Believing God
“He said to his disciples, ‘Why are you so afraid? Do you still have no faith?’” (Mark 4:40, NIV 1984).
I settled into a chair in the hotel lounge away from the crowd so that I might catch up on my email, with some real anxiety over the news that email was bringing me. Earlier in our mission I had prayed that each of us might be ready for God’s work of interruption. Just so, an Albanian medical student saw me sitting there alone and asked, “Are you busy?” As he sat down, he reflected on an earlier talk I had given and asked, “Which level of happiness are you experiencing?” As we talked, I asked him about his own faith experience. He described, “I am a Christian. My mother is a Christian who believes. My father is a Christian who does not believe. I am more like my father.”
Christian Doctor’s Digest – July 2019
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens is joined by Dr. Tyler VanderWeele to talk about the link between religious upbringing and health. Next, Senior Vice President Gene Rudd interviews Dr. Ron Bryce about his book Fingerprint of God. Finally, listen and learn more about Dr. Bill Griffin, CMDA’s new Dental Director.
Calling 911
“When Jesus had spoken these words, he lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you’” (John 17:1, ESV).
William carries the diagnosis of autism. He is a handsome and strong young man whose family loves the Lord. I have been praying daily for William, but my prayers may not have been correct. A few years ago, when William was much younger, his family was gathered with all eight of William’s siblings and cousins. As usual, there was vigorous activity throughout the house. Then someone noticed that William was missing.
Significance
“The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, ‘If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself’” (Luke 23:36, NIV 1984).
Each of us should have a few very special friends in our lives. Dr. Mark Johnston is one of those for me. I love this man, and God has done amazing things through his life, none of which I will mention here. He and I have been serving together in an Albanian mission for Christ over the last 25 years. Mark has been feeling the call of God into an even deeper walk with Him. Not long ago, Mark’s pastor asked his church members to place on the altar a sacrifice, to give to God something that God would truly desire. As Mark was praying earnestly what sacrificial offering might please his Lord, he clearly heard the inaudible message, “How about significance?”
Getting It
“Whoever closes his ears to the cry of the poor will himself call out and not be answered” (Proverbs 21:13, ESV).
Last week my son-in law-called me with a new problem. He had sneezed vigorously, and, after that sneeze, had developed periorbital pain, swelling around his eye and a minor change in vision. My daughter sent me a text picture of his eyes with one pupil smaller than the other. I had no idea what was going on, but, as an oncologist, I had seen nasopharyngeal cancers looking just so.
Two by Two
“And he called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits…So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent…” (Mark 6:7-13, ESV).
Beni Baboçi often assists us with our medical evangelism work in the Balkans. He came to my home the other night and shared with me his early days of ministry. In those days he was part of a team that trudged from village to village in the rural mountains of Albania sharing the Jesus Film, accepted by some and rejected by others. As he spoke, I envisioned the disciples’ experience when Jesus first sent them out from village to village, two by two, preaching that people should repent.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – June 2019
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens is joined by Dr. Steve Sartori to talk about CMDA’s new Center for Well-being. Next, he interviews Dr. Matt Montgomery about his experience on mission trips with CMDA’s Global Health Outreach.
Our Demons
“For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet” (Mark 5:4, NIV 1984).
I am trying again to memorize the book of Mark for no other reason than God asked me to do it. The beginning of chapter 5 drove my memory back to one Sunday afternoon, walking through the streets of the small Nigerian village of Sanubi, after we had attended church services. As we approached a concrete block house set off from the others, we came upon a young man, clearly mentally ill, sitting in the dirt with his feet locked by chains. He was talking delusionally, and it was not clear to me whether his chains were there to protect others or to protect him from himself.
A Deeper Faith
“…For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ…that I may know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that by any means possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead” (Philippians 3:8-11, ESV).
Tusculum
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Timothy 4:7, NIV 1984).
I was visiting Ron today. I had been on the periphery of his medical care, but mostly he was my friend, stuck in his home with a stroke and a broken leg. After we had chatted awhile, I noticed a college diploma from Tusculum University and asked him where Tusculum was located.
Silent Listening
“And as he passed by, he saw Levi the son of Alphaeus sitting at the tax booth, and he said to him, ‘Follow me’” (Mark 2:14a, ESV).
