doing stupid things.

Do you know a believer that doesn't do stupid things? Everyone's 'stupid things' are different.

I will not believe that Jesus decided that it was time to send a gust of wind in Mr. Wallenda’s direction.

Good. Because when we 'fall' it is never Jesus that causes it.

He wins either way, he already said 'if he falls he knows where he is going.' So why are you so concerned for him? He's got rock solid faith in Jesus - either learn from it or don't. Nothing else to discuss.

[sakic]

Jesus protects Christians even when they are not praying.

People who say there is nothing else to discuss after their own comments are pompous.

[presently no screen name]

Those who make judgements on what others do for a living as doing ‘stupid things’ - that is who is pompous.

And there is no more to be said - it’s all been said with your need to focus on him and comment negatively on his undying faith in Jesus doing ‘stupid things’. He uses his faith all the time, you seem to expect Christians to use it only on things ‘appropriate to you’.

And that is natural for him/Christians - you seem to want to make it a big deal. He/Christians have a fellowship with The Lord and not praying to be protected - because we know we are already protected - it’s simply being in fellowship thanking HIM. His focus is on HIM alone whether on a rope or on the ground - it never ends.

What you think means nothing. He gives God ALL the glory - and you seem to want to infer with that and call him doing ‘stupid things’. God sees his faith, you see his ‘stupid ways’. There is nothing more to be said!