Sermon Central
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Ninety-Nine Balloons
Contributed by Scott Bayles on May 13, 2009 (message contributor)
NINETY-NINE BALLOONS
Eliot was born with an undeveloped lung, a heart with a hole in it and DNA that placed faulty information into each and every cell of his body. However, that could not stop the living God from proclaiming Himself through this boy who never uttered a word.
Even though doctors didn’t expect Eliot to make it to birth, he did, and his parents had the presence of mind and courage of heart to make a video diary of his life. Every single day at 4:59, the time that Eliot was born into this world, his mother and father celebrated his birthday. On his one month birthday, twenty close friends showed up, sang, brought balloons and birthday cake. Despite the oxygen tubes, the midnight feedings that took more than an hour and a half, and the constant worry and concern, Eliot continued to find new ways to warm his mother’s heart.
After ninety-nine wonderful days, Eliot went to be with Jesus. At his funeral, his mom and dad released ninety-nine balloons—-one for each day that he was them. His father said, "How beautiful they were to watch, how quickly they were gone." In the midst of heartbreaking tragedy, the Mooney family found the presence of God strengthening, comforting, and guiding them.
The video diary that his parents made was later posted to on the Internet. As of this week, it's been viewed no less than 3,290,232 times.
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