Arnie was retired from his orthopedic practice and helping lead the retreat for Christian doctors. He did not know it would be he who would be changed. Based on Dallas Willard’s book Hearing God, the retreat speaker challenged his audience, “I want you each to take the next five minutes and just listen to the Lord in silence.” After three minutes of silent listening, Arnie heard God ask him in the silence, “How are you spending your time?” From that moment, Arnie’s life was rearranged.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – May 2019
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens interviews healthcare missionary Dr. Eli Horn about his experiences with burnout. Next, he’s joined by Dr. John Chuck about personal health for healthcare professionals and how to create a balance between work and life.
“I Chose to Believe”
“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer…” (Philippians 4:6, NASB).
Paul married a girl I grew up with. They worked in Christian ministry together, and then he developed cancer and died. While he was living with cancer, Paul sent out an update to friends and supporters. Within that update he wrote, “A few weeks after finishing my radiation treatments a friend asked me what I had come to know about God through my ordeal. I had been wrestling with many thoughts that very day, and I realized that everything came down to one thing: I had to either believe God’s Word, the Bible, or not. I chose to believe. As a result, I understood in a new way that God is really sovereign and in control of my life and I am not.”
Saving Dogs
“He said to them, ‘Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned’” (Mark 16:15-16, NIV 1984).
I Still Need the Cross
“Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners—of whom I am the worst. But for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his immense patience as an example for those who would believe on him and receive eternal life” (1 Timothy 1:15-16, NIV 1984).
Underwater Breathing
“The Lord God…breathed into his nostrils the breath of life…” (Genesis 2:7, NIV 1984).
I did not read Dr. David Stevens’ email until late that evening when I finished rounds. The morning email had asked for prayer for his grandson’s near drowning and critical condition.
Plain Talk
Sometimes God “talks plain”—usually when our ears are stuffed with the wax of the world. In my own life, these plain-speaking times have not been pleasant. When God has had to “talk plain” in my life, it has been because I was headed in the wrong direction. His words were indeed clear, but they sounded like a two-by-four striking my skull.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – April 2019
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens is joined by Dr. Steve Manning, a physician from North Carolina who made the jump to Direct Primary Care. Next, he interviews Dr. Tim Elmore about his new book Marching Off the Map.
Witness by Proxy
“As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. Jesus would not let him, but said, ‘Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.’” (Mark 5:18-19, NIV 1984).
The Ptarmigan Trail
“‘What is truth?’ Pilate asked…” (John 18:38, NIV 1984).
I spoke again to my friend in the mountains, the one who follows Buddha rather than Christ, the one who suffered multiple surgeries from a skateboard accident. We met up again in Colorado when I was there recently for a medical conference. We climbed together to the Ptarmigan Lakes at 12,500 feet, wrapped in the grandeur of God’s creation. I shared the gospel and he shared his faith in Buddhism.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – March 2019
The March 2019 issue of Christian Doctor’s Digest… we’re talking about getting together with old friends from organizations that we have worked with for many years. Our guests are Kathy Schoonover-Shoffner, CEO of Nurses Christian Fellowship and John Stonestreet, host of Breakpoint.
Mountain Wonder
“His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3, NIV 1984).
This Forgiveness Thing
“And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive him, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins” (Mark 11:25, NIV 1984).
We were sitting in a circle, the windows around us open to the East Tennessee Mountains, a group of Christian healthcare professionals sharing personal prayer requests. Andy is in his mid-seventies. He hemmed and hawed a bit before he paused and spit it out, “I need prayer for this forgiveness thing we’ve been talking about.” He paused again, as if almost holding it in, and then continued, “I’ve been divorced 21 years. I know I have forgiven her a number of times for leaving me, but it keeps popping up and interferes with all my thinking. I need your prayers to just settle it.”
Blue Heeler Love
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another” (John 13:34, NIV 1984).
He was there to check his iron levels, a bit younger than I with a black, bushy beard. I asked him about the deep scratches on his arms.
“That’s from my dog,” he said.
“What kind of dog do you have?”
“A pit bull,” he said.
“I’d get another kind of dog,” I said, touching the scars on his arms.
“I had two dogs,” he continued. “One of them gave his life for me. I was walking through the woods and nearly stepped on a copperhead. He would’ve struck me, but my blue heeler jumped out and took the bite right in his neck. My pit bull then attacked the snake, took a strike in the face, but killed the snake.”
