During the first several months after this diagnosis, I felt as though I had a constant stomachache and an even deeper, more throbbing pain in my heart. Fortunately, I found that one thing greatly eased the pain: the love, encouragement, and prayers of my brothers and sisters. Brothers took Joseph under their wings, and sisters cuddled and loved him even though he was often unresponsive. We prayed, and many people prayed along with us and for us. One brother's words most encouraged our faith: "Every single human being will reach his fullest potential in the Church, the Body of Christ. It is there where he will be most loved and accepted and where his hidden gifts will be discovered."
That brother was right. Just this year, on May 24, 2012, Joseph graduated magna cum lade with High Honors in Philosophy from Harvard College. He was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa and won the Special Prize for Work in Moral and Political Philosophy for his senior thesis. Along with English, he speaks Spanish and Portuguese, and can also read Greek. He is a disciple of Jesus and loves God and people deeply. And, thankfully, he has far more than the predicted one or two friends.
Might the doctors have misdiagnosed him? It is possible, though unlikely. His symptoms certainly were not made up: I distinctly remember not getting through to him because he was in his own world - lining up his carrots on his high chair, completely oblivious to the cries of his baby sister just inches away from him.
Ultimately, I don't believe that we will ever truly know what happened, but I think my husband John shed some light on the situation when he led Communion the Sunday after Joseph's graduation. As he shared about Joseph, he noted that most people don't experience seemingly miraculous turnarounds like Joseph's on earth. But he also quoted Jesus' words in Revelation 21.5: One day, everything will be made new! We will all be given transformed and glorious bodies in the next life. Sometimes, God gives us small glimpses of that heavenly transformation: and that is what John and I believe God did through Joseph.
As I said, I don't completely understand what happened, and I most likely never will. But I do know that I have witnessed something remarkable: No matter what our earthly struggles, deficiencies, weaknesses, limitations, or infirmities may be, Jesus will one day make everything new.
Barbara Porter
South Florida Church of Christ
John Joseph Porter grew up on the mission field and in South Florida. In May he graduated magna cum laude with High Honors in Philosophy from Harvard College. While pursuing further education, Joseph is also serving as an intern in the campus ministry of the Boston Church of Christ along with three other recent Harvard graduates who are interns.
Joseph’s parents, John and Barbara, were some of the first missionaries sent by the International Churches of Christ to South America. They are currently Congregational Evangelist and Women’s Ministry Leaders for the South Florida Church. Barbara became a disciple as a Harvard law student in 1983. Click here to read Joseph’s story “On Harvard and Home.” >>>
I Am Making Everything New
Written by Barbara Porter - South Florida Church of Christ Saturday, 11 August 2012 07:28
There are two dates I will never forget: March 17, 1993 and May 24, 2012.
On March 17, neurologists told my husband and me that our two-and-a-half-year-old son Joseph was mildly retarded, would never have more than one or two friends, would never leave home, would never go to college, and would never speak more than one language - if he ever learned to speak at all. He was, they declared matter-of-factly, autistic.
"I am making everything new." Revelation 21:5
Published in
Profiles in Courage
