|
 BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA (ANS) -- Australian doctors were baffled when Andrew Carter, then 23, walked from the hospital where he was being treated following a terrible motor cycle accident back in March, 1996, which had left him totally paralyzed.Carter, who made a dramatic appearance at the 8th Annual Christian Medical Conference held in Brisbane, Australia, that took place on June 11-12, 2011, was told by doctors at the Spinal Unit of the nearby Princess Alexandra Hospital, that he would never walk again. His story was featured in a local newspaper at the time and he told reporter Deidre Stark, "I can explain it. It's a miracle. "Medically, I was in a hopeless position, and I'd already been told to prepare to live the rest of my life in a wheelchair, so I turned to prayer." Mr. Carter, a mechanic, credits his "strong faith" and the prayers of his church, the Ipswich Assembly of God, and many others Christians across Australia, with his speedy recovery. (Dan Wooding photo: Andrew Carter on Stage with Dr. Mieke Kuiper) He suffered his terrible injuries in a motorcycle accident when he was thrown from his motorbike and lay there close to death. "When I came to I was wrapped right around the tree and I couldn't move anything," he told the newspaper. He was airlifted to the Princess Alexandra Hospital and operated on immediately. "As soon as I woke up, the doctor told me I was going to be a quadriplegic and would never walked again," he went on. "It shattered me - I told my mother I didn't want to live anymore. "It was if my whole life was over and I needed to do something, so I began to pray." And that is when the miracle began to tak place. Two weeks later, Mr. Carter took his first steps and five weeks after that he walked out of the hospital. His case was presented to the 220 Christian doctors and medical professionals on the first day of the conference by Dr. Mieke Kuiper, a Brisbane-based Family Physician, who was also one of the main organizers of the event. The Dutch-born doctor explained that on March 2, 1996, at 8:00 AM, Andrew lost control of his motorcycle when he came over a crest on a dirt track and hit a log that lay across the track. "He flew sideways, hitting a tree," she said. "Slumped on the ground at the base of the tree, he was initially thought to be dead by his mate who was following him. "His friend called the ambulance who promptly came and attended him, and then he was winched from the scene of the accident in a stretcher by helicopter and taken to the hospital." As Dr. Kuiper told the story, she flashed onto a large screen x-rays that showed that has suffered a "broken neck and incomplete quadriplegia." Soon afterwards, the surgery began. She went on to say, "Afterwards, Andrew was very depressed and wanted to die for the first three days after the accident, but then turned to God and decided to fight. Much prayer went out on his behalf by members of many Australian churches." The doctor then said, "God heard those prayers and he was able to walk unassisted out of the hospital 7 ½ weeks after the accident. At the time of his discharge, all sensation had returned to normal but he still had not regained full balance and strength and was not able to run. "Over the next 12 months, he worked hard with the therapies and rained his full former strength, fitness and balance. His recovery was widely regarded as a miracle and his case was widely covered through the media here." It was then that Dr. Kuiper surprised the audience, that had traveled from 30 countries, when she announced that Andrew was in the hall and invited him to join her on stage. With that, he got up from his seat and literally bounced up the steps and thanked the Lord for his own personal miracle. Not only had the medics viewed his medical data, and also read the written reports from the hospital at the time, but now they had the living proof right in front of them as Andrew smiled widely and the audience responded by standing up and gave him [and God] a standing ovation. These "Spirituality and Medicine" conferences are organized by the World Christian Doctors Network (WCDN) based in Seoul, Korea. At the end of the event, it was announced that next year's gathering will take place in Nairobi, Kenya, near the end of May. For more information about the World Christian Doctors Network, a group which believes that God still heals today and also that miracles should be "provable" with medical data, please go to: www.wcdn.org
Used by permission www.assistnews.net | |||||
