A life story with a lesson

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. — From a farming family to a pastoral calling, Rob Roozeboom has conquered and learned many things throughout his life.

Roozeboom spoke during the prayer breakfast March 26 at Central Plains Dairy Expo.

“I never had a dream of running a ministry; I had a dream of being a farmer,” said Roozeboom, founder of Rise Ministries and RiseFest.

At 5 years old, Roozeboom was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy. He was raised with the belief that the harder you try, the better you will become.

“What I didn’t understand is that I can’t (physically), because I can’t beat (muscular dystrophy),” Roozeboom said.

Until Roozeboom was 9 years old, he was raised on his family’s farm. At that time his dad felt a calling to become a pastor, so they moved into the city to start this chapter.

“What a weird transition — from a farmer to a pastor,” Roozeboom said. “The journey began. I lost the farm, what I loved most in life, and all of a sudden, I started realizing that God will take what I love most.”

Through ministry, muscular dystrophy and the journey of life, Roozeboom shared with attendees five lessons he has learned about joy, grief, brokenness, emotions and community. Joy and grief co-exist. Everyone’s brokenness is different, but grief and pain are the same. Grieving is okay. People all have emotions, just not everybody has access to them. And finally, individuals were never meant to walk this life alone.

“We all have a story,” Roozeboom said. “Every one of you is walking through something that’s been challenging. Grief and pain are the same. Whether it’s been the loss of a loved one, or it’s an expectation that hasn’t been met. Things aren’t going as well on the dairy as you had hoped. Prices aren’t where they’re supposed to be. Wondering what’s around the next corner or how are we going to make it through, that’s real pain (and) that’s real grief.”

Like most people, Roozeboom has struggled throughout his life.

“I used to ask my mom why we never talk about muscular dystrophy in our house,” Roozeboom said. “She said, ‘Rob if we don’t talk about it, it doesn’t exist.’”

For Roozeboom, he had to live through muscular dystrophy whether it was talked about or not. All people have emotions, just not everybody has access to them, Roozeboom said.

“I’m here (speaking) with a lot of tough people, I understand that,” Roozeboom said. “I know what you do for a living. … If you think you can’t grieve because it makes you weak, you are wrong.”

When things don’t go the way they are supposed to, Roozeboom said, it is OK to grieve.

“I wish someone would have told me that a long time ago,” Roozeboom said. “It doesn’t make you weak, it just makes you human.”

Four years ago, a mother and son walked into Roozeboom’s office. He was looking for help getting around, so the son was going to assist Roozeboom. This young man would end up helping Roozeboom for the next four years until he went to college. Little did Roozeboom know how impacted he would be by the young man.

“The biggest moment of joy and grief for me was last year,” Roozeboom said. “(The young man) was wrestling at the state tournament in Des Moines. I was sitting in the arena going, ‘God why do I have to sit up here (in the handicapped accessible area)?’ Yes, my wife’s next to me. Yes, my daughters (are too), but all the support is like 13 rows down. ‘God why do I have to be up here? Why can’t I be down there?’”

Roozeboom said he was fighting with God the whole time during the match, trying to figure this out.

“All of a sudden it hits me, ‘Rob if you weren’t broken, you wouldn’t be here. If you weren’t broken, you wouldn’t know that young man the way you do,’” Roozeboom said. “I got to watch the state champion wrestle. Four years of his life he gave to me.”

Roozeboom said he realized there was a reason for the lessons he has learned throughout his life, such as a time when he was filming a Good Friday program in the desert in Arizona.

Roozeboom showed a video of him climbing a hill with his wheelchair. Evidently, the hill was a little too steep, and he fell backwards in the middle of the hill. His team came to the rescue to pick him up again.

“They come running when things happen,” Roozeboom said. “I wanted to navigate a mountain in my wheelchair to show people that sometimes, when we have help, we can keep going up the mountain, even when it’s steep, even when it’s rocky.”

People are going to have hills and valleys throughout their lives and when other people are let into their lives, individuals can navigate those, Roozeboom said. Even though Roozeboom was diagnosed with muscular dystrophy at a young age, he has not let that stop him from climbing hills.

“Our circumstances don’t determine how God feels about us,” Roozeboom said. “It is time to take back ground in our own hearts, whether you are a believer or you don’t know who Jesus is.”