In Tuesday’s Gathering, Lipscomb’s very own Anna Cannone came to speak about her test of faith.
Cannone led by saying, “Learning to clothe yourself in God’s love every day is so important.”
She then began to explain how she was called to Lipscomb even though she was set on another school. She refused to get out of the car and tour Lipscomb’s campus with her sister, but eventually she did and immediately felt that it was home, saying that the Holy Spirit was guiding her.
Cannone told the audience that at the age of two, she was diagnosed with fibrous dysplasia. This rare bone disease causes fibrous scar-like tissue to develop instead of bone tissue, causing her bones to be weaker than average.
“From the age of two on, I knew a lot of sterile white walls and strange doctors,” Cannone said. “My family sacrificed a lot of their life to let me know the love of Jesus.”
Cannone remembers being isolated in therapy treatment rooms, lying there, realizing and being able to know that there is a God from a very young age. Cannone says that God gave her the strength to carry through, so she always kept a smile on her face.
She was forced to transition from a different school every year, eventually being homeschooled. At the age of seven her dad sat down by her bed and told her that she needed surgery on her eye, or she would go blind.
Cannone described what it felt like to know she was going blind at such a young age. She remembered being wheeled down the long corridor to have her first eye surgery. After everything, she knew it would be okay because of the power of the Holy Spirit.
Cannone had to shave her head and spend the summer recovering.
“I knew what it meant to be called beautiful as a child of God,” she said.
She found later that her neurosurgeon had prayed for her before surgery. He had prayed that she would flourish as a child of God, not just as a rare medical case.
After going through different medical obstacles, Cannone wanted to fit in, but soon realized that “normal” shouldn’t even be a word.
“There is no normal,” she said.
Soon, her body began shutting down; she began having spine spasms and couldn’t participate in swim team anymore. Because of this, her teammates turned their backs to her, along with most of the kids at her school.
She was pushed down the stairs and called names, completely isolated. But she never let that smile fade from her face.
The doctors said that at the age of 14, she shouldn’t be able to see, let alone walk. She had a tumor in her spine. But Cannone let God work in her life, because she said she had no one else to lean on.
God wanted her to be there to see his truth. Cannone said of course she was mad at God sometimes but realized that she was able to minister and be a light to others.
“You have the power to change people’s lives from the power of the Holy Spirit in you,” Cannone said.
Before one of her most recent surgeries, a huge group of peers gathered in Ezell at 6 a.m. and prayed for her. Cannone said she was quickly reminded of why she came to Lipscomb.
“I’ve had a lot of challenges since I’ve been here, and I wouldn’t trade them,” Cannone said. “I would do them again. Thank God that he doesn’t give us what we want.
“God is good. All the time. But you have to choose it. In the suffering, there’s been fruit of joy. But I had to choose to walk through the suffering with a different attitude.”