Choosing God During Suffering

“I've always struggled with feeling inadequate and not enough and insecure but Jesus, your power, that power that raised you from the dead and brought salvation to us, that power can overcome my weakness.” – Dr. Carol Spears

Certain she knew exactly how her life was supposed to play out, Carol Spears got her MBA and was pursuing a corporate career when God redirected her plans, calling her to go back to school at age 31 and become a general surgeon. This seemed impossible to Carol, but she obeyed and the Lord led her to medical missions in Kenya where she has already served for more than 20 years.

She first connected with Samaritan’s Purse and World Medical Mission at a global missions conference in 1999 and felt God calling her to work in Africa. That journey didn’t come without hardship and her time in medical missions has forced her to consider why God allows pain in the world. Dr. Spears’ story of brokenness and suffering encourages listeners to choose to walk through tough seasons with God rather than without Him.

“I realized I have to either decide, Lord, are you good, like your word says you are? Are you faithful, like your word says you are? Are you all powerful? If you are, why did you allow this to happen? I had to either choose to believe Him and His Word, which had been so dear to me, or I was going to enter into a life of facing a very uncertain future.” – Dr. Carol Spears

With a faith forged through challenges and sacrifices, she shares that those hard times have allowed her to grow into a more compassionate and empathetic doctor. God has been her constant through the darkest of nights and bleakest of circumstances, when it felt like everything had gone wrong. She knows all too well the wounds many of the patients she treats are facing.

Kristy reminds us that it’s OK to wrestle with God and that many giants of faith like Job, David, and Joseph, have done so before us. In this episode, find encouragement in Scripture and inward peace that can exist in spite of outward circumstances.

Dr. Spears’ story tells us it’s never too late to follow God, even if it leads into uncharted and uncertain territory.

“I was able to learn who He is, His character, how He's there for us in the difficulties. It gave me a foundation that has been mine for the rest of my life.” – Dr. Carol Spears

Please pray for the staff serving so faithfully at Tenwek Hospital. Pray that there would be Gospel opportunities and the patients would receive spiritual healing along with physical help. If you’d like to keep up to date with more stories from On the Ground, please visit SamaritansPurse.org.