“What happened to your heeler?”
“He disappeared in the woods for two days. I found him, but he died five days later. That dog died for me.”
Wanting the Healer
“…for I am the Lord, who heals you” (Exodus 15:26b, NIV 1984).
He was a bit short of breath as he sat on the side of his bed, trying to regain his strength after a therapy complication had placed him on dialysis.
“I think we will hold your cancer treatment for a few weeks,” I told him.
“That will be good,” he said. “It makes me weak.”
“We need you to get your strength back and then we can deal with all your other stuff,” I continued.
He nodded, and then, after a pause for reflection, added, “You know, Cathy and I have decided that we are going to start seeking the Healer more than the healing.”
The Grace of Healing
“Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’ Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured” (Mark 1:41-42, NIV 1984).
Thus far he had beaten two cancers, along with chronic hepatitis and severe peripheral vascular disease.
I told him, “You have had more bad happen to you than most anybody I know. You are really an overcomer. Why do you think God has been so good to you?”
“Grace,” he said. “God has just treated me special. I know lots of other folks who had what I got and they didn’t make it.”
“Why are you special?” I asked.
“No reason. I don’t deserve it.”
A Bad Dream
On the first day of my week away from work at the CMDA National Convention, my wife told me, “I had this horrible dream last night.” Now, I’m used to my wife occasionally sharing bad dreams with me, none of which have ever come true; so, I asked her for the details. “I was on this spiral stairway, leading to who knows where. Nora Jane (our 3-year-old granddaughter) was on the bottom step, but the bottom step dropped off into a long fall. A big man was coming down the stairs above me and Nora Jane is afraid of big men. I was scared to death when she looked up in fright and backed off the step into nothingness. I cried out to you and you just stood there looking into your phone.”
Christian Doctor’s Digest – February 2019
The February 2019 issue of Christian Doctor’s Digest…A look into hospitality as a way to evangelize within the home. Conservative Christians admit that they do not speak out on political or cultural issues because they do not know how to support their beliefs from a biblical basis. We’ll look at how to defend the Gospel. And finally, the demands of cross-cultural ministry can be overwhelming and draining, leading to discouragement and burnout. We’ll learn how to live the holy, faithful lives God intends for us.
The Band Director
Thad Williams underwent the first bone marrow transplant in Memphis when we treated him for his Burkitt’s lymphoma years ago. He and his wife Cathy became dear friends, bound together by their struggle and by our mutual love for the Lord Jesus Christ. Thad survived the transplant and lived more than 15 additional years before God called him home. Today, my wife and I attended Cathy’s last concert as band director in her city’s high school, a school system she served for 37 years. It was a celebration of Cathy’s life. Many speakers described her accomplishments and lauded her with words like: kindness, competence, mentor, passion and determination—words that well describe our Lord when He walked the earth. With such praise surrounding her, Cathy conducted her final concert as band director, ending with a magnificent arrangement of “God of Our Fathers.”
Goals for the Day
Dr. Dave Hafer is a retired maxillofacial surgeon in Montana. He and his wife Bobbie took up painting to fill the Montana winters. They are both incredibly talented and love their new avocation. They love it so much that Dave took it to the Lord and asked Him, “Don’t let this be just for us. Show us how to use it for your glory.” And they have, repeatedly auctioning their work to raise funds for Christian ministries. Last year when they attended a conference for Christian women physicians, an attendee asked him, “Would you consider letting me commission you to do a painting?” Dave replied, “I guess I can do that. What did you have in mind?” The physician answered, “I want a picture of heaven. I want to place it on my office wall so that every morning when I arrive for work, I am reminded of my goal for the day.”
Five Questions
This week Ron was in his wheelchair, at the end of his journey with cancer. I asked him if he had any fears.
“No, I am all right. I know where I am going.”
“That’s great,” I said. “We were reading John 11 in Bible study this week and I have been reassured about my own death.”
“I love John 14:2,” he said. “In my Father’s house are many rooms…” (NIV 1984).
“You are right on,” I said. “You should also check out John 11:25.”
