I love the stories in the Bible about Jesus healing paralyzed people like me. Think about it, when I read in the gospels where the Lord touches a hand, or gives the word, or says a prayer and then, that person rises to his feet, it gives me the chills. I’m sure it’s because I’m a quadriplegic, I always like to put myself in those stories. Oh, what it must have been like, I think; I mean, to be a quadriplegic one minute then to jump up on my feet?! That would be awesome.
Miracles on that kind of scale aren’t heard of these days… I mean, someone like me with a severed spinal cord paralyzed one minute and jumping to her feet the next. Things like that aren’t everyday occurrences.
But there are certain healings that are almost becoming everyday occurrences – and they’re nothing short of miraculous. I'm thinking of 9-year-old girl Kacie who was blind… but then, after receiving an umbilical-cord stem cell treatment overseas, she experienced quite a miracle. Kacie was born with septo-optic dysplasia, an underdevelopment of the optic nerve and pituitary gland. She could see bright colors out of her right eye but only light and dark out of her left eye and no clear shape.
Well, we’ve all heard about the amazing cures we are beginning to see using stem cells from adult tissues, but there are as many (if not more) successful treatments happening using stem cells strained out of umbilical cord blood. Most people wouldn’t call them adult stem cells because they come from a newborn baby’s umbilical cord. But they are considered adult stem cells given that the only other source for such cells would be from a human embryo, which, incidentally, would have to be killed in order to harvest those cells.
So stem cells from umbilical cords are a great thing. Just ask Kacie’s parents. After the implantation of those cells, Kacie’s family started noticing improvements. Although her father wasn’t able to join her overseas for the surgery, Kacie was able to look at a photograph of her daddy on her mom’s computer. She had never been able to clearly see his face, but now she could make out all sorts of details -- his eyes and mouth were more defined. She asked her mommy, “Is that what my father looks like?” (I guess that’s part of the miracle that touched me most). And the good news is Kacie is now starting to see bright colors out of her left eye, which she could never detect before. Thank the Lord for these new cures and treatments which are happening using adult stem cells; or, I should say, stem cells from the umbilical cords of newborn babies.
What’s in the future? Well, we’re convinced that the sky’s the limit. And although it’s unlikely such a miraculous treatment would ever be for me, it’s still pretty wonderful to cheer on so many young people with disabling conditions who, through these stem cells, are able to feel the touch, the healing touch of Jesus.
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JONI AND FRIENDS
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Agoura Hills, CA 93176
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