Faith lived out
The Australian surgeon who has been shadowing us all week turned out to be a devout Christian. On his last day in the lab, a conversation about One Hundred Years of Solitude turned into a 2-hour long discussion about God and faith. This doctor was so evidently filled with the Spirit. He spoke emphatically about the importance of placing our identity in Christ and not in our work, and how much freedom we experience as a result of it. He was discontent about how grace and love are not taught enough in church and how religion has been twisted into a set of rules set by a judging, unyielding God. Even with his mature faith, this doctor was still in wonder and awe that he can have a personal relationship with a god who loves him as a unique individual. During the entire week I spent with him, I never saw him as excited as he was when he talked about his faith. His life was marked by true devotion to God.
The doctor shared about how his faith has powerfully transformed his relationships at home and at work. He said that when I become a doctor, I automatically become a leader as well, whether I like it or not. Sure I can choose to deny that responsibility and do as I please. But it is an amazing opportunity to influence those around me, from my colleagues to my patients. Seeing people through God’s eyes will help me to be more patient, compassionate, and forgiving. I don’t need to preach the Bible to people but the faith I show through my actions and words will be testimony to the great work He has done in my life.
He spoke exactly what I needed to hear. I once felt convicted to be a godly doctor but have lost sight of that calling when entered the secular workplace. Some doctors at work are excellent, others test my patience and forgiveness, but none of them serve God. I was starting to worry that as I get wrapped up in the worldly values of medicine, which can be deceivingly godly yet not Christ-centered, will cause my faith to dwindle and suffer. But as this doctor shared his own struggles of working for money and pleasing people, and how God freed him from all that, I knew this was what I believed and desired as well. Like the doctor said, ‘how can you possibly not want that?!’ How can I possibly choose anxiety and insecurity over peace and confidence? How can I possibly choose vain worldly accomplishments over a fulfilled, purposeful life? He said that God has given us all a gift, but it is hidden, because life would not be a journey if we knew from the beginning what we are meant to do. So this gift is not hidden from us, but hidden in us, for us to discover.
I genuinely wish for this mature faith to get me through school and training. In light of all the amazing promises and blessings I have in Christ, my own struggles with laziness and inconsistency seem so pathetic.
