Interview with Jeff Blackburn from Fearless Questions

I had a wonderful conversation with Jeff Blackburn from Fearless Questions. We talked about whether a higher power plays an active role in our daily lives and the amazing occurrences that happen everyday to people all over the world. Listen to the episode HERE

Episode 18: Dr. Scott Kolbaba

by Jeff Blackburn

Have you ever lived through a set of circumstances that seemed amazing and deeply meaningful for you personally, but left you completely unable to explain those moments away without thinking that a higher power was involved?

If so, you aren’t alone.

Today on the podcast I’m talking with Dr. Scott Kolbaba who has been practicing medicine for 35 years.  Self-described as ‘just an ordinary Doc’, Scott wrote his new book “Physicians Untold Stories” after encountering personal experiences of the divine intersecting his life and then hearing different friends of his in the medical community who shared their own unexplained stories of seeming coincidence and even miraculous healing.  Dr. Kolbaba is an internist in private practice in Wheaton, Illinois. He graduated from the University of Illinois College of Medicine with honors and did his residency at Rush Presbyterian-Saint Lukes Medical Center in Chicago and at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He has been awarded membership in the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society and has been featured in Chicago magazine as a “Top Doctor” in internal medicine.

Dr. Kolbaba identifies himself as a Christian, but this book isn’t out to convert anyone.  In fact, it’s his matter-of-fact telling of the stories experienced by him and his medical colleagues along with their observations of encounters with the Divine that are the most compelling aspect of the book.  The doctors involved have all been willing to attach their names to their stories…which I found to be one of the most interesting aspects of speaking with Scott.  The doctors range widely in practice, Including: E.R., Cardiology, Family Practice, General Surgery, Orthopedic Surgery, Palliative Care, Infections Diseases, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Neurosurgery, and Chiropractic.

Scott shares that it’s his hope that anyone who reads his book and hears the stories he relays will know with significant certainty that there is something more in this life than we can see with our eyes. 

Whether sharing stories of miraculous healing, out of body experiences, experiences of divine providence, comatose patients impossibly remembering interactions with others during their coma, or hearing from loved ones already passed…the stories will stir-up some sort of personal reaction from you.

For some, conversation of miracles and healing are the stuff of tall tales and wishful thinking.  But when this many doctors are willing to share their stories…without trying to guarantee causation, but simply share their experiences that point to a Divine…well…I think it’s worth setting aside our assumptions for a moment and to listen in.

I think this conversation might be especially helpful for those folks who have had similar experiences in their own lives.  It might even give you courage to share your story with others (Dr. Kobaba has a link on his website where you can share your story).

You might even hear words shared in today’s episode that remind you of some phrases in Scripture: 

“Isn’t this the same man who used to sit and beg?”

“Isn’t this the carpenter’s son?”

I hope you enjoy today’s episode and that it sparks new questions for you.

 

Dr. Kolbaba and Physicians' Untold Stories Featured on Deeper Down The Rabbit Hole

Dr. Kolbaba was recently invited to appear on Deeper Down The Rabbit Hole podcast.  In The interview, Dr. Kolbaba enthusiastically discusses his experiences in writing Physicians' Untold Stories, a few stories from the book, and the overall message that the book brings to the world.  

The podcast can be heard HERE

Is There A Higher Power That Participates In Our Daily Lives?

Pick-the-Brain-Logo.jpg

Pick the Brain, a highly-recognized motivation and self-improvement website features, Physicians’ Untold Stories. Since 2006, it has become one of the fastest growing self-improvement sites on the internet. They also have over 700K followers on Facebook! We were honored they featured an article of mine where I speak about having a higher power that exists in our lives. You can read the full article HERE

Is There A Higher Power That Participates In Our Lives? 27 Physicians Collaborate On A New Book Detailing Unexplained Medical Miracles

POSTED ON JANUARY 10, 2017 BY SKOLBABA | CATEGORIES: PHILOSOPHY, SELF IMPROVEMENT

 My name is Dr. Scott Kolbaba and I have been a physician in the Chicagoland area for over 35 years. The answer to whether there is a higher power that participates in our lives was not one I learned in medical school. Quite the opposite actually. In medical school we are taught to base our findings on science. X=Y and so forth. However, as humans, our natural instincts are to seek answers to questions about who we are, where we come from, and where are we going. It was possibly those very instincts that made me realize some of my personal experiences as a doctor, as well as those of some of my colleagues, couldn’t be explained by science and fact alone. These experiences were truly divine intervention, the work of something we could only see through the eyes of our faith.