Right of Conscience
He spoke softly but confidently, without bitterness, as he described how he had been removed as chief of psychiatry at his medical university because he had voiced concern over the psychological effects of transgender transformation. It was he who had built the department from four psychiatrists to 17, and the 17 had voted him out. As I left the auditorium, another physician’s husband stopped me, “Do you know my wife may soon be incarcerated?” He then described a new bill moving through their state’s legislature that will make it a crime for physicians not to refer their pregnant patients for abortions when they ask.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – January 2019
The January 2019 issue of Christian Doctor’s Digest…Moral relativism is at the heart of most of our currently contentious issues relating to sexual freedom: the sanctity of life and the ordering of virtue. Also, what have we learned over the last decade about stem cells? There is enormous potential for medicine, but the debate is, “Where do we get the cells?”
The Jones Dictum
We met for two hours and worked for the Lord—an important ministry in Christian healthcare. Our future work was time sensitive, so we scheduled a telephone conference for the nine of us. The time chosen by the committee was a night when I was on vacation with my family. As an overworking doctor, I gather all of my kids and grandkids once a year to enjoy life together. The committee’s telephone time would land during dinner on one of those vacation nights…and I have spent too many years choosing work and ministry over family. As trivial as it may seem to many who serve the Lord sacrificially, and as atypical as it has been for me in the past, I told the committee, “I won’t miss dinner with my family. I’ll join you once our fellowship is finished.”
Merry Christmas: A Physician’s Take
Luke’s gospel gives the most complete and careful detailing of the setting, annunciation, gestation and birth of Christ, as one would expect from a person of medicine. In this week’s blog post, Dr. Andre Van Mol explores the gospel account of Christ’s birth.
As Best I Can
He sat across me with a swelling on his arm, one-fifth the size it had been before. “You know you are a miracle, don’t you?” I asked. “Most people with your cancer would be in heaven now.”
“He doesn’t want to talk about heaven,” his wife answered for him.
“My brother is a preacher,” he said. “I don’t talk to him much. I’ve been good as best I can.”
“That won’t get you there,” his wife responded.
“If you love Jesus, that will get you there,” I suggested.
He changed the subject, and we finished our medical business. He really was miraculously improved.
A Wrong Turn on the Right Path?
An international outcry occurred after Chinese scientist He Jiankui announced that he and his team had edited human embryos in an attempt to produce children who are resistant to HIV, cholera and smallpox. In this week’s blog post, Dr. Joy Riley explores this topic from an ethical perspective.
Asking
He had a Santa Claus beard but little hair on top. I told him, “You know, you are one of the few over 60 who has been cured of their acute leukemia.”
“Yes, I know,” he said.
“I hope you are telling folks how God has blessed you. “
“I am,” he said. “One thing I tell folks a lot is about the day my wife came in one early morning and saw the sunrise coming into the hospital. I had been having an uncontrolled fever for 10 days. She looked at the sun and prayed to God, ‘Dear God, burn it out.’ That morning after she left, I felt a deep burning inside. I fell off to sleep, harder than I had been sleeping in a long time. About 10:30 I woke up, and I was hungry, and my fever was gone and never returned.”
Nonconsensual Intimate Physical Examinations: Time to Stop
Recently, a law professor I was breakfasting with asked an interesting question, “Is it ethical to perform pelvic exams on patients who are under anesthesia without their permission?” My immediate response was a quick, “No!” and then, “That is something that was done in the distant past, but the question was settled long ago. Without permission, this would be battery, essentially rape.”
“I’ve Got This.”
You know how it is, or, if you don’t, someday you will. Sleepless nights, where you fall asleep dead tired and awaken at 3 a.m., either to get up and read or toss until morning, begging your mind to shut off. Usually these nights are related to a financial worry, a hurting in one you love or the cumulative effect of a highly stressful week. Well, I’ve had four straight nights of this, trusting God fully in the daylight but not in my dreams. Last night, it was 3 a.m. again, wide awake, focused on the unsolvable issue, dreading my fatigue for the next day. But this time, after praying once again for God to take my burden, I fell asleep. I was running this morning when I heard God speak, in His clear, inaudible voice, “I’ve got this.”
Can Transgender Activism Silence Science?
Vice President for Government Relations Jonathan Imbody discusses the lawsuit CMDA has been involved in regarding the transgender mandate, and how a new rule from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is expected soon.
