Thursday, November 13, 2014

I Have Seen God by Klaus-DieterJohn

About the book:
Dr. John was trained at some of the most prestigious institutions in the world – Harvard and Yale. Yet he did not choose the route of a lucrative medical career in private practice. Instead, he chose to care for the poor.

It had been his dream since a child, growing up in Germany. He met his future wife in high school. Martina shared a similar dream of becoming a missionary doctor. They got the best medical training possible and then set out to be missionary doctors.

Dr. John took his family to places like Ghana, South Africa and Ecuador, before settling in the highlands of Peru. There he founded Diospi Suyana Hospital, an adventure he tells in this book. (The name of the hospital means “we trust in God” in the Quecha language.) The ministry also operates a dental clinic, a school and a children's ministry in Curahuasi, Peru.

Dr. John believes the stories told in this book have the power to change lives. When a medical student, he wondered if God was real. Through the founding of the hospital, God has become very real to him and to the people who have heard his story. He hopes that when people finish this book they will be more convinced than ever in the reality of a living God.

My review:
This is an amazing book. Time after time we read of God's miraculous provision in building this hospital. Medical supply companies who don't give away equipment would end up donating machines worth tens of thousands of dollars. Someone else would donate the shipping costs and use of containers.

But Dr. John is honest about the difficulties too, such as surviving a carjacking and having to “pay” the police when rescued. Not everything in the construction process went perfectly. He writes of dealing with a corrupt construction company, times of burn-out and depression. Setbacks often turned into blessings. An example is the time customs confiscated and kept the projector Dr. John used for his presentations. That resulted in a new satellite dish for the hospital.

Even when the future looked dim, God would provide a way. After removing three million cubic feet of earth, a freeze on construction and a $700,000 fine was issued by the Institute of Culture (possible Incan artifacts in the ground). A miraculous meeting with the president elect's wife Pilar Nores de Garcia sent the notice to the trash can.

Reading this book is a great encouragement that God is a God of miracles – today. It is not a literary masterpiece but is a good account of God at work today. I recommend it.

To find out the latest news about the hospital, watch videos, and sign up for newsletters, go to the Diospi Suyana website.

I am taking part of a blog tour of this book and you can read other reviews here.

Dr. Klaus-Dieter John grew up in Germany. He met and fell in love with his wife, Martina, during his term as high school class president. The two bonded over their strong call to obtain medical degrees in order to serve the medical needs of the poorest of the poor. Dr. John began medical school in Germany, eventually completing his surgical training at Harvard and Yale in the U.S., as well as Johannesburg, South Africa. Martina was trained in both Germany and the U.S. and is a certified pediatrician in both countries.

Monarch Books (distributed in the U.S. by Kregel), 288 pages. You can buy a copy here.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through Litfuse Publicity for the purpose of an independent and honest review.

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