Dr. Kevin Russeau is a chiropractic physician in Wheaton, Illinois. I recall his captivating story like it was yesterday. He was a new practitioner in town and was working to build up his clientele. After receiving an invitation to a meeting of local professionals, he thought for sure this would have the networking potential to launch his practice to the next level. He attended the meeting and was excited about the opportunity to be in a room filled with the local movers and shakers. John Robertson, a crisis intervention specialist, was seated next to him. After the leadership introductions, Dr. Russeau and Mr. Robertson had a polite conversation over lunch. Once lunch was finished, Dr. Russeau excused himself to network with the other guests. It was then that Mr. Robertson invited him to sit for a minute longer to listen to a story he felt he needed to hear. His sincerity and gentle smile is what made Dr. Russeau pause and decide not to refuse. Settling back into his chair he listened intently.

Mr. Robertson told him a story about a young lady who had called into the crisis line. He spoke to the woman who denied she was depressed, but as they spoke, he kept getting the distinct impression she needed to be hospitalized. The feeling grew stronger and stronger until finally he revealed his impressions to her. She had broken down in tears and admitted she was planning to take her own life. Because of the bond that developed during their conversation, she agreed to go to the closest hospital for help. He checked later that same day and found she had been admitted to the community hospital psychiatric unit. After a short stay, she ultimately recovered and was discharged. As Mr. Robertson relayed his story, it was evident he had a passion for his work. He told about acting on feelings and instincts, not facts alone. When he finished, Dr. Russeau looked up and realized people were leaving and the meeting was over. While he enjoyed his conversation, he was disappointed about missing an opportunity to accomplish any networking. He headed back to the office and saw patients the remainder of the day.

At 7:00 PM, he saw his final patient, a laborer who had injured his back on the job. Dr. Russeau sensed there was something unusual in their interactions but completed his intake and started the treatment for his significant back injury. By the time he finished and was ready to leave the office, it was after 8:00 PM. He headed toward the door but suddenly and inexplicably had an urge to call his last patient. He turned around, heading back to his desk and dialed the number. His patient answered and Dr. Russeau told him he felt the need to follow up after his appointment. After an uncomfortable pause, his patient began to open up. He said he had been struggling with depression and was unhappy with his life. Since Dr. Russeau had spent some time earlier in the day with a social worker who specialized in depression, he asked if he could introduce them. His patient agreed. Finding John Robertson’s card on his desk, he called the number expecting to leave a message as it was after hours. He was surprised when Mr. Robertson personally answered saying he been working late as well and was just leaving the office when his phone rang. Dr. Russeau briefed him on his patient, hung up and called his patient back to provide him with John’s contact information. After this, he left the office and went about his evening, satisfied he had done what the little voice in the back of his head was telling him to do.

It was six months later, during a typical office day when Dr. Russeau discovered that same patient in an exam room waiting for him. He walked in with a smile and went to shake his hand but his patient suddenly broke down and cried uncontrollably. Attempting to comfort him, it took some time before he was composed enough to tell him his emotional story. He said that when he had come in to see Dr. Russeau six months before, he was in the depths of a depression and planned to take his own life. He admitted to having everything ready but the call that evening literally stopped him. He spoke to Mr. Robertson who recognized his desperation and was convinced to go to the emergency room for help. He was admitted to the psychiatric center where counseling and medication turned his life around. He said he felt great and thanked Dr. Russeau for saving his life.
Dr. Russeau was overcome by this revelation. What he thought had been an unproductive day six months earlier turned out to be a day he would remember forever. He realized the real purpose of that “networking” meeting was not about networking at all, but about saving a life.

I was so emotionally moved by this and other stories that I felt the urge to start writing them down. Physicians’ Untold Stories was born. It features ordinary doctors in private practice who experienced or witnessed events that could not be explained by anything we learned in medical school. The narrators of these stories are men and women of science. The one thing they all have in common is they are physicians touched by a divine moment so miraculous, they needed to share it with you. I’ve realized there is a higher power that often intervenes, guiding us down the right path if we just listen.