Johann Quisumbing

By JQuisumbing

“GOD has a plan for you!”

I have been wheeled into ERs for a number of times now, but back in October 2015, the words above echoed in the vaults of my memory. It came to me in the voice of my Lola, that is, my maternal grandmother. I was a little kid way back then when she spoke those assurances to me. Back in the 50s & 60s, I was one of the many victims of the polio epidemic that hit the Philippines. 

Polio had left me with under-developed arms and a right leg; that is, I lacked normal muscle mass. This was the same with my shoulders and upper chest. I used to kid around by saying that I was like a walking skeleton because I was so skinny, except for my neck and big head, of course. That’s me below. As you can see I was still able to walk with a limp, of course. By the way, that sailor cap was one of about 20 hats. I was a real ‘mad-hatter’ growing up. At that matter, I still am.

My grandmother would repeatedly utter that phrase as an assurance, so that I would feel special and not think too much about how handicapped I was. And it worked, for I grew up a happy kid, more or less. However, whatever was God’s plan for me did not become clear until I read Jesus’ words, “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.” _{(John 9:3 NLT)}  If you recall from my last posting, Jesus was referring to the young man whom He healed from blindness since birth. Now, I have been walking with the Lord for the past three decades and I already knew that complete healing was not in the cards for me (in this world, anyway). And I hoped that even in my weakness, people would see the Lord’s work in my life.¹  This was in my heart when I was wheeled into the ER for I believed that my time was close. Boy, did the Lord have a big surprise for me!

My wife, who’s a doctor, bypassed the usual ER procedures and requested a Neurology consult right away. I thank the Lord for my wife that day for after the Neuro-doctor saw me, I was admitted quite quickly. That late afternoon, I got the first sign of good news. My primary doctor came to my room that afternoon to reveal his diagnosis. In my mind, I was expecting to hear, like what we’ve heard before, that everything was happening because of post-polio syndrome and there was nothing that could be done except strong pain killers for the rest of my life. The thought of being in a catatonic state was not that appealing at all. 

He explained that there were signs that went beyond the doctrinal conditions of post polio syndrome. He thought that my spinal cord was affected. So, the next three days, I underwent a battery of tests and scans. My wife was worried. As for myself, I was feeling a little bit hopeful. I thought that all I could look forward to was continued physical deterioration, but now there may actually be a chance.

When the nurse wheeled me to the doctor’s office, he showed us a number of x-rays and ct-scan images. His diagnosis was that my upper spinal cord was being compressed. 

My case was somewhat baffling, for an unusual ligament gradually calcified between my neck bones and the cord causing it to be pinched. This was why I had been experiencing numbness & weakness in my extremities as well as that burning pain that spread from the buttocks down to my legs. Besides all that, the doctor’s main concern was that the compression in the neck area was actually endangering my life. You see, the C2 up to the C5 part of my neck actually regulates those parts of my body that have been failing including, to my surprise, my ability to breathe properly. If the compression was not arrested, I’d be dead.

My dear wife broke down in tears. But for myself, though, I had a strange sense of relief and peace. And Jesus’ words again echoed in my thoughts, “This happened so the power of God could be seen in him.”  

In John 9, the young man went through two extraordinary events, his healing and then bravely facing adversaries. Now, I’m not too much into coincidences, but what happened to me next did somewhat parallel with what happened in John 9. For instance, the healing. Only in this event that Jesus did an unusual thing. He spat on the ground, made mud and applied it onto the young man’s eyes. Then, he was told to wash it off at a nearby pool. That miracle was, at most, amazing and unconventional. So, wait till you hear my healing story. 

Our Lord didn’t make a mud pie for my neck, however, He did send me the MacGyver² of all doctors (my opinion, of course). He was an orthopedic spinal surgeon with a radical and tricky procedure to fix my problem that I felt was inspired. For that part of my story, you’ll have to wait for PART 4.

To GOD be all the glory!

Footnote: [1] 1 Corinthians 1:27; [2] Based on a TV character who made or repaired things in an improvised or inventive way.

Click to go to PART 1 2 3 4 5 6 7