I Can’t Believe He Shot Me

This story is a composite of several real experiences where, as a hospital chaplain, I invited patients to ask God to speak truth into the lies they were believing, and to hear His voice for themselves. Identifying details have been changed to protect those who entrusted me with their stories. I am deeply grateful to those who shared their hearts with me. It is my hope that, in sharing these stories, others might find healing too.

When God Answered in the Hospital

During my last years as a hospital chaplain I worked in the trauma department.
One day I was called by a nurse to visit with a man, whom I’ll call Marcus, who had asked to speak with a chaplain.

Before I went in, I checked his chart to understand what had happened and how serious his injuries were.
While painful, it looked like he would make a full recovery.

I came by his room, and since it was a good time to talk, I sat down by the bed and introduced myself.

I asked Marcus some questions to build rapport. I found out that he had been in the city for a few years.
He grew up in church but hadn’t been for years. He had a significant other he loved very much, and they had a baby together.

As I talked with him, I discovered he had a close relationship with the Lord.
He seemed like a nice guy. He was polite, pleasant to talk to.
Yet, I noticed he was saying some negative things about himself.

I knew he was in a rough situation and was recovering,
but as he was talking, he looked down and said:
“Maybe I’m just not worth it.”

That caught my attention.

I met his eyes.
“Tell me more about that,” I said.

He looked around his room, “all this.”
I thought, All the medical care?
It seemed deeper…

“Being rescued?” I asked.
He shrugged.
“By us?”
I took a breath.
“Or by God?”

That one seem to hit.
It hit me, too.

I thought about how God had spoken truth into places where I had believed lies.
And honestly, I hadn’t planned what to say next—I just thought, what if we asked God?
So after a moment, I asked gently,

“What if we asked God about that?”

He looked at me, almost surprised. Maybe even hopeful.

“Ask God if you’re worth rescuing?”

And he did.

Within moments, tears filled his eyes.

He was quiet, for a bit, but then he said,
“God said that He loved me, and that He died for me.”

We sat with that for a while.

When We Ask God the Hard Questions

I asked what had brought him to the hospital.
He described how everything had escalated quickly.
He knew the other person had a gun, but it never seemed possible they would actually use it.

Marcus kept saying,
“I can’t believe he shot me.”

But underneath that shock was something deeper.

In his mind, God hadn’t protected him.

I could have argued that he wasn’t in the ICU, hooked up to a breathing machine.
He wasn’t brain injured or paralyzed.
That things could have been far worse.

But that wasn’t really the question he was asking.

When he said, “God doesn’t protect me,” what he was really asking was:
Where was God when I needed Him?

And honestly… lying in a hospital bed after being shot, it made sense that it felt true.

So I said, “What if we ask God about that too?”

Again, he asked.

And again, God answered.

The tears fell for quite a while.

This time, it wasn’t just a single answer.
It was a series of moments.

One after another, God brought to mind times in his life when he had been protected.
Moments when things could have gone very differently… and didn’t.

Scene after scene.
Until the truth began to press in:

He was still here.
Still breathing.
Still alive — when he very easily might not have been.

And something shifted.

He smiled at me.
He felt the love of God — spoken and shown to him.

I was so grateful that God had answered Marcus’ deep soul questions.
It’s not the only time God has spoken truth at the bedside, and I have another story to tell next time.

God still speaks truth into the places where we believe lies…when we’re willing to ask.

God had given us both a gift that day.
I’ll never forget it.

In the midst of confusion, trauma, and pain,
God reached down and spoke truth:

You are worth it.
I’m with you now.
I’ve always been with you.
And I’ll always be right here.

If you’d like to ask God to bring truth to lies you’ve been telling yourself, you might want to read my “how to” blog.

If you try it, I’d love you hear how it went. What did you hear?
DId you run into any roadblocks?
Is it too daunting to try? If so, why?
How can I help?’