God in the ICU

Title: God in the ICU: The Inspirational Biography of a Praying Doctor
Author: Dr. Dave Walker
Major Themes: Doctors, Prayer, Miracles
Synopsis: An inspirational story of a doctor who learned to pray with his patients—and saw God’s hand at work many times.

One of our family’s favorite things to do on long trips is to listen to audiobooks. Ever since we discovered how we could use the speakers in our van—and especially discovered how to use Bluetooth—we’ve listened to many different stories while on the road. It passes the time and gives us something profitable to think about—a definite win-win for sure! On a recent trip, we talked about several potential options once we got on the road, and settled on a book called God in the ICU.

We started listening and were soon wrapped up in the author’s story as he went to medical school, witnessed the disruption of South Africa around him, and then went on to become a successful doctor. Part-way through the story, though, I noticed that one story would be told—and then the audiobook seemed to “skip” to a completely different part of the story, and a while later would skip again. It became even more noticeable as the book went on, and finally, we turned the audiobook off. I was able to find a digital version of the book to read, so for the remainder of the trip, I skimmed through the book and read aloud the sections that had been missed in the audiobook. We didn’t have time to finish the last quarter of the book by the end of the trip, and not everyone that wanted to hear the story got to hear it. So when I had time later on, I started back at the beginning of the book and recorded it as an audiobook for everyone. It blessed me just as much the second time through as the first—this is a worthwhile story!

Dr. Dave Walker starts his story as a baby, and a traumatic incident that could have taken his life, but God spared him. As a young man, he decided to pursue a career as a doctor and specialized in anesthetics. He worked in many different environments over the years he was practicing, ranging from a diamond mine out in the desert to different hospitals around South Africa, his native country, to stints in both the UK and the United Arab Emirates. Each place gave him different experiences, and for a while, he was riding high on his achievements. When several people close to him died, however, his perspective slowly changed. Where was God? When he did turn things over to the Lord, he began to see God moving in both big and small ways.

The part I found the most encouraging about God in the ICU was not just the answers to prayer Dr. Walker experienced as he worked; he also shares stories of when miracles didn’t happen . . . and how God got the glory anyway. Compared to some of the other prayer-and-miracle books I’ve read over the years, this one felt more balanced that way. God doesn’t always answer our prayers the way we ask or expect Him to, and what are we to do when that happens? How can we deal with that? I believe the way Dr. Walker shares here is the appropriate response—to praise Him and His goodness anyway, and recognize the mercies He gives us along the way, even when it doesn’t end up the way we would like it to end up. Despite fervent prayer, not all of Dr. Walker’s patients were physically healed—and not everyone was even spiritually healed. And other times, he hardly prayed at all, but God decided to intervene in the situation and His name was glorified.

This book is a fascinating collection of stories from many years of Dr. Walker’s medical practice. I’m sure there were plenty of stories he wasn’t able to share within these pages, and at best, this is only a bird’s-eye view of his life. There were a few technical issues I struggled with in the book; it was self-published, and there were a few typos here and there. The stories didn’t flow together quite as easily as I would have hoped, but overall, this was an excellent read. I’m glad we got to share it together as a family. Recommended!

WARNING: In ch. 1, there is a mention of people who were killed when police opened fire on a large group of protestors in South Africa, and a little description of a boy whose arm was bitten off by a crocodile. In ch. 3, there are several mentions of parties and drinking, a man dies, and a man lies, steals diamonds, and possibly dies. In ch. 4, two women die and a woman wakes from the anesthetic and asks in a seductive whisper to be kissed. In ch. 5, the word bada— is referenced twice. In ch. 6, a few gross deformities of children’s faces is described. In ch. 7, there is a description of an alcoholic who had been in a bad accident (“the floor was awash with blood”). In ch. 8, there is a story of a little girl who was poisoned and almost died, but God healed her. In ch. 9, there is a story of an elderly man with severe medical complications who had a vision of Jesus. A little boy dies in ch. 10, and a boy is healed after prayer in ch. 11. In ch. 12, an older man is dangerously sick with oedema. In ch. 13, there is a story of a woman with breast cancer who had to have one breast removed. In ch. 14, there is a story of a boy who died and another boy who almost died from drowning. In ch. 16, an elderly woman dies, and a man has a personal encounter with Jesus. In ch. 17, a pregnant woman has to decide whether to abort or keep her baby and later, a baby dies. In ch. 18, someone tells a brief story of a man who had had his eyes gouged out. In ch. 22, there is a story of a little girl who was hit by a car, suffered for a long time, and finally died. In ch. 23, there is a story of a woman who got cancer, suffered from depression before Jesus met her, and eventually died.

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