I'm the Queen

 She was a strong independent woman.  NOT religious. Sarcastic and a little mean. 

Somehow she loved me. 

every visit, she gave me a hug and told me I was her favorite doctor. 

She accepted prayer with a big smile and the occasional rolled eye. 

....

One day she started loosing weight. Her stomach was bloated. I ordered an ultrasound. 

"It looks like pancreatic cancer" I had to tell her over the phone. Confirmed it later with a biopsy. 

She started a week later chemo but still came to see me monthly per her request just to check in. every time I saw her, she was thinner, weaker, more tired. 

One day she was open to me sharing about the Big picture of what the Bible says about knowing God. 

I talked through the gospel, then came the 2 circles- the 2 choices. Which circle do you want for your life?

"This one," she said as she pointed to the circle where SHE was on the throne, and Jesus was outside and not part of it.  "I'm the Queen, I'll always be the Queen." she calmly said with a determined gaze. 

I had to let her choose. 

She hugged me at the end of the visit and left. 

I found out she died a few weeks later. 

The Schedule Wrecker

 He was a schedule wrecker. 

Hospital follow up with a discharge summary an inch thick. 

30 year old with long history of Meth and alcohol abuse, coded while playing soccer, in the ICU for weeks. No PCP. No insurance.  The ICU had been his first visit to the doctor in decades. Somehow alive, somehow sitting here in my office with his anxious wife. 

he said he was ready to get clean. He had 5 kids younger than 10 after all. 

I hope so, I thought as I made helped him with a medical plan forward but suspecting I might never see him again after this visit. 

I offered to pray with him. He and his wife were touched. there were tears. then they left. 

....

I saw him a few months later. He was still clean. this time his wife and 8 year old son came with him. 

Me: "Are you religious or spiritual?"

him "No, but I want to be..." 

me: "Would it be helpful if I shared what the Bible says of how we really Know God and live life with Him? "

him: "yeah!"

I drew out the old bridge diagram. then the 2 circles. When I asked where he wanted his life to be, He pointed to the circle where Jesus was King. I asked if he wanted to pray together now to receive the gift of eternal life with God. YES he did. I started to pray and he was going to repeat after me.. 

But then something unexpected.... 

It wasn't just his voice I heard. 

A woman's voice. A little boy's boy's voice, the man's voice.   all praying together, asking God to forgive them, save them and take over their lives. 

New life. New hope. A new way forward. 

there were steps to finding them a Spanish speaking church. The mom said one of her older kids already went to one with a friend and they would try going with her sometime. 

........

Lord, please take hold of this family to be Yours forever. 

praying for the opportunity ...

As I walked into my clinic, I prayed that God would give me an opportunity and the time to share the gospel with someone today. I prayed that He would bring some "ripe fruit". Then I punched the door code and walked into the dark hallway. 

...............................................10 AM.............................................

It was her first visit after the biopsy came back as breast cancer. She was tired, her body hurt, and most of all, she was scared. She had told me previously she was Christian so I asked her,

"How are things with God in all this?"

"They're ok, yeah..um I guess"

"Has your faith been helpful?'

"yeah, praying helps some"

"Do you have a church family that is supportive?" 

"I haven't been in a long time.."

"I used to go to church and for a long time never understood the big picture of how to really know God, I knew Jesus had died but didn't understand why or the big picture of the Bible. At some point, someone explained the big picture to me and it really helped me- especially in times that are hard and scary.  Would it be helpful to you for me to share with you the Big picture of the Gospel and How to know God?

"Yeah, I would really like that" 

I was able to share the gospel with her. She clearly did not know why Jesus died or how to have a relationship with him.  She did pray to receive Jesus as her leader and savior. She said she had a friend who went to church she could go with and had a Bible at home that she hadn't read before.  She even had the Bible app on her phone so I showed her some of the daily devo videos and pointed her to everyperson.com website also. 

--Father, let her genuinely know You and find true and lasting comfort in your strong and loving arms. Amen.

Answered prayers

 I prayed for many years for a husband who loved God, loved people, and loved God's word. I just want to note here how thankful I am to God for answering this in my life today. We are both still in progress but here are a few things I am treasuring in my heart right now. 

Watching my husband lead a discovery Bible Study at Hermann Park for our local homeless friends, even when it's awkward for him. 

Seeing his offer to lead small group Bible study when no one else signs up. 

