Prisms Full of Rainbows 

Stacey Hickman shares her story, “Prisms Full of Rainbows”. She shares her story of strong faith despite the health challenges she faces daily. She finds the rainbows in her situations while focusing on Jesus.

“And the one who sat there had the appearance of jasper and ruby. A rainbow that shone like an emerald encircled the throne.” Revelation 4:3. (NIV) 

In his late 40s, he was lying under a car looking at a muffler when everything in his head started shifting. It was like an earthquake, but the ground wasn’t shaking. After 15 years of being misdiagnosed, my Dad, a 32-year firefighter, finally got diagnosed through DNA testing. He had a rare genetic neurological disease called SCA-6. And all of his children have a 50% chance of having it. So far, my three brothers are all still symptom-free. Because there is no treatment and no cure, getting tested is not recommended unless you have symptoms, which usually have a late onset.  

Lucky Me

One of the symptoms is double vision, and right before my 50th birthday, my symptoms began. For whatever reason, my symptoms took a unique turn where I also developed misaligned eyes with double nystagmus in one eye. If this sounds complicated…it’s because it is. It’s very rare. But before the Neuro doctors understood what was really going on, for a few years I had the pleasure of being able to see with a new set of prisms about every two months; eventually going all the way up to a number 30 in one eye, which meant my lens was about 3/4 of an inch thick in that eye. It was hard, but at least I could see.

Unfortunately, that also took a rare turn. I’ll never forget the moment when the Neuro Eye doctor told me that, because this was a brain issue causing my eye problems, there was nothing more they could do, and I would have to wear a patch over one eye for the rest of my life. A BIG BLACK PATCH over one eye…for the rest of my life! 

Stages of Grieving 

I went through a lot of different stages. I was scared, mad, embarrassed, sad, and then I had to deal with my appearance, which was about as difficult to accept as losing the ability to see with both eyes. And this is only part of what SCA-6 does.  My Dad is in the advanced stage of the disease so I see myself in him every time we visit. He is confined to a wheelchair, he can’t speak properly, he has tremors and swallowing issues. This is a man who once looked like a movie star and was an eloquent public speaker. This disease has robbed so much of his life…but he still has his faith. And he’s far more to me than any movie star could ever be. 

My Rainbow

One day, while watering the garden wearing my thick, heavy one-sided glasses,I looked up at the stream of water and saw the most beautiful rainbow. It wasn’t in the sky…it was in my eyes. I saw red, green, blue, yellow and lavender. In my glasses, the prisms were showing me all the colors of a rainbow. I know it sounds simple, but it changed me. I actually laughed out loud! Something happened. I felt free and comfortable with who I was, all because of God’s rainbow of hope that was shining over my eyes through the prisms. I started to realize that regardless of your circumstances, God can turn your burdens into rainbows. It was a beautiful, colorful revelation. And you don’t need two eyes to see it. Just an open heart. 

Conclusion 

Rainbows are a sign of hope, and God has a pocket full of them, so even in the most difficult season, never ever give up hope! Just keep your eyes and your heart on him because no disease can take Jesus out of your heart. Once you find faith in Jesus, you will always have it. Nothing and no one can ever take it away.

Meet Stacey

Stacey Hickman and her husband live in Bloomington, Indiana. They have three grown children and two grandchildren. Driven by a desire to grow God’s kingdom, she loves writing and sharing her personal testimony of faith in Christ. She and her husband are a singer-songwriter duo. 

Her writing was recently selected to be published by Compel-Pro of Proverbs 31 Ministry, where she is a member, learning and growing in her gift. Her goal is to share God’s loving mercy through stories that have molded her as a believer. It’s because of His mercy that she lives. You can connect with her at www.thewellofmercy.wordpress.com.

• Prisms Full of Rainbows 
• Wrestling with God and Losing the War
• The Pressure of the Process
• Enduring to the End
• When There’s Pain in the Waiting

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