Spring 2009

Are You Committed?

Devotion and dedication to a cause, person, or relationship is increasingly out of vogue, especially among "Millennials" - those born between approximately 1980 and 2000. Studies predict that they will hold eight jobs before they get to age 40. In their consumer-saturated upbringing, their greatest concern is "making the right choice." This compulsion to choose "the best" causes them to keep loose ties with everything in case something better comes along - something better in cell phone carrier, coffee brand, or car, for example.

Unfortunately, this same lack of commitment leads to superficiality in a multitude of relationships. They are socially networked like never before through "Facebook" and other similar Internet options, but deeply concerned that they don't have a deep knowledge of their own self or others. They are compelled to put on an act, a persona, in front of others so they will be others "best choice." Their picture may be taken at any time and put on the Web by their friends, causing pressure to always look good, to always look like they are having a great time. Behind the facade, they long for real relationships.

Lest you think I'm picking on the Millennial generation, these same attitudes and priorities increasingly saturate GenX'rs and baby Boomers in more important things than brand loyalty. Increasingly, one's "vocation" is not a calling, but a complex choice based on the individual's view of personal fulfillment. Marriage is not a vow "till death do us part," but a preference for now and a "maybe" for later. Church is a combination of spiritualtainment and group therapy. If the music is not their penchant or the pastor tramples on their toes, it is time for church "shopping" to find a better choice after seeing who is marketing their ministry better.

At an even deeper level, right and wrong, if they exist at all, are determined by analyzing complex circumstances and then weighing the facts on the scale of an often seared conscience, sometimes so seared that two diametrically opposed beliefs can both be accepted at the same time.

This lack of commitment and limp loyalty to biblical standards and timeless truths is eroding the framework of medicine the ideas, principles, agreements, and rules - that have made Western medicine flourish. It is exsanguinating professionalism like a slow bleeding ulcer. It is corroding medicine's covenant that once put the patient's well-being above the doctor's financial, emotional, and even physical needs. The foundation of trust that must exist between the doctor and the patient is crumbling.

This disease is destroying our profession and turning it into a bureaucracy whose success is measured by production rather than competency and compassion. No wonder so many doctors are dissatisfied.

Abortion on demand, physician-assisted suicide, human cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and the concerted effort to strip healthcare professionals of their right of conscience are just symptoms of the underlying pathology. Those who are committed to nothing will stand for anything.

Don't despair or run to get some Prozac. God is still in control. He always has been, is now, and will be faithful. The crisis we find ourselves in is a unique opportunity for our lights as Christians to shine and to create a counterculture cure for the disease that plagues our profession.

We have a best choice, but it is going to take a real commitment to bring this fact to the attention of those who currently insist on keeping their options open.

First, we must commit to the biblical principles in our personal lives and then be committed beyond lip service to living these principles in our relationships with our patients, our colleagues, and our culture.

Second, we must commit to work together. This is one disease that we can't cure alone. We need mutual support and prayer - iron sharpening iron. The necessity for an organization like CMDA to motivate, train, and equip us has never been greater and will continue to grow. We need each other more than ever before, and we need to draw others to join with us.

Third, we must commit to the future by raising up students and residents who are committed to the covenant and calling of Christian medicine. Strategically, our most important investment is influencing the next generations. If not, Christian medicine and even Christians in medicine may soon be a thing of the past. †