Watching him sneak over to my neighbor's apartment while they are in India to wash all their dishes. He had driven them to the airport and this was brought to light in their hurried rush to leave. 

He gets up early (around 5:30Am) to spend time with God and read his Bible and pray in our bathroom closet since there's nowhere else that won't wake people up to be in the morning. 

He is reading John Piper with his brother every week. 

He got up early on my day off to take care of our 2-year-old, give him breakfast, dress him and bring him to daycare so I could sleep in a little bit more today. 

Not a Deist

 He was 26 and a little depressed. Being human was hard sometimes and pretty busy. I knew his dad who was a Christian and actively involved with the church. It was his first time seeing a doctor in many years. When I asked him about his faith background he said he grew up with religion but it's not for him now.. but he was "spiritual" and liked to think there was a purpose to life... but - no- , he wasn't a "deist or anything"  He then apologist for "taking so much more than he thought he would about it." Later when I asked if it would be helpful if I prayed for him he asked me, "do your other patients like it when you pray for them?"

"Well, if they want me to pray for them, usually they find it helpful. I only pray with people who want me to pray with them. It's just something I offer, but only for people who want it" 

he said, "well yeah!" and then had a pretty long list of things he really could use prayer for. 

Pretty long I think for someone who doesn't really believe in God. 

God, I pray for this man, that you would pursue him and take hold of his life so he knows You are the One he needs. You are the One who gives us purpose. 

for the grandkids

He came for his annual exam. Nothing special to talk about. Some skin issues and a cough. The last visit I had seen him was 2 years ago and it was mostly unremarkable. He had declined prayer at that time. 

me: "So I remember you're not religious. Did you have a bad experience in the past?"

him: "yeah- I grew up JW.  It wasn't ..the best... Religion is just not my thing now" 

me: "Yeah, well, we are all on our own Journey. Some of us have bad experiences with religion. I like that Jesus didn't necessarily come to bring "religion" and rules, but relationship. 

him: "It's funny you bring it up... actually I've been thinking about it a lot lately. Because now that we have grandkids, I've been wanting to get back into, well.. just something... for them. "

... My kids, well, they are basically atheists because I didn't teach them anything because I had problems with it.. but they never had the choice really.  I don't want my grandkids to be like that... I want them to have a choice.,  But I sort of feel like a hypocrite trying to tell my kids that since I was so against it all when they were growing up. I'm just not really sure what to do about that now"

me: You could perhaps pray and ask God to show you what to do... I'm sure He'd actually be really happy  to hear from you"

him: silence then "hmmfff"

me: Remember the prodigal son story?" Where that son runs off and spends all his dad's money and is wanting to come home?

him: Oh Yeah, I know that story, I know all the stories. 

me: Yeah, remember how it ends?  He came home thinking his dad would be mad at him, but when he finally decided to come back, his dad saw him and ran to him and hugged him and welcomed him home.. that's how God is for all of us when we come to Him. 

him: yeah. 

me: well, there's this neat website that you might like to check out. It's called everyperson.com

It was written by an Athiest who had a lot of questions but ended but finding God in the end. You might like it

him- that sounds interesting. thanks for this, I'll check it out

me: would it be helpful if I prayed for you today before you do home?

him: no thanks. 

the COVID19 Widow

She sat in my office, a new widow at 59. Her husband died of COVID19 last month and she lived alone. We talked about her health, her blood pressure, her lab work. She was teary eyed. It was clearly a difficult season in her life. I remembered she grew up Catholic. 

I asked "Is your faith a big part of your life? Has it been helping you ?" 

She said, "That was a long time ago. My parents were religious but I wasn't.  I haven't paid much attention to it for some time. I was thinking now that I am alone, I would try again... maybe a different kind of church though. "

I shared with her, "I went to church for a long time and never really understood how to connect with God much. It was a lot of rules and rituals, but I remember when someone did share with me the big picture of How to connect with God--  that really helped me a lot. Would you like me to share that BIG PICTURE explanation of How we connect with God and get closer to Him?" 

"Yeah, I think that might help me"

I had the opportunity to share the gospel with this hurting woman today. At the end,  I showed her the 2 circles/types of people.  she said she was on the left (life without Jesus and leading her own life) but wanted to be on the right (life with Jesus , forgiven and letting Him lead her life) .  She said she wanted to cross over today... and we prayed for that end. 

