Jamey Carrington was diagnosed with spinal muscular atrophy type two, a condition that prevented him from ever walking, feeding himself, or enjoying many everyday activities.
But this 18-year-old’s powerful testimony reveals how he found purpose, healing, and hope through his relationship with Jesus Christ.
Many of us face challenges that make us question God’s plan. We wonder why hardships come our way and what purpose they could possibly serve. Jamey’s journey shows us that sometimes our deepest pain can lead to our greatest spiritual growth.
A Life-Changing Diagnosis
When Jamey was just a few months old, his mother noticed something wasn’t right. He couldn’t sit up without falling over and never progressed from army-crawling to walking. Concerned, his parents took him to several doctors seeking answers.
During one appointment, a doctor presented a list of possible conditions. He pointed to spinal muscular atrophy and said, “This is the worst one out of all of them.” Jamey’s mother, who worked as a nurse, researched everything she could about the condition.
Tests later confirmed Jamey had spinal muscular atrophy type two. This news could have torn his family apart, but instead, it brought them closer.
“This was one of those things that can either break a family apart or can bring a family closer together,” Jamey shares.
His family chose to support each other and face this challenge with a positive outlook.
Childhood Struggles and Questions
Growing up with a disability wasn’t easy for Jamey. School was especially hard as he watched other children do things he couldn’t.
“I felt confused and I felt left out a lot,” Jamey recalls. “I would go home to my mom and there would be crying and I would say mom why can I do these things? Why would God give me this?”
His mother called his condition “a gift” – an answer that seemed strange to him at the time. Despite growing up in a loving home, Jamey struggled with feeling purposeless.
“I felt like I had no direction, I felt like I had no purpose, I felt like I was aimlessly wandering,” he admits. “I couldn’t experience all these amazing things everybody else was so what’s the point?”
Church Without Connection
Jamey attended church every Sunday with his father. They even sang together during services, as was common in their Southern Baptist tradition. But for Jamey, it felt empty.
“I remember singing at church and thinking well this is stupid,” he confesses. “I don’t even fully understand God or trust God or have faith in God, so why am I singing songs about how holy and great He is?”
By middle school, Jamey reached his lowest point. Already dealing with the challenges of being a teenager, his disability made fitting in even harder.
“I was struggling to fit in, struggling to make friends, I was self-conscious,” he shares. “It was a time where it’s already hard for a lot of guys but it felt like it was even harder in my case.”
The Turning Point
Everything changed when Jamey watched a YouTube video about the Bible. Though he can’t remember which video, he describes how “a spark was lit inside of me.” Scripture suddenly captured his interest.
“I found the Bible incredibly compelling,” Jamey says. “I found it so interesting that the Bible is a story about God and humankind trying to reconnect.”
He became fascinated by theological concepts and biblical history.
This new interest took over his life. Jamey read theology books by scholars like Michael Heiser and followed Dr. Tim Macky’s teachings. He often chose these studies over schoolwork, hungry to learn more.
From Knowledge to Relationship
Eventually, Jamey realized knowledge alone wasn’t enough. “I realized what it’s all about,” he says. “I realized that’s about developing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.”
For the next four years, he focused on deepening this connection. Jamey recognized the negative thoughts that had troubled him for years.
“I refused to believe the lies that Satan was feeding me, the lies that God didn’t love me, that God was unfair, that I should just turn to other things to numb my pain,” he shares.
Those thoughts never eased his suffering. “The more I believed those lies, that pain didn’t go away,” Jamey observes. “That pain stuck around and it still ached and it still hurt.”
Finding Purpose in Pain
Jamey found transformation when he understood God offered more than temporary relief. “Satan said be mad at God because he gave you this,” Jamey explains, “but then when I finally turned the ear towards God and listened to what he had to say, he said I can give your pain purpose.”
Jamey compares this to Jesus showing his wounds to his disciples after the resurrection. “Notice how Jesus in his new creation self is showing the wounds and scars of his old creational self,” Jamey points out.
“That’s what the power of God is, because once we place our faith in God we are new creations and those scars and wounds that we once had, they are not only healed but they are given purpose.”
This changed everything. Jamey believes without faith, he might have stayed trapped in destructive patterns and depression. Instead, he found joy in his circumstances.
“If I didn’t have God I don’t know where I’d be,” he admits. “I’d probably still be addicted to porn, I’d probably want to unalive myself, I’d probably want to crawl in a hole and lay there and listen to radio head for the rest of my life.”
Jamey ends his testimony by inviting others to know God: “If you don’t know God, get to know him because he knows you, and he is the most amazing, most kind, most thoughtful, most loving entity you will ever encounter.”
He emphasizes that Jesus embodies this transformative love that can change lives. “I hope this, my testimony, has helped you to see that,” Jamey shares.
“If you’re skeptical that Jesus and what he can do, just give it a chance, give this a try, and I promise that you will encounter supernatural amazement and you will see all the good that God can do.”
Your Pain Has Purpose Too
God can use your greatest struggles to create your most powerful testimony. Your challenges may become the exact tools God uses to show His power in your life.
Like Jamey, you might discover that what seems like a limitation actually becomes your unique path to experiencing God’s presence in a deeper way.
Are you facing difficult circumstances today? Remember Jamey’s journey from doubt to faith. God doesn’t just want to heal your pain—He wants to give it meaning.
Turn to Him and watch as He transforms your scars into signs of His amazing work in your life.
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