wfn.org | UMNS# 05105-Prayer pager brings hope, healing in trying times

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Prayer pager brings hope, healing in trying times

Feb. 18, 2005	 News media contact:   Fran  Walsh * (615) 742-5458*
Nashville {05105}

NOTE: A UMTV report is available at www.umtv.org.

By John Gordon*

JACKSON, Miss. (UMNS)-Hundreds of miles from their home and friends,
Jack and Anita Culp felt numb, watching their son cling to life after a
wreck. As they prayed for his survival, a stranger brought something
that would give them hope in the family's most trying time.

It was a prayer pager.

Soon, the family's prayers were joined by thousands from across the
country.

"It's kind of hard to grasp sometimes that that many people care," said
Brandon Culp, 23, who is now undergoing therapy at Methodist
Rehabilitation Center in Jackson.

Brandon, from Harrisburg, Pa., was injured Jan. 9 when a large truck hit
his car on Interstate 20 near Jackson.	He was returning to college in
Texas.

"It's a miracle he's even alive," Anita Culp said.

The prayer pager is a ministry of Christ United Methodist Church in
Jackson. Church members sent e-mails to friends asking them to pray for
Brandon, call a toll-free number for the pager (1-888-287-6249) and
enter their ZIP codes.

As the e-mails were forwarded, pages began coming in from throughout the
United States. The pager buzzed constantly, at all hours of the day and
night.

Even while Brandon was on a respirator in intensive care, his family
wanted him to know about the nationwide prayer chain.

"I held the pager against his wrist, and I said, 'Brandon, every time
this pager vibrates, somebody's praying for you,'" said Jack Culp.

"And I said, 'It's people that you've never met. And they're just
praying that God will do just the best for you that he can.'"

Brandon spent 11 days in intensive care and underwent three surgeries at
University of Mississippi Medical Center before being transferred to the
rehabilitation hospital. Though he is still paralyzed, his parents said
he has made remarkable progress-considering his heart stopped three
times on the way to the university trauma center.

"Most of the time when people say, 'I'm going to pray for you,' you
don't really know if they really do or not," said Anita Culp, who is a
nurse and teacher.

"But with this prayer pager, every time it pages, you know somebody has
consciously prayed for you and then called that number. And that, to me,
is amazing."

Brandon was beginning his senior year at LeTourneau University in
Longview, Texas.  He was studying to become an airplane mechanic.

It hasn't been an easy road. He was born with a spinal defect and, two
years ago, an accidental fall at college left him paralyzed.

Doctors gave him little hope of a full recovery from the earlier injury,
but he was able to walk again and return to school.

"I get down a little bit, sometimes," he said. "But I have my parents
here, and having all these people's support has really been a big help."

The Rev. Ginny Allen delivered the prayer pager after a friend of the
Culp family in Pennsylvania called a church member about Brandon's
accident. Christ Church was already planning to start the new ministry.
A member found the unused pager in a desk drawer, and Allen took it to
the family at the hospital.

"People really want God to be real," she said. "And a prayer pager is
one of the ways that they have something tangible to see that God has
heard their prayer."

Jackson residents were quick to show the Pennsylvania family plenty of
southern hospitality. A church employee lent them a car. Others brought
food and offered clothing, donations to help with expenses and a place
to stay.

Someone even paid the wrecker and storage charges for Brandon's
demolished car. The church also sponsored a blood drive.

"This experience will change my life forever, I can say that much," said
Jack Culp.  "When I go home, I hope I never pass up an opportunity to be
kind, to stop and pray for someone."

Brandon is trying to regain his walking skills on a weight-assisted
treadmill, supported by a halter. Doctors are not sure how much progress
he will make. Though his spinal cord was damaged, he does have feelings
below the injury. And despite a serious head injury, doctors found no
brain damage.

He is determined to walk across the stage to receive his college degree.

"It's kept my hopes up," he said. "My goal is to get out of rehab this
summer or sooner if possible, and get back to school and graduate and
find a job, hopefully."

His parents believe Brandon will rise to the challenges.

"It's not the end of his life," his mother said.  "He'll go on. God has
a purpose for him.  Maybe it's different from what we thought it was."

And Jack Culp is grateful to everyone who has helped show the power of
prayer.

"I mean, 'thank you' isn't really enough," he said.  "It's made a
difference."

While Brandon continues his rehabilitation, the church has activated two
more prayer pagers.

One is being given to a child who is hospitalized in Memphis, Tenn.

Another went to a Christ Church member who went to California for
specialized treatment for prostate cancer.

"It's going great," Allen said of the California case. "It was already
vibrating off the receptionist's desk before they even got it. He said
it was just so encouraging to know people from home are praying for
him."

# # #

*Gordon is a freelance producer and writer in Marshall, Texas.

News media contact: Fran Coode Walsh, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5458
or newsdesk@umcom.org.

********************

United Methodist News Service
Photos and stories also available at:
http://umns.umc.org