"wow, that was really special" she said. 

"It's just the beginning " I said. Today is the beginning of your new Life with Jesus as your best friend and He will never leave you.  The rest of your life is a life of getting to know Him more , learn about Him and enjoy life with Him" 

Dear God, I pray that you would let Your truth sing deep in her heart. I pray that the enemy would not steal these seeds away and she would truly KNOW you and follow you. Bring her into your church  and surround her with people who will help her in this new life. 

follow up 6 weeks for HTN.  to be continued...

If it had not been for the pain...

When I called my mom, I was hurting. 

I cried and asked her to come help me 4 weeks early. 

She came and we had the most peaceful, healing 4 weeks together. 

Healing that has been needed for about 20 years. 

Only God knew what He was doing in the pain. 

Had I not had the cesarean and poor anesthesia and complications, I would not have cried out.

Had I not cried out, she would not have come.

Had she not come, I would have missed out on this precious month together. 

-month that has changed my relationship with my mom and how I see her. 

 something better to remember her for forever. 

#stonesfortheJordan

Surgery for your good...

My baby had tongue tie laser surgery this week. It was really painful for him and we are left with instructions to do tongue and lip stretches every 4 hours for the next month to prevent the wound from closing back to it's original form. Every time we do the stretches, my baby boy screams bloody murder-- I know it hurts him. Probably stings and it even hurts a little for him to eat-- he cries and feeds and cries and feeds. It's so painful to my heart to watch him in pain, but we need to do it so he can eat well, grow and be healthy.  It hurts to know he doesn't know why we are doing it-- he just knows WE are doing it and it hurts. But it's good for him. I don't find any pleasure in his pain.. but it must be done.

This helped me understand a little why God lets us suffer at time. He doesn't find pleasure in my suffering, but allows it so I can grow and be healthy-- ultimately to mature more into His image-- more like Jesus.. for my good. and His glory. I don't always know why or what He's doing. but I can trust He loves me with the heart of a good Father who wants fullness of Joy and Life for his children. He is wise, loving and able. I just have need to trust His heart. 

He will wipe every tear...

At first it seems like God didn't answer my prayers.
Contrary to my prayers, I had a complicated pregnancy.
Contrary to my prayers I had an even more complicated, very painful delivery and recovery.
The most painful week of my life. The PTSD kind of experience.

Its not that God didn't answer or hear me. It's just that he said No. His goals are not a comfortable journey but to conform me to become more like Jesus. To be a more useful tool in His hands. And I am. I am a better doctor because of the gestational diabetes-- having to check my sugars 4x a day and stay on top of a no-carb diet and exercise. I am a better friend because of the painful recovery and delivery-- better able to help other new moms and KNOW just how difficult this process can be. I shed the tears that they will shed. But I now KNOW better how to be a useful help and to come alongside them better.  I am a better wife-- I love my husband much more through seeing him step up and serve me selflessly through this process. I am more thankful -- having needed to accept help from so many people who did what I could not do that first week that I could barely walk. I am more aware of my need for help and for the Lord-- a good place to be-- dependent on Him.

And in the quit moments of holding my precious little one, I am praying.. more than the many months before. Hours of holding him -- unable to do much else-- but hold him and pray.

...to hold him and learn to trust Him-- that even when He says No, He has all Authority in heaven and earth and is with me every day. Every moment and happening is filtered through his loyal furious love for me and works for my good. Ultimately these tears are for His glory and my Joy.  And He will keep all his Promises to me, for even when we are faithless, He is faithful for he cannot deny himself.

“He tends his flock like a shepherd: He gathers the lambs in his arms and carries them close to his heart; he gently leads those that have young.”

Isaiah 40:11 NIV

Regarding Motherhood

It came upon me quickly and I was not ready for it.

5 weeks early and with the most painful week of my life, tiny premature Isaiah Zaccheus Lee entered this great big world.  I was his and he was mine.  I had no control over what happened that week, the complications, the decisions that were made, the prolonged recovery that I very much underestimated. Tears. Lots of tears. And also the providence of God in places unexpected. A new doctor who joined our practice 2 months early and just a few weeks before the birth- who could take over my practice while I was away.  In-laws who came every day so I could shower and nap. A church small group and neighbors that brought us dinner every day and visited with us.  The pain clouded my thanksgiving but I am thankful now. And my mom who flew in to help for the next several weeks. And for sweet dear friends who have helped me more than they know-- Lindsay with her soul care cards- soo encouraging! And a healthy son, despite his more difficult feeding routine. Teaching me ... patience. teaching me the love of God. teaching me that I have no control. teaching me to pray. Teaching me to cry out to the One has already laid out the life plans for this child.

