When Ron Heagy was a high school senior and football star, his life changed forever when he became a quadrapalegic -- but that hasn't stopped him from impacting lives for God.   It only takes a moment to change a life forever.   For Ron Heagy, the moment came March 17, 1980, the day before his 18th birthday. One golden moment he was running into the surf on a California beach, an Oregon high school senior enjoying spring break. He had the world by the tail; he was a popular jock, good looking, and the future held a football scholarship to Oregon State University.   The next moment, he was flopping about like a rag-doll in the water, his neck broken after diving into a sand bank hidden under the waves. If his little brother Mike, 13, had not come to the rescue, Heagy would have drowned that day.   The accident left him a quadriplegic, unable to move anything below his shoulders. A respirator assisted his breathing. Gone forever was his dream of playing football in the NFL. Gone forever, too, were the simple pleasures of life: picking a flower, hiking up a mountain or just brushing his own teeth.   Even after a long stint rehabilitating and learning to breathe on his own again, Heagy was still immobile. Others fed and clothed him, turned him over in bed at night to prevent pressure sores, and even had to scratch his nose for him when it itched. It was a huge comedown for a young man who had often spent time flexing his muscles in front of the mirror and admiring his 6 foot 2 inch well-developed frame.   But Heagy was not alone in his adversity. Two years earlier, he'd asked Jesus to forgive his sins; he had committed his life to God, and this commitment was the most important thing in his life.   In fact, when a psychologist visited Heagy to see how he was dealing with the situation, Heagy confidently said, "I'm a Christian, Doctor, and I believe God is in control of my life. Without His help, I would still be on life support. He's helping me through this. He'll be with me all the way."   But when Heagy learned that his injuries were permanent, his first reaction was despair. One night in his hospital bed, he began sobbing uncontrollably.   "Lord, I don't want to live like this," he prayed. "I can't take care of myself, I can't dig a ditch, can't play football, can't hug my girl or hold her hand. What kind of man is that? ... Please ... please just let me die." God's answer to Heagy's plea came through the words of his hospital roommate, an 8-year-old comatose accident victim named Jimmy. Hearing Heagy's sobs, the little fellow whispered the only words Heagy would ever hear him say: "I love you, Ron!"   "Jimmy's words changed me," says Heagy. "Oh sure, I was still paralysed; nothing could change that. But I had a good mind, and I could communicate. I could reach out to others who were hurting, the way Jimmy had reached out to me."   Heagy reaffirmed his faith in God, to whom he had committed his life at age 16. Now he asked God to use him: "Please help me remember that I am created in your image and committed to doing Your work here on earth."   "Help me to be Your ambassador, Lord," he prayed. "Show me how to be an encourager to people who are hurting."   Heagy determined to live a full life in a chair. He learned to control his wheelchair with his mouth, and to type and even paint with a stick clenched between his teeth. He went off to college, topping off his Bachelor's degree with a Master's, and worked as a high school counsellor. As icing on the cake, in 1992 he married a beautiful young woman, Christy, and recently became a father when the couple adopted a little girl, Roni Christine.   But Heagy feels his greatest accomplishment has been as a "roll model." He has criss-crossed the continent speaking at camps, churches, television and radio shows and schools, encouraging listeners to never give up, no matter what difficulties their lives send them. After all, he tells people, "I'm paralysed from the neck down, and look what God can do with me!"   He urges his listeners not to be paralysed from the neck up, not to let a spiritual, emotional or psychological wheelchair cripple their lives.   "Not until becoming a quadriplegic myself did I learn that our attitude ... determines how high we will fly in life," he writes in his recently published book Never Give Up: How Tragedy Taught Me That Life is an Attitude (Harvest House Publishers, 2002). He wants to be a rolling billboard, to tell people never to give up. It's not the situation that's the problem, he believes, but how we deal with it.   "Does faith make a difference in my life?" asks Heagy. "Sure it does. I have faith everyday. I wake up every morning and say, 'Hey, I'm alive. That's great!' I believe God has something for me to do today. If He chooses to heal me tomorrow, that's fine, but for today, I will do the job He has for me. We take every day as a blessing."   From his wheelchair, Heagy dares to fly high, envisioning projects that are seemingly impossible to achieve. In spite of having no financial resources, Heagy dreamed of building a fully accessible camp so adults and children in wheelchairs could enjoy the same recreational opportunities as others.   "I prayed, 'God please send a millionaire my way so I can build a camp for disabled people,' " says Heagy. "Instead, he sent a million people with $1 each!" With the help of an army of volunteers, in 2000, Camp Attitude in Sweet Home, Oregon, opened its accessible facilities and paved trails to 1,000 campers. Now Heagy dreams of building a chain of such camps across the continent.   "So I'm using my gift: I can't swing a hammer, I can't get out of this wheelchair to work, but I have a dream, that's my gift," he says.   Now, after 22 years in a wheel chair, Heagy reflects on his journey. When he could no longer depend on his body, he began to depend totally on God, to make Him No. 1 in his life and let Him determine his future. He believes that all things have worked together for good.   "This is a lot better than winning a tournament or playing a game," Heagy says. "I have a mission from this chair. As soon as I accepted that, things changed. When I gave my faith the opportunity to work, I saw amazing results."   For more information on Ron Heagy, his book, and Camp Attitude, visit www.rollonron.com. 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