President Donald Trump brought attendees at the National Prayer Breakfast to their feet when he recognized Sophia Marie Campa Peters, a little girl who is fighting a terrible disease.
Peters, from Brownfield, Texas, was attending the Prayer Breakfast event Thursday in Washington.
Here with us today is another symbol of hope, a very brave 9-year-old girl named Sophia Marie Campa Peters. Sophia suffers from a rare disease that has caused her to have many strokes. At one point, the doctors told Sofia that she would not be able to walk. Sophia replied, “If you’re only going to talk about what I can’t do, then I don’t want to hear it. Just let me try to walk.”
Trump noted that Sophia’s doctors said she had “God on her side.” When Trump recognized Sophia in the front row, the audience came to their feet.
This is not the first time that the administration has recognized Sophia. In an emotional briefing last month, press secretary Sarah Sanders had these wonderful remarks to say about Sophia:
Today, an inspiring family and brave little girl from Brownfield, Texas, are facing a challenge that is inspiring their friends and neighbors and now, hopefully, a nation. Nine-year-old Sophia Maria Peters suffers from a rare disease that causes the blood vessels in her brain to narrow and close. Three years ago this condition resulted in four massive strokes. The strokes left her partially paralyzed.
Since then, she has undergone numerous surgeries, but she has faced each one of them with a fearless exuberance for life. … When doctors told her she would never walk again, she dismissed them. “If you are only going to talk about what I cannot do, than I don’t want to hear it,” she said.
Not only did she try, she succeeded, leaving her doctors dumbfounded. When they asked how she was doing these things, she had a simple answer: “Because I am awesome.” During the holidays in 2016, Sophia had several more minor strokes, but she kept fighting. A neurosurgeon told her mom, “This little girl has God on our side.”
These experiences led Sophia’s mom to realize that her daughter’s incredible faith could have a profound impact on others. “In a world where things are so bad and ugly, when there is so much loss of faith,” she said, “people needed to hear Sophia’s story so that they could hear a true testament to God’s grace and His glory revealed.”
No matter what you think of American politics today, this is using the power of the office for good.