Our lives will be never be the same. We will forever have a son. For the next 18 years, this tiny human roommate will grow and I will need to take account of him in everything I do and every place I go.

Good thing he is cute. I am not a "baby-person" but I have the cutest baby.
And I have choice but to hold him upright for hours each day to prevent him from vomiting. A new time to pray and think and listen and perhaps if I become disciplined enough- to read and grow.

Baptism-- not just to immerse but to soak and saturate with-- like with pickling. I want to use this time to soak and saturate my soul with Jesus. God knows I need it.

Can I still go to Heaven ?

She was a new patient to me and just came in for a refill of her birth control. I asked her about her medical history and she stated she was healthy without any problems, typical for a 19 year old. Well.. except she was having irregular cycles since she had an abortion last year. 

Me: “Oh, Im sorry to hear that” I said. “How are you doing since then?”  She said she was doing ok, without any apparent emotions. 

“How far along were you?” I asked 

Her: “about 13 weeks.” she began to tear up, “I didn't know how far along I was at the time. I looked up a picture of a 13 week baby on google and if I had known what it looked like, I would have kept the baby.”

I was quiet for a little bit and mentioned that we all have regrets and things we would have done differently if we were to go back and do it again. We talked a little more about the details and her life. It came out that she grew up Baptist. 

Then, she said, “Im not sure if I can go to heaven anymore” 

Me “ What did you learn about Heaven and forgiveness growing up”

Her: “Well, I guess that God is supposed to forgive me, but I don't know”

Me: “Well, the Bible says that God can forgive us, not because we are good or do the right things, but because of what Jesus did for us.  Do you know what he did for you?” 

I was able to explain to her the good news of the gospel and why Christ had to die for sinners like us. I was amazed at the look she had on her face, wide eyed and genuinely interested. She told me that no one had ever explained it like that before. I asked her about the 2 types of lives people choose to live (one where Christ is received as savior and King and one where Christ was not the Savior or King. She felt like she was somewhere in the middle but wanted Christ to be the King. She felt like she needed to talk about it with her boyfriend first though so I showed her what to if she ever wanted to make that decision on her own. 

One of her questions before she left. 

“How often of you pray? How often am I supposed to pray?”

We had a sweet shot conversation about prayer and that it is just talking to God like a friend. He wants to hear from us and loves hear and answer.  Then, we prayed.  She gave me a hug. 

thank you, Jesus. 

occurred on 10/5/18

Wake up Oh Sleeper and wipe your eyes clear of the worthless accolades of men and the securities of this fallen world. The crust is covering your lids, like scales, thick.  Rise out of that drugged-up yellow-smoke-inhaled- daze. So enchanted by your own kingdom, sacrificing to the enticing but lying god of "comfort". Oh that thief god, he stole your joy and left you half dead on the street corner, emaciated but still holding out your vein for another hit. And when the Shepherd came and offered you food and a warm bed in His home, you cried out "give me money, money money" through ungrateful cracked lips, so that you could buy more of the same poison.

Behold, He comes. Too clean to be touched by your dirty hands. He is so close now. He is looking into your eyes. He whispers your name. He is stooping down and pulling you to His chest and weeping over you. He calls you his beloved and although you betrayed Him, prostituting yourself to every other god, He is kissing your face. He carries you home, wrapped in his white garment. He reaffirms his vow of loyal love to you. wake up. 

Dreams, murderers and Jesus...

I had a terribly violent but remarkable dream. I was in a clothing store and suddenly there were groups of armed militant men from the Middle East filling the store. The store became darker and I hid behind some clothing while the men began killing everyone in the store, including one of my best friends who was with me. I was able to escape and somehow discovered that my parents also had been killed. I was running and found myself in a dark room. Suddenly there He was- Jesus- standing in front of me with light around Him- and he reached out and embraced me with the most comforting hug. I remember feeling like everything would be ok. He then left and I was on my way. There was another scene with a murderer - a man like the Joker- but without the makeup, standing in an art gallery room alone with his head down. The door opened and an art teacher called out to him an then the murderer stabbed him in the neck and killed him. I don't know what triggered these dreams but I felt that being visited by Jesus in this one was meaningful to me and wanted to remember it here. 

