I am barely into the Preface of Fearfully and Wonderfully Made but I know without a shadow of a doubt that it is by no mere coincidence that I have brought this book up to read in India.
3 years ago, Jesselyn bought me In His Image and after reading it, I was on the prowl for its prequel - Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. The search for that book took quite a while as major bookstores in Singapore did not have stock. I managed to acquire a copy after about a year of persistent trying.
It might come as a surprise to many why I am only reading the book now and not back then when I bought it. I do not know the reasons too, but I can be pretty certain that schoolwork played a major factor. As the months and years pass by, it laid in the midst of my ever increasing 'to read' section of my bookshelf.
Last week, while packing for my trip, I decided to clear some books from that section, and Fearfully and Wonderfully Made caught my eye. It was like the other 20-odd books were not even there. My eyes were only focused on it. Little did I know, the series of events that unfolded would sweep me off my feet...
On Monday, during the welcome speech, I caught a glimpse of a familiar name in the background, Paul Brand. He was the co-author of both Fearfully and Wonderfully Made and In His Image!
Paul Brand's Medal in Orthopaedics
3 years ago, Jesselyn bought me In His Image and after reading it, I was on the prowl for its prequel - Fearfully and Wonderfully Made. The search for that book took quite a while as major bookstores in Singapore did not have stock. I managed to acquire a copy after about a year of persistent trying.
It might come as a surprise to many why I am only reading the book now and not back then when I bought it. I do not know the reasons too, but I can be pretty certain that schoolwork played a major factor. As the months and years pass by, it laid in the midst of my ever increasing 'to read' section of my bookshelf.
Last week, while packing for my trip, I decided to clear some books from that section, and Fearfully and Wonderfully Made caught my eye. It was like the other 20-odd books were not even there. My eyes were only focused on it. Little did I know, the series of events that unfolded would sweep me off my feet...
On Monday, during the welcome speech, I caught a glimpse of a familiar name in the background, Paul Brand. He was the co-author of both Fearfully and Wonderfully Made and In His Image!
Paul Brand's Medal in Orthopaedics
It was then that I realised that I could very well be doing an elective in the very hospital that Paul Brand worked in and served. It was as if I was tracing his steps in history. Prior to making it here, the word Vellore was just another name of a city to me. It was just a word. However, reading it in a book and being here at the moment of reading somehow gave me an invisble connection to Vellore. I felt like I had all along been destined to be here some point in my life - now.
A few pages more revealed that in India where less than 3% of the population claims to be Christian, nearly a fifth of all medical work is performed by Christian doctors and nurses. This is the ideal place for me to experience first hand about missions! This tied in perfectly to what happened on Sunday...
After my practical paper, Weihao and my discipleship group met at my place for our monthly session. If given the choice, I will very much not like to have the session and just have some down time before my evening flight. However, a commitment was made to one another at the very start that attendance for each session was imperative. Therefore, I denied the flesh as it was the right thing to do. During the session, we discussed about spiritual gifts and uncovering them. At the end of the session, we also shared about how we are going to make use of the 1-month before the next session to better identify our individual gifts and areas of ministry. My specific task is to share the gospel with someone in India, preferably through the healthcare system.
As I flipped through the pages, the words that I read resonated so strongly with ideals and beliefs that I have held on to for the longest time. The words rekindled the ember that was almost extinguished in my heart into a raging fire that is burning brighter than ever. It reminded me the reason why I chose Medicine - to uncover the greatness of God through the study of His greatest work, the human body.
Paul Brand wrote, "I have come to realize that every patient of mine, every newborn baby, in every cell of its body, has a basic knowledge of how to survive and how to heal, that exceeds anything that I shall ever know. That knowledge is the gift of God, who has made our bodies more perfectly than we could ever have devised."
When one coincidence occurs, you can label it as such; when two coincidences occur, you can attribute it to good fortune; when three or more coincidences occur, you must be severely devoid of spiritual belief if you are still adamant on it being down to 'good luck'! Therefore, here I am believing firmly that whatever reasons I have being here, God has plans intended for me to grow and mature in faith. Coincidence? I don't think so...
After my practical paper, Weihao and my discipleship group met at my place for our monthly session. If given the choice, I will very much not like to have the session and just have some down time before my evening flight. However, a commitment was made to one another at the very start that attendance for each session was imperative. Therefore, I denied the flesh as it was the right thing to do. During the session, we discussed about spiritual gifts and uncovering them. At the end of the session, we also shared about how we are going to make use of the 1-month before the next session to better identify our individual gifts and areas of ministry. My specific task is to share the gospel with someone in India, preferably through the healthcare system.
As I flipped through the pages, the words that I read resonated so strongly with ideals and beliefs that I have held on to for the longest time. The words rekindled the ember that was almost extinguished in my heart into a raging fire that is burning brighter than ever. It reminded me the reason why I chose Medicine - to uncover the greatness of God through the study of His greatest work, the human body.
Paul Brand wrote, "I have come to realize that every patient of mine, every newborn baby, in every cell of its body, has a basic knowledge of how to survive and how to heal, that exceeds anything that I shall ever know. That knowledge is the gift of God, who has made our bodies more perfectly than we could ever have devised."
When one coincidence occurs, you can label it as such; when two coincidences occur, you can attribute it to good fortune; when three or more coincidences occur, you must be severely devoid of spiritual belief if you are still adamant on it being down to 'good luck'! Therefore, here I am believing firmly that whatever reasons I have being here, God has plans intended for me to grow and mature in faith. Coincidence? I don't think so...
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