Limbless evangelist Nick Vujicic says he understands what it feels like to be bullied. When he was still living in Australia, he was taunted constantly by bullies because of his Tetra-amelia syndrome, which left him without arms and legs.
According to the Orlando Sentinel, Vujicic suffered from humiliation almost by the hour, with young boys picking him up against his will around eight to nine times a day.
"By the time I was 10 years old, I concluded there was no hope," he told a crowd of 2,900 students during his recent visit to Orlando's Boone High School. "I would never have a job. I would never be married."
Thankfully, Vujicic found salvation in Jesus Christ. He learned to develop an optimistic attitude, and he turned his life around. "Sometimes you fall down," he said. "But you don't know what you can achieve until you try."
He asked the students if any of them feel like they "have no hope in your life," and surprisingly, around 150 fists shot up in the air.
For those also suffering from bullying, Vujicic encouraged them not to give up hope because there will always be people who can offer help and care. "I want you to know if you are going through something, talk to a guidance counsellor. Talk to a teacher... Tell a parent... Tell somebody," he said.
He also appealed to the bullies to be more understanding of the plights faced by those they torment.
"I want them to understand the impact that their words and actions have on others," said Vujicic. "I don't think anybody gets it until it happens to them. The suicide rate is 4,300 students a year in this country — and 400 of those are in Florida. Forty percent of the kids who have attempted suicide say it's because of bullying at school."