30 days of thanksgiving Day 1

Thank You Lord for my husband Brian. Thank you that He is a kind, loving, thoughtful, gentle man who loves you and wants to follow and obey you. Thank you for our morning walks and talks, our wacky talky thursdays and getting to go to sleep and wake up together. Thank you for his love and affection and for letting marriage be better than I expected so far. Thanks that we got to celebrate with a beautiful wedding (also more beautiful, fun, and better than expected), and also a fun honeymoon (also more sweet and fun than expected). 

strange goodbyes...

This last week was bizarre, deep, meaningful, broken, nasty, and bonding.

2 weeks ago my grandmother died. No one knows exactly how long she was dead for, but it had been anywhere from 2-5 days in a hot home where she was bloated and unrecognizable when my uncle found her. The police came and took her body to the morgue, but left behind was a large puddle of blood, urine, and leaked out body fluids in the kitchen floor. No one cleaned it up and even revisited that house for over a week, so it festered in that tiny 1000 square foot home in the hot Arizona Summer. I don't know why I feel compelled to write this here, but I need to.

After the funeral and lunch, our family went to see the house and help my uncle clean things up. I don't think any of us realized there had been no cleanup and were not quite prepared to see and smell what we did. I will just enter my dad's email description here:

"Got the worst job in my life but, I had to do it for family sake. Went to the houseafter the funeral where Betty's mom died and almost threw up when they open the door. Thought they had clean but Chester could not do it.  The stench of death was overwhelming. Never smell dead people before,  like bloated  deer by the road that been there in the sun for a week. The mostly dried  blood pool in the kitchen was 2'x 6' maybe bigger and 1/2" thick in places. Very hard to scrap off and released burst of vapor.  I picked up 3 - 5 gallon buckets of blood and bodily fluids. Use 3 gallons of cleaning fluid straight from the bottle.  Almost threw up 5 times. Could not make the  children ( Betty, brother and sisters)  clean up their mothers blood, just not right. And they had to go through the belongings in the stink. . So I did most and jennifer helped me finish up 2 hrs later. 4 hour job, what a mess... jennifer was a champ. "

So my dad and I cleaned up the biohazard material. I am glad we were there to do it though. Glad we could serve in this way. We bonded over it a little bit.

I also learned so much about my family, my mother and her childhood, and saw this house which I had never seen before. So I am thankful for all the things God showed me during this strange strip and also thankful to be able to spend time with this side of the family too.

This is the house my mom and her sibling grew up with. This was a home of great sorrow and difficulty for my mom also, so much so that I never came back here until now. It was complicated. Life is complicated. that's all for now.

She comes in her night gown...

She has pitch black half dyed hair over her white tangled roots. Large owl framed glasses and a long mums nightgown decorated with cartoon characters. She always comes in her nightgown. I love this woman. She has suffered a lot in her life. Her mom died when she was 6 yrs old, she was sexually abused growing up, then married into another abusive relationship in which she was repeatedly raped and then knocked out so many times she had developed some cognitive deficits. When she talks, it takes twice as long for her to say what she is thinking. She has of course, fibromyalgia, PTSD and severe anxiety issues. However, she is making steps forward. We got her off her pain medications with gabapentin. I assure her each visit her kidneys are not failing. Then I pray with her and she always is thankful with tears in her eyes. She says that she believes in God but also in all religions.

When she found out I was getting married, she gave me an old silver bookmark with doves in it. She said, "This is my wedding gift to you. This might not seem very special, but this is very special to me.  My mother gave to me before she died and her mother gave it to her."  She explained, it is from some famous music school in Europe that her grandmother attended. I felt awkward receiving it, yet knew that she gave it out of love and would be hurt if I invited she keep it. It was the last time I would see her and I had wanted to share the gospel with her, but time got away form me and I was 1 hour behind with 3 other patients already roomed and waiting for me.  So I prayed to end our visit and she hugged me and said her goodbyes. I did regret not sharing with her.