The “H” in Hospice Stands for “Hope”
When I asked him if there were any other hopes he had at this stage of his life, he just shrugged and said, “Nope, all my hopes are in you guys – the medical profession.” He died three weeks later tragically clinging to tomorrow’s news.
A Biblical Perspective on End of Life Issues
How should Christians come to the end of life? What is the appropriate use of technology to prolong life? How can we assure that when our time to die comes we will do it in answer to the call of God rather than because all of the technology of modern medicine has been exhausted?
Overcomers
I was surprised to see his name on the schedule, as he had completed his therapy a few years ago. However, in spite of chemotherapy and radiation, his cancer had recently returned and required a laryngectomy. I was seeing him for the first time after this surgery—complicated by a stroke and a pulmonary embolus. He was not the same proud man I remembered. My first words to him were, “I am so sorry you have had such suffering with your stroke and with your voice gone. Can you overcome all of this?” He looked me in the eyes, then looked to my lapel, touched the gold cross pinned there and nodded with assurance.
Trusting Vaccines
Worldwide, only clean water has saved more lives than vaccines. Wild smallpox has been eliminated, and polio nearly so. Twelve other major diseases that were the scourge of mankind have been controlled. So why would anyone not want to control disease? Dr. Amy Givler delves into this question in this week’s blog post on The Point.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – December 2018
The December 2018 issue of Christian Doctor’s Digest deals with the topic of Grace and how we can apply to what is going on in our culture today. Phillip Yancey shares from his book Vanishing Grace: What Ever Happened to The Good News? as he focuses on the search for honest faith that makes a difference for a world in pain. Then Joe Gregory joins Dr. David Stevens to look back at God’s Grace that He gave to CMDA with their relationship and the growth to the organization that came through it.
Standing Against Physician-Assisted Suicide in Family Medicine
The American Academy of Family Physicians’ (AAFP) Congress of Delegates recently voted during their annual meeting to change their Hippocratic position on assisted suicide to a position of “engaged neutrality.” In this week’s blog post, Dr. David Stevens discusses how dangerous this decision is, and what you can do to get involved.
Bull’s Eye Living
I had the opportunity today to visit my friend, imprisoned outside of San Diego. As this is a government institution, it worked like the government often does, and the computerized visitation scheduling had not functioned well the week before. I arrived at 7:30 and watched other visitors line up by time slots painted in the pavement. I asked what I should do without a time assigned and they told me that they may or may not be able to get me in if I hung around until 11 or 11:30. I was due back at my conference at noon and stood there wondering if I should stay and take the chance. I remained and saw my friend.
Title X Family Planning Program
Dr. Foley explains that non-profit entities, such as community health centers, pregnancy resource centers and others, could serve either as primary grantees serving a state or a particular patient population, or as sub-grantees specializing in certain services.
Assigning Motives
I have recently begun managing a patient who had originally been cared for in a distant city. Unfortunately, his cancer has returned. He now needs multiple doctors to attempt to save his arm and his life. One doctor he is seeing now was furious that the prior doctor had treated him inadequately. He actually told my patient, “You need to sue the doctor who did this.”
The Lure of Money
In this week’s blog post, Dr. Autumn Dawn Galbreath discusses the topic of money and how easy it is to compare ourselves to others and how much more money they have than we do. How does God call us to view our possessions?
Chipping Away the Sin
I hurt a Christian friend this week. We work with shared responsibilities, and my frustration over his part in this had grown to the point that I just boiled over and listed all of his delinquencies. I was not cruel or untruthful in my delivery, but I was not kind either, and I hurt him deeply. The Lord pounded me for three days, the last one ending in a sleepless night. And then, I went to ask forgiveness.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – November 2018
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens is first joined by Cary Summers, the president of Museum of the Bible. Next, he interviews author Christopher Yuan about his new book Holy Sexuality and the Gospel.
Treating Patients or Creating New Patients with Technology
In this week’s blog post, Dr. David Prentice discusses how emerging technologies offer opportunities for development of useful therapeutic interventions, but they can also offer temptations to rush ahead with risky, scientifically unproven and ethically questionable applications.
Rushing Waters
I awoke Monday morning planning within the week to teach a Bible study on our personal testimony for Christ. As I stood in front of the mirror, shaving, I realized what a poor witness for Christ I have been, at least in words. So, for the entire week, when I was with my patients, I intentionally listened for the Holy Spirit, asking Him that I might bring up the name of Jesus at least once. Though God has used me for personal witness in the past, He did not this week in words that I could recognize, or else, I chose not to hear Him.
