Life changed in an instant when Ryan Estrada crashed on the way to school. He was devastated. Then he had a divine encounter. And the paralyzed teen's heavenly vision transformed his entire outlook!
Ryan Estrada of Richmond, Virginia was driving to school one rainy morning when he lost control of his car when swerving to avoid a cyclist.
“I remember swerving past the biker and there was another car coming in the lane so I had to swerve back into my lane,” he recalls. “I remember losing control of the wheel, hitting the mailbox and then hitting the tree.”
As Ryan's body hung out the window, lifeless, he immediately knew something was wrong. He couldn't feel anything. In fact, the two "angels" who came to Ryan's rescue by calling 911 thought he was already dead.
“Vehicle in the ditch with someone hanging out of the vehicle not moving. Complainant thought they were deceased,” reported emergency communications from the morning of the accident.
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As it turns out, Ryan couldn't feel anything because he suffered a broken vertebrae in his neck and a severe spinal cord injury. This led to paralysis of his hands and legs. For his mom, it was heartbreaking.
“It was easily the worst day of my life to see him in the emergency room so helpless and crying,” Caroline Estrada, Ryan’s mother, said.
But it completely devastated Ryan. That is until he had a divine encounter!
As Ryan prepared to head into surgery, he was feeling pretty low.
“I was about to go into surgery and the whole day I was sad, crying, bummed,” he said.
But then something incredible happened. And the paralyzed teen's Heavenly vision changed everything!
“I remember my uncle, I saw him in like heaven," Ryan explained. "And he told me that I’m going to get through the surgery and everything is going to be alright, so I knew from that moment, I was smiling. I looked over at my mom and told her everything was going to be OK -- You know uncle Jack, he’s got me.”
Ryan also saw a grandfather he's only ever seen in family photos. The two never even met on earth. Yet, there he was in the paralyzed teen's Heavenly vision!
“I think it means Heaven is real and God’s real and that I’m here for a reason. I didn’t die for a reason,” he said.
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And while the accident has cost him so much, this divine encounter helped Ryan gain the most important thing - faith.
“I think it happened to regain my faith. I wasn’t really a religious person the last year going through depression. But ever since the accident every day [I'm] praying.”
Since his divine encounter, Ryan's outlook has completely changed. It's the kind of change that comes from finding your true Lord and Savior.
“As desolate as it may seem he’s actually the happiest Ryan I have seen in a couple of years,” said Caroline.
While doctors are happy to see Ryan hopeful, they also caution him to prepare for the worst. But the transformed teen now faces his paralysis with complete optimism. He trusts God to see him through and believes he will be walking again in six months.
He also believes God has a bigger purpose in all of this.
“We don’t know that reason yet," his mom said. "After seeing pictures of his car there is a reason Ryan is here he is going to make good on his promise to touch lives in some way.”
And as Ryan works on his recovery, support has flooded in from as far as Ireland after friends set up a GoFundMe page. The donations will help the Estrada family prepare for Ryan's homecoming, as he'll need specialized equipment like a motorized wheelchair, a wheelchair accessible van, a chair lift for the stairs, and so on.
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But thanks to his faith in God, Ryan faces all of these challenges with optimism. So, please join us in praying for his recovery. Like Ryan, we look forward to seeing what else God has in store for him!
“I honestly don’t know why I am here, but I can’t wait to find out,” said Ryan.
h/t: WTVR