About 10 days later, she came in to see me unexpectedly. She said, "I know I don't really have anything special to talk about, but I wanted to come talk to you one last time and maybe get a life health plan from you... you know, like, any last recommendations you have for me?"   We have a wonderful encounter talking about overall health issues and then I asked her is she had ever heard the story of why Jesus came to our world and died? It was a big part of my life and I was happy to share with her if she was interested.

"Oh Yes! I would like to hear about it" she had said. That day, my dear friend prayed and received the Lord. She basically clung to the little gospel booklet for dear life and said "This is such a special day for me. " She just kept shaking the gospel booklet, "this is amazing, this is so special".

Indeed it was a special day for both of us. 

My Favorite Holiday is Good Friday.

She came into clinic to talk about anxiety and her cough. Easter weekend was approaching and I asked her if she had any plans for the holiday and she said she didn't. She admitted she wasn't really religious and faith wasn't a big part of her life.  After sending in a few prescriptions for her, I told her that my favorite holiday was Good Friday and was glad it was coming up so soon. She then explained "Oh really? MY favorite holiday is Good Friday also!!!" I was surprised to hear this and asked her "Why?" since she told me faith was't a big part of her life. "Well," she said, "It's because I was born on Good Friday!" I thought that was cool and asked her if she knew the meaning of Good Friday. "Well, mmmm, errr.. I should know this," she said since she went to a Catholic school for short time when she was young, but she didn't. She was happy when I asked her if she wanted me to explain it to her. She thought the illustration of the bridge was cool and exclaimed, "Wow! This is amazing! I'm going to pin this up by my desk at work!" I thought that was a strange reply and explained to her the difference between knowing facts about God and receiving Jesus as her King and Savior, the one who would forgive her and lead her life. So, a few days before Good Friday, ... a few days before her earthly birthday, my dear patient received prayed to receive the Lord and had a spiritual birthday! When she looked up from praying, she said "Wow, I feel like for the first time in my life I can talk to God!"

Today in clinic I saw her for the first time since she was born again. She had found a church and was in a women's small group. She was reading a book from her small group called "The Best YES" and said her family had started coming with her, including her children who were loving the childrens' program. Life had been hard the last few months will illnesses and surgeries but God was doing a good thing in her life.

Praise God!!

pretending

I grew up in a home trying to be the perfect Chinese daughter. Never cause trouble, say the right things, follow the rules, get perfect grades, help protect the façade that your family was perfect, especially at church. And it looked like that from the outside, but when I would come home, there would be yelling, breaking things, a lot of crying. So even from the start I knew this life was a lie. All my significance came from my A+ performance, and it was an exhausting and impossible front to keep up. I heard the gospel for the first time in Sunday school. When I finally understood that I was a broken dirty-hearted sinner, without any hope of being able to fix or save myself, I knew it was one of the truest things I had ever heard. So He had mercy and rescued me, and gave me a life where I didn’t have to pretend anymore.

Sometimes, 20 years later, I still find myself pretending. It often presents in me as a troubled depressed spirit, afraid and weighed down. But God gives me freedom and rest when I honestly come as I am, and repent of those things that I am putting my hope and self worth in that are outside of Jesus. When I lift my head, I find His saving grace, and remember how loved and cherished I am by Him.  

10-5-16 STD check.

 I was working walk-in clinic yesterday and a young man 18 yr old man comes in with his head down. He said he wanted STD testing. I could tell he was anxious so we talked a while about STDS, safe sex and the benefit of abstinence until marriage. Towards the end of the visit I asked if he wanted me to pray for him and he said he’d really appreciate that. When I asked him what I could pray for him, he started crying. He said life was just hard right now, he’s made some bad decisions and is really stressed out. I asked him if he felt like he had a relationship with God or knew God as his friend and he said he didn’t. I asked if being able to connect with God better and know how to talk with God was something he wanted and he said he did. I asked if it would be helpful if I explained to him how he could know God, know forgiveness and connect with God as His Father and he really was interested. So yesterday I had the opportunity to share the story of Jesus with this scared 18 yr old man, and he responded with a desire to follow Jesus as the leader and king of his life.  There was some follow-up and reading material I gave him after and I’m praising God for the joy of being part of this. Also praying that these seeds would grow into a true life that bears the fruit of salvation.   

As Sherry O'Donnel says, people come to the doctor for all kinds of reasons, but sometimes they let you into their brokenness- don't ignore the brokenness or refer them to someone later. Address their brokenness now, because that brokenness is often an open door. You don't know how long it will be open for.