The Pursuit of Truth—Not Politics—Should Guide Research
The contentious confirmation hearing of Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh mirrored a less outwardly raucous, though equally intense, conflict in the scientific and research community. Our country, our culture and the scientific community appear at a crossroads. We are determining the extent to which objectivity, evidence and reason—as opposed to bias, ideology and emotion—will shape our conclusions and our policies.
Transing California Foster Children & Why Doctors Like Us Opposed It
California’s AB2119 should not be law. Signing the bill is a triumph of ideology posing as science. Human beings should be affirmed, not false identities and sexual confusion.
Benchmarks in the Battle
Early this year Dr. Andre Van Mol found himself transitioning from 23 years of solo family practice to employment by a big company, which is enough change for any season. Then came the request to help small teams fight big bills in his state capital of Sacramento, California.
Where’s the Oil?
My friend was stuck at home with a history of strokes that had left him with fair cognition but difficulty ambulating. I ran by today to check on him and had a mostly cogent time of catching up. As we looked back on the mistakes of our youth, we voiced our mutual gratitude that Jesus has forgiven us. My friend, who may be closer to heaven than I, began to talk about Jesus returning. “One day Jesus will come, and he will be sitting across this table from us. I can hear him saying, ‘Didn’t I tell you so?’” Then he added, “That’ll be the day we should have got it right the day before.”
What’s in a Name?
In this week’s blog post, Dr. Joy Riley discusses how verbiage makes a big difference in how physician-assisted suicide is promoted and transformed to make it more palatable to the general population.
Born Again Christian
“Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?” (Luke 6:46, NIV 1984).
My fellow saw the patient first and showed me the medical records that came with her, written by the doctor to whom she was first referred. “Patient desires to see a doctor who is a born-again Christian. I believe it is not best for me to manage her case. I will refer her to Dr. ____.” When I sat down in the room with the patient, as my fellow looked on, the husband spoke first, “Before we get started, I need to ask you a question, because it is important to us, ‘Have you accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior?’” It was easy to answer, “I certainly have.”
Christian Doctor’s Digest – October 2018
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens interviews Dr. John Dunlop, M.D. and Dr. Wendy Kang, M.D., JD.
Intolerance of Conscience Threatens Diversity in Medicine
In his continuing series on conscience in healthcare, Jonathan Imbody shares about a recent conference he attended with U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions on religious freedom and how that impacts CMDA student chapters around the country.
Scared to Life
I was seeing him for his third melanoma. Each one before had been cured by surgery and this one was also likely to turn out well. He looked at me and remarked, “It was the first one that really frightened me.” His wife added, “But, it brought him to the Lord.” “That’s wonderful,” I said. “Yep, it scared the hell out of him.”
Cloning Dollars
Cloning is an extremely lucrative business that has become more efficient. In today’s blog post, Dr. David Stevens explores this topic and shares what the Bible says about cloning, as well as the moral and ethical implications of this rising business.
Wearing the Cross
I am not an overtly religious person. I prefer to enter quiet conversations that lead to discussions of our Savior. I don’t like wearing my faith on a lapel…until recently. We were attending a CMDA event in Raleigh-Durham when Dr. Craig Fowler handed out gold crosses. I looked to see if he was wearing one and he was. He challenged us to put them on our own lapels. It now rests each day on the left lapel of my white coat and I am impressed that it has more likely changed me than affected the folks around me.
Grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change and courage to change the things I can…
How do you feel when it’s time to get ready for work? Are most mornings full of excitement about which patients are on your schedule and what you have to offer them? Or are most mornings filled with dread? If it’s the latter, you are not alone.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – September 2018
In this month’s podcast, Dr. David Stevens interviews Dr. Stan Haegert about burnout prevention for healthcare professionals. Then he’s joined by Joni Eareckson Tada, the founder and CEO of Joni and Friends.
The Quality Control of Life
Manufacturing industries routinely do quality control on their products, testing them to be certain the items being produced meet certain specifications. Any flawed products, those that do not meet the required specifications, are discarded. But what if that same mindset were applied to human beings?
