Lessons from a Hospital Bed E-Book

John Piper

• Herausgeber: Crossway
• Kategorie: Religion und Spiritualität
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 46

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2016

Beschreibung

Physical sickness affects more than just our bodies; it takes a toll on our emotional and spiritual health as well. In this honest book, best-selling author John Piper shares ten lessons he learned while in the hospital. Written to help those in the hospital focus their attention on God, his grace, and his plan—when such focus can be especially hard—this volume blends together personal narrative with biblical reflections to help readers rely on the God who stands ready to comfort and support his people. Whether it's cultivating a sense of gratitude, resisting the temptation to watch television 24/7, or looking for ways to serve those around them, this book encourages those who are sick to fight for faith in the midst of their illness.

Leseprobe

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Lessons from a Hospital Bed

Lessons from a Hospital Bed

John Piper

Foreword by Joni Eareckson Tada

Lessons from a Hospital Bed

Copyright © 2016 by Desiring God Foundation

Published by Crossway1300 Crescent StreetWheaton, Illinois 60187

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher, except as provided for by USA copyright law. Crossway® is a registered trademark in the United States of America.

Cover design: Jeff Miller, Faceout Studio

Cover image: Shutterstock.com

First printing 2016

Printed in the United States of America

Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

All emphases in Scripture quotations have been added by the author.

Trade paperback ISBN: 978-1-4335-5043-0 ePub ISBN: 978-1-4335-5046-1 PDF ISBN: 978-1-4335-5044-7 Mobipocket ISBN: 978-1-4335-5045-4

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Piper, John, 1946–

Title: Lessons from a hospital bed / John Piper ; foreword by Joni Eareckson Tada.

Description: Wheaton : Crossway, 2016. | Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2015019155 (print) | LCCN 2015037842 (ebook) | ISBN 9781433550430 (tp) | ISBN 9781433550447 (pdf) | ISBN 9781433550454 (mobi) | ISBN 9781433550461 (epub)

Subjects: LCSH: Hospital patients—Religious life. | Patients—Religious life. | Diseases—Religious aspects—Christianity.

Classification: LCC BV4910.P56 2016 (print) | LCC BV4910 (ebook) | DDC 248.8/6—dc23

LC record available at http://lccn.loc.gov/2015019155

Crossway is a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

2020-12-30 09:56:41 AM

Contents

Foreword: Before You Begin . . .

by Joni Eareckson Tada

The Setting

Part 1

Ten Beliefs I Brought to the Hospital

Part 2

Ten Lessons from My Hospital Bed

Concluding Prayer

Scripture Index

Foreword: Before You Begin . . .

I know hospitals. I wish I didn’t, but over the years I’ve become all too acquainted with their stale corridors and freezing-cold operating rooms. It started back in 1967 when a reckless dive into shallow water snapped my neck, leaving me a quadriplegic. When they rushed me to the hospital on that hot July afternoon, I had no idea I wouldn’t be discharged until April 1969.

One morning I was lying on a gurney in the hallway outside the urology clinic. After two hours of waiting and counting ceiling tiles, a lab worker came through the doors to announce I would be “first after lunch break.” I moaned. My shoulders were already hurting from lying flat so long. As the urology staff headed to the cafeteria, my heart sank. More to the point, I nearly choked in a flood of fear and claustrophobia.

Crying was out. There was no one around to wipe my tears. So I decided to comfort my soul with a hymn. In no more than a whisper, I sang a favorite from church choir:

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.

Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.

Leave to thy God to order and provide;

In every change he faithful will remain.

Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend

Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end!

I was only seventeen years old, or maybe eighteen, but that moment defined how I would engage life in a hospital. My stay would not be a jail sentence. Come hell or high water, I determined that this hospital would be, well, a gymnasium for my soul, a proving ground for my faith, and a mission field for God.

Sound improbable for a teenager? It is. And looking back, it was. Yet I was enough of a Christ follower to know I had to hold onto biblical hope, or else I would go crazy. Yes, I was still wrestling against depression, still struggling with how to actually live without the use of my hands or legs—even after I was released from the hospital in 1969. But I would not allow myself to sink into despair. That small, resolute act made all the difference, not only then but also years later when I battled stage 3 cancer and chronic pain.

This is why I love the little book you are holding in your hands. You may think its chapters are too short to carry any real weight, but they are perfectly pithy: wisdom delivered through a peashooter. In Lessons from a Hospital Bed, John Piper does not have to vet himself as a seasoned navigator of hospitals (much like good ob-gyns never have to give birth to a baby). His credentials come from his Spirit-breathed ability to tell you what’s prudent—what the right thing to do is with all the hours you’ll log while languishing in your hospital bed.

So please, don’t plow through this booklet too quickly. Read its lessons prayerfully and act on their counsel intentionally. Next to your Bible, this little book is your best guide in making certain your hospital stay does genuine good for your soul.

As John has often said, “Don’t waste your suffering.” And friend, I trust his Lessons from a Hospital Bed will help you avoid doing just that during your time in the hospital. It’s not a jail—it’s a gymnasium. So flip the page and get started. And may God’s healing hand of grace rest on you during your illness.

Joni Eareckson Tada

Joni and Friends International Disability Center

Fall 2015