Dr. Kobkit Putrakel (called Dr. Kit by
most) is known by many people as being extremely generous, encouraging, and
having a great passion for following Jesus. He describes himself as an advocate
and encourager of others like Barnabas from the Bible. However, he was not
always selfless to others. Dr. Kit is very honest about being a prideful and
selfish man before he knew God.
“I
was living for myself and wanted fame,” said Dr. Kit. “I didn’t seek God, but God
actually sought me out through his people.”
Originally
from Thailand, Dr. Kit followed in his parent’s footsteps and became a doctor.
During rotations in a hospital, he met a monk and decided he wanted to search
for the meaning of life. A month before surgery training and after medical
school, he became a monk for two weeks. After reading the Buddhist scriptures
and asking questions about the purpose of life, all he found out was to be a
good person. He soon decided that there was no answer to his questions and
became an atheist.
Dr.
Kit continued his training as a doctor and moved to the United States in 1992. During
his first few years in the U.S., he never met a Christian or heard anything
about God. Until 1995 when he was living in Seattle, Washington for a training
program. He met a Thai lady, who worked at the hospital. She invited him over
to a Thanksgiving meal with friends. The four couples at the meal were all
believers in God and shared their testimonies.
“I didn’t understand, but
the friendship, relationship, that sincerity, the way they live their life
differently, God used all of those to soften my heart,” said Dr. Kit. “Jack and
Hellen opened their home whenever I was lonely. I could just go there and hang
out. They became like my parents here in the U.S.”
The families were
different than any Dr. Kit knew before. He was curious as to why. They went to
church and had invited him, but he was always working. One day, he was able to
go, but he couldn’t find the building so he decided God must not be true since
he couldn’t find the church. As soon as he thought that, he found the church.
The people were very welcoming that evening, but he was half asleep because of
all of the long nights he spent working. He continued to be a part of their
lives and even would go to a men’s Bible study with them.
Nothing about the Bible
made sense and Dr. Kit was still a prideful man. His friends cared for him so
much that they prayed for him often. They invited him to a concert one evening.
Work made him late. Yet again, when he was lost and couldn’t find the concert,
he said God doesn’t want me there. Then, he found the concert.
One of the songs was
about David from the Bible who had made horrible mistakes, but God forgave and
accepted him. Dr. Kit was impacted by the way that God loves as a friend and offers
forgiveness instead of the death humans deserve because of the wrong they’ve
done.
“I knew I was a sinful man
that I committed many sins,” said Dr. Kit. “I was a womanizer. I was a selfish
man. I was not helpful to anyone, not helpful to my family. I knew I had to pay
for my sin when I die. To hear that there’s another way that I never heard
before that this sin could be paid once and for all. If it’s true, no one else
can do this it must be God’s way. I’m going to give this a try. I did not understand
everything but I wanted to go ahead and believe.”
After the concert, Dr.
Kit told his friends, but they didn’t believe him at first. When they realized
he was serious, they were excited for him and told him that God had a wonderful
plan for him. Dr. Kit didn’t understand and thought he was the same and hadn’t
changed, but little by little God began to change him.
When he moved to New
Mexico, he was in a spiritual desert even when he was treating patients
differently and witnessing to people. He was self-focused on his job and didn’t
know God well. Yet, God gave him a peace like never before when he was humbled.
Soon after, Dr. Kit moved back to Seattle and began to seek God more. He read
the Bible thoroughly and realized everyone has a pride issue. Without much of a
plan, he moved back to Thailand, trusting God and attended a Bible school.
“God gave me purpose in
God,” said Dr. Kit.
God also led Dr. Kit to his wife, Avery from North Carolina. They met while they were working at a clinic in
Thailand. They’ve been married for 15 years and have an 11 year-old son, Lucas.
When Avery was pregnant, they were missionaries in Southeast Asia. Dr. Kit
honestly admits that he became a prideful missionary and wanted to boast about
translating the Bible. As well as the fact that living in Southeast Asia is
difficult, they decided to move back to the U.S. to seek marital help and God
gave him time to renew his license and work part time.
“Through my many mistakes
God is always faithful,” said Dr. Kit.
In 2008, he was a full
time physician at the hospital in Manchester, Kentucky. Currently, he serves as
an advisor and is no longer the regional director. The hospital allows him to
be real and pray with patients. Their idea of medicine is similar in that
healing is a ministry of Christ. Spiritual needs are important to be met in
time of crisis. God is always a work.
“Kit is always open and ready to share the gospel and encourage
others,” said Ryan McCowan, a friend from Corinth Baptist Church in London,
Kentucky, who traveled with him to Southeast Asia on a mission trip.
In many different areas of life, Dr. Kit shares his faith. Not
only at work or overseas, but also at home with his family as he is modeling a
life of Christ for his son. Him and his family also open up their home and welcome
international students to stay with them. They have an extra room in their
house specifically for that purpose. He believes that God has a plan for
international students here as God did for him.
Many can see the evidence of how Dr. Kit leads a godly life. One
such person is Brett Martin who asked Dr. Kit to mentor him because he knew he was
a man of prayer, had wisdom, and a lot of missions experience.
“Kit
has impacted my life the most by loving me,” said Martin. “He has spoken truth
into my life and also been extremely gracious modeling Jesus who came bringing
both truth and grace. He has been very intentional with spending his time,
resources, and energy to help me both grow in my personal relationship with
Christ while also helping me fulfill God's calling in my life.”
Dr. Kit is still pursuing
God’s call on his own life. He plans to enroll into seminary next year so that
he will be able to mentor pastors. He wants to help them to understand the
Bible in-depth. And also to realize that serving the Lord is life-long, even
after retirement.
“I start off with trying to find purpose for
my life,” said Dr. Kit. “God found me and he gave me His purpose. His answer is
that His purpose for my life is Him in my life. It is a privilege to walk with
Him. I just dare to serve God and He provides. I’m still learning to allow the
Lord to prepare me for the future. We’ll continue to live our life serving the
Lord in whatever capacity He allows us.”