Camaraderie in Faith: How CMDA’s Psychiatry Section Found Strength in Numbers
This patient—we’ll call him “Howard”—was suffering from a moderately progressed stage of Huntington’s disease and the depression that often accompanies the illness. After failing numerous antidepressant medications, his depression had not improved.
Providing Healing After the Hurricane
CMDA Member Dr. Cindy Anthis found herself facing an unexpected situation when her local community in Texas was flooded by Hurricane Harvey. In this article from the winter 2017 edition of Today’s Christian Doctor, Dr. Anthis shares how her clinic responded to the hurricane and its aftermath.
Remedy: Healing for the Nations
In this article from the winter 2017 edition of Today’s Christian Doctor, Dr. David Stevens introduces Remedy, CMDA’s new medical missions conference.
Development: Genuine Change Through Partnership
What is the role of Christian healthcare professionals in authentic community development? Dr. Mark Crouch discovers this topic in the cover story from the winter 2017 edition of Today’s Christian Doctor.
How Big Are Your Rocks?
Did you have a sling shot when you were a kid? I did, and I used to pick up rocks and pebbles from our driveway to use as ammunition when I plinked tree trunks, scared birds away from eating our garden and knocked cans off a stone wall.
Side By Side: Changing Lives for 30 Years
After an interviewing trip in 1987, my husband announced he wanted to complete his residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. To this day, I still remember hearing myself say, “That’s fine, honey. We could go there and have a ministry to internationals because many people from all parts of the world come there for training and then return to their homeland. It would be a great reverse mission field!”
Sued or Fired? Riding the Emotional Rollercoaster
Would you prefer to endure a medical malpractice lawsuit, or would you rather be terminated from your employment? Is there much difference in your emotional rollercoaster ride with either option? Would you want somebody who has ridden that rollercoaster before to assure you that the hellish ride will eventually finish?
VIE Poster Session: Supporting Academic Medicine through Good Craftsmanship
Throughout history, Christian academics were renowned for their scientific excellence. For a variety of reasons, “Christian” and “scientist” now seem like contradictory terms to many people.
Today’s Christian Doctor – Fall 2018
In the fall 2018 edition of Today’s Christian Doctor, Kenneth Lim, MD, considers how to sustain a lifetime of emotionally healthy spirituality in medicine. We look at CMDA’s Medical Malpractice Ministry, our Side By Side ministry, our VIE Poster Sessions, and Dr. Stevens discusses facing California as we fight Physician-Assisted Suicide.
Not Your Mother’s Family Planning Program
In this week’s blog post, Jonathan Imbody shares how several federal grants awarded under a recent Title X funding opportunity illustrator the current White House Administration’s determination to ensure that faith-based and pro-life clinics, hospitals, pregnancy centers and sexual risk avoidance programs get a fair and legal chance to compete for federal funding.
Opioids: A Brief History
In this week’s blog post, Dr. Amy Givler shares the story of how opioids became a problem in every community in America, including yours. And it is the story of how opioid addiction has overwhelmed and devastated some communities, maybe yours.
Angels in Dentures
We were approaching the end of our fourth and final day in Alianza, Honduras, and our team still had a lot of flippers (partial dentures) to make. We were particularly focused on a flipper for 16-year-old Maria. Her top two front teeth were extracted and the other two front teeth filled because of extensive decay. Unfortunately, soda is cheaper than bottled water in Honduras, and decay is rampant.
Outside the Box: Doctors in Nontraditional Careers
My favorite part of medicine is the moments I spend in direct patient care and in talking with specialists about patients. All the rest of it I find pretty unsatisfying. I feel limited by my inefficiency as well as pretty painful hand arthritis, so I had mixed feelings about the prospect of increasing my hours doing medicine after my kids were launched.
Interview with an American Ninja Warrior
In 2015, Richard Shoemaker, MD, an emergency room physician living and working in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, found himself in the national spotlight while competing on American Ninja Warrior. On this NBC show, competitors battle through a series of challenging obstacle courses in both city qualifying and city finals rounds across the country.
Finding Your Mission in Dentistry
As I entered “Ms. V’s” room, I could see her neck and leg braces, and as I came around the dental chair to greet her, I could see pain in her face. Two days before, she was hit by a car while crossing the road and her two front teeth were broken all the way to the nerve. It was obvious her entire body hurt, but she said the pain from her teeth was simply unbearable.
