Heather Bellamy spoke with Ern Crocker about his new book and heard some truly amazing stories.

Dentist for a day

There was also a Bangladeshi freedom fighter, who was put before a firing squad and God saved him at the last minute. He was saved by a high ranking military officer. That officer said, "Come to my camp tonight and we'll talk." What the man really wanted was to engage my friend to help gather spoils from the Bangladeshi war of independence.

Just as he was being driven to the man's camp in an open jeep later that night, Jesus appeared to him and said audibly, "All the things you've ever wanted can be yours now; riches, fame, everything you've ever wanted. But you're in the last minutes of your life. You have to make up your mind." And he said, "I give you my life." That man is now a church pastor.

Heather: What has been revealed about who God is through these stories?

Ern: He's my heavenly Father. I was in charge of a department in a large teaching hospital here in Sydney. I resigned my director's position to go in to private practice. This would also allow time for short-term mission work in China with the Jian Hua Foundation. I found that when I stood down from that director's position, I lost my identity and began to ask myself, "What on earth have I done?"

One Sunday night I went to church looking for some assurance and guidance. The pastor said, "Please stand up if you'd like special prayer tonight." I stood up and as I did so God spoke to me. Not audibly, but quite clearly, out of left field, you know how God speaks to you. He said, "You are Ern Crocker, my very much loved son."

The realisation of my true identity became my life from that point on. God became my loving heavenly Father. He had sent Jesus to die for me and forgive my sins; He gave me His Holy Spirit to comfort, lead and empower me.

I'm a doctor. I see people every day with problems. They say, "I've got prostate cancer", or, "I've got breast cancer" and I can immediately see that their identity, their health and their future has been stripped away. Or they may say, "My son's on drugs" or, "I've lost my job," or, "My marriage has broken up." It's just so easy to find your identity in earthly things, but they can all be torn away in an instant.

Ern with son Sam in Phnom Penh

When you recognise that God is your heavenly Father and that you are His much-loved son or daughter, you begin to understand that your true identity is in Him and that can never be taken away. That's what gets me through each day and that's what can get everybody through.

Heather: What is your dream of how people will respond having read all these people's experiences in your book?

Ern: I wrote the book because I think that people need courage now more than ever.

What I found was that when people had been through difficult times, God walked through the situations with them and never let them go. I also found that He often prepared them, just as He prepared us for our experience with young 'Elliott the Brave'.

Just three months before this event I was drawn into a situation where a little Aboriginal boy had been drowned. This occurred in the Northern Territory on Elcho Island. Five little boys pulled this young three year old out of the water, gathered around him, put their hands on him and asked Jesus to wake him up. He was critically ill and near to death, but three hours later he did wake up and was completely healed.

I'm hoping that people will come to understand that in times of crisis God will be with them. They can be assured that He is very much aware of what they're going through and He will not fail them or let them down, ever. Can I give you another a quick story?

Heather: Please do.