Episode 18: Dr. Scott Kolbaba

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.

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