Combat Burnout and Reclaim Your Calling
I quit medicine. I was only five months out of residency and I was leaving medicine. I was finally a full-fledged physician with the big paycheck but absolutely no fulfillment. Not only did I leave the office night after night completely frustrated, hopeless and exhausted, I showed up each morning in the same state, if not slightly worse.
Speechless
“But he said to me, ‘My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness’” (2 Corinthians 12:9a, NIV 1984).
Genome Editing: Social and Ethical Issues
On July 17, 2018, the Nuffield Council released its report on “Genome Editing and Human Reproduction: Social and Ethical Issues.” The report lists several situations in which genome editing would be desired in order to have a genetically related child who did not have a given condition. Dr. Joy Riley discusses the ethical concerns raised by this report.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – August 2018
In the August 2018 edition of Christian Doctor’s Digest… Critical care with Dr. John Greenall and Paul Gerritson, MDiv.
Predictions
In medicine, patients and families want to know diagnoses, therapies, risks, benefits and side effects of proposed treatment options. At times the thing they most want to know is what is likely to happen to themselves or their loved ones based on possible interventions. This, however, may be the most difficult answer to give people.
Missions: Three-Legged Stool
“That evening after sunset, the people brought to Jesus all the sick and demon-possessed. The whole town gathered at the door, and Jesus healed many who had various diseases…” (Mark 1:32-34, NIV 1984).
Hitler’s Adversary Challenges Us to Public Square Engagement
In this week’s blog post, Government Relations Fellow Anne Foster explores how the story of German philosopher Dietrich von Hildebrand offers an example for Christians to engage in the public square.
Marijuana: Profits, Politics and Popularity Over People
When it comes to medical marijuana, many people prefer profits, politics and popularity over people. And physicians are not exempt. In this special blog post, Dr. James Avery explores the current movement of medical marijuana and how physicians need to actively confront the view held by so many that marijuana is a safe, natural and weak hallucinogenic.
Oil Bubbles
Charles called me last night and asked me to stop by his apartment on my way home from the hospital. I had helped him through a difficult health issue, and he is also a friend who has taught me much about Christian prayer and service. More than anyone I have known, he has an ear for God’s whisper coupled with the inclination to follow. He has brought the presence and gospel of Jesus to hundreds of lives through unknown and unremembered acts of kindness and grace.
The Only Way
We were seated in a closed circle, mostly Albanian students, a few followers of Christ and many who were not. We had been discussing healing and the nature of healing by God. The conversation was sporadic. And then a red headed medical student turned to my daughter, a nurse, and said to her, “You Americans don’t understand. You grew up with Christianity and became Christians because your families were Christian. We in Albania had no religion; it was illegal for over 50 years. Now, everywhere we look, we have someone telling us that theirs is the only way to God. Who are we to believe? I would rather just believe in God and not divide everyone by different labels of religion.”
Family vs. Physician
How do you feel when you have a patient who is also a physician? Or a patient whose close family member is a physician? I have been pondering this idea as I explained some medical information to several family members. In what ways can I be helpful to the situation, and where do I want to avoid making more work for the doctor caring for my family?
Inward Thinking
I may have hurt a man a few months ago. Due to my inadequate supervision of a resident, we delayed following up on a positive CT scan. I saw him this week and told him of the mistake and sent his chart out for peer review. Since I discovered the error, I have been worried, mostly for myself, my reputation, my job, etc. This morning, as I was stretching out my morning stiffness and despairing over the possible harm to my career, I realized my concerns were misplaced. Here was a man whom I might have injured and I am only concerned with the way my mistake affects my own life. I refocused my prayers on my patient, for whom Jesus died.
Christian Doctor’s Digest – July 2018
Dr. David Stevens is joined by Nancy Pearcey, the author of the newly released book Love Thy Body. Next, he chats with Dr. Steve and Rita Mainini about CMDA’s Marriage Enrichment Weekends.
Counting the Cost of Discipleship
Eagerly approaching the end of her Certified Nurse Midwife education, CMDA member Sara Hellwege decided to seek a position where she could minister to medically underserved patients without compromising her life-affirming convictions.
Testimony: Michael H. Clark, MD
Testimony of Michael H. Clark, MD
Against LD 1313
An Act to Enact the Maine Death with DignityAct