A Dr Like House
I watched the House medical show on TV a little bit but never got totally into it. Cindi and I were talking about Doctors today and were reminded of a Dr we had in North Carolina. He was very special to us at a tough time in our lives.
He enjoyed gardening. In front of his clinic, he had the most beautiful display of oriental and tropical flowers. You would often drive by and see him tending to them. If you got to the clinic for your appointment and he wasn’t readily available you would see him come in and clean up from his gardening.
This is a work post but he makes the cut even though we never worked with him. I was actually witnessing to him during my doctor visits when it was appropriate. We got to know each other well and he was coming off of a divorce that hit him hard. He was dealing with a lot of things but still being a great doctor. I was struggling health wise. He was kind and got to know me fairly well, maybe better than any doctor I have ever had.
One day he just laid it out to me. He was more honest than any other doctor I had ever seen. He said “Chris you have anxiety.” I denied it several times kinda harshly to be honest. But he explained to me everything I was doing and everything that would make it hard for someone to not have anxiety. I added up all of my stressors that he listed and went home with even more on my mind. I was in the thick of having some back and circulatory issues and then knowing this was part of his diagnosis was also weighing on me.
The reason this Doctor makes the blog is because of his honesty and care for me. Had he never shot straight with me, I would have never faced anxiety well over the years. He didn’t care if it upset me or even if I agreed with it, he knew the signs and saw I was not dealing with it well. He did his job in a way that helped me face a hard time and even grow from it. He wasn’t saved and he did this, even as I was explaining Christ to him over those years of visits. Cindi and our oldest daughter also saw him somewhat regularly those years. He was our family doctor. I believe we at least sowed seeds during our time as his patients.
You never know how much you might help someone by just talking with them and listening to them. Its difficult to ask someone you don’t know that is a customer, a vendor, a distant colleague, if it is ok if you pray for them. Asking them how to pray for them is tough especially if they have never been prayed for. If you spend time with someone, you get to listen to their life and work.They will often share with you some details that prayer could help.I believe you will get the chance to speak life into their situations. You can do for them what this Doctor did for me.
Going to work with a kingdom focus will open doors for you to show them Christ in you.
