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Struck: One Christian's Reflections on Encountering Death
"When my doctor told me I was dying, I came alive."What happens when you come face-to-face with your mortality? When your body fails you, what happens to your faith?Russ Ramsey was struck by a bacterial infection that destroyed his mitral valve, sending him into heart failure and requiring urgent open-heart surgery. As he faced the possibility of death, he found himself awakened to new realities. In the critical days and months that followed, Ramsey came to see the world through the eyes of affliction. He grappled with fear, anger, depression, and loss, and yet he experienced grace through the suffering that filled him with a hope and hunger for the life to come.This profoundly eloquent memoir gives voice to the deepest questions of the human condition. In the midst of pain, we can see glimpses of eternity.
176 pages, Paperback
Published March 14, 2017
34 people are currently reading
601 people want to read
About the author
Russ Ramsey
15 books237 followersRuss Ramsey and his wife and four children make their home in Nashville, Tennessee. He is a pastor at Christ Presbyterian Church and the author of Struck: One Christian’s Reflections on Encountering Death (IVP, 2017), Behold the Lamb of God: An Advent Narrative, and Behold the King of Glory: A Narrative of the Life, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus Christ. He is a graduate of Taylor University (1991) and Covenant Theological Seminary (MDiv, 2000; ThM, 2003). Follow Russ on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews
November 15, 2016
Russ asked me to endorse this book, and wow, I am so glad he did. It is a magnificent, beautiful work. Here is what I wrote.
A good memoir is about the author but not really about the author. In it the reader sees himself, his experiences, his emotions, his life. Struck is just such a memoir. Russ has told his story, but not his story. He has told my story of pain and grief and faith and fear and recovery and doubt and help. And he has told yours too. His story is of a medical crisis and more. Yours may be of a broken marriage or a lost child or a career in ruins, but it's the same story with the same hope. As you read this story of a stranger you will see yourself and your loved ones in the pages and you will be encouraged.
A good memoir is about the author but not really about the author. In it the reader sees himself, his experiences, his emotions, his life. Struck is just such a memoir. Russ has told his story, but not his story. He has told my story of pain and grief and faith and fear and recovery and doubt and help. And he has told yours too. His story is of a medical crisis and more. Yours may be of a broken marriage or a lost child or a career in ruins, but it's the same story with the same hope. As you read this story of a stranger you will see yourself and your loved ones in the pages and you will be encouraged.
November 21, 2016
An excellent book on affliction told through the author's personal story of a health crisis and his long recovery. It is honest, beautifully written, instructive and wise. Very, very good.
May 14, 2017
I have trouble feeling other people's emotions. I'm not a sympathetic person. It's not that I don't care about others, it's just that I care in an intellectual way. I want to fix problems with ideas and books, and have been told more than once not to suggest a book when people come to me with a problem. They just want listening sympathy. Because of this, I often find it awkward to try to help grieving people. I am just too rational. Ramsey gave me a rational explanation of an irrational emotion and I found several metaphors or descriptions in here that have taught me to understand others' pain with greater compassion.
This book is a behind-the-scenes tour of pain, from its shocking genesis to the rippling aftermath that continues on, in some form, forever after. Many of the endorsements mentioned that this was a book not just about Russ but about all of us, and this is true. He dissects his own grief with honesty--not the kind of raw honesty so popular in the shocking tell-all books we consider to be honest simply because they don't seem to be censoring any of the gruesome details. No, his is the kind of honesty that takes time to explore not only the hurt feelings and depression, but to describe the complex emotions of jealousy and resentment and selfishness and confusion that accompany tragedy. His honesty is not raw, it is thoughtful and complex, and because of this honesty, his book becomes a guided tour not just for those who experience pain themselves, but especially for those who have not, who want to react with compassion towards those who are in pain and whose recovery is multi-faceted, complex, and--in some ways--unending.
This book is a behind-the-scenes tour of pain, from its shocking genesis to the rippling aftermath that continues on, in some form, forever after. Many of the endorsements mentioned that this was a book not just about Russ but about all of us, and this is true. He dissects his own grief with honesty--not the kind of raw honesty so popular in the shocking tell-all books we consider to be honest simply because they don't seem to be censoring any of the gruesome details. No, his is the kind of honesty that takes time to explore not only the hurt feelings and depression, but to describe the complex emotions of jealousy and resentment and selfishness and confusion that accompany tragedy. His honesty is not raw, it is thoughtful and complex, and because of this honesty, his book becomes a guided tour not just for those who experience pain themselves, but especially for those who have not, who want to react with compassion towards those who are in pain and whose recovery is multi-faceted, complex, and--in some ways--unending.
September 10, 2019
This is one of the best books I’ve read, maybe ever, certainly this year. I read it with specific people in mind, which, perhaps, colored my reading. Nonetheless I was confronted with emotions I didn’t really want to feel but needed to. I wondered why some people seem to walk around with a bullseye of suffering on their chest and others of us only seem to have the bullseye by relationship. It made me want to grow in compassion and humility, while wishing I wasn’t so self-focused. I pray that I would have the kind of honest faith described in this book.
February 5, 2020
Sometimes the right book at the right time is next in your stack. This was a helpful read as we process being "struck" by the affliction of our daughter's genetic diagnosis. His thoughts on God choosing us for the affliction we receive in life were particularly strong, that as Job asks in 2:10, "shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?"
One of my favorite lines: "If suffering should not come as a surprise, and if our comfort is found in the promise of the nearness of God, that means the furnace I have been in is the furnace he has chosen for me." (Page 130)
One of my favorite lines: "If suffering should not come as a surprise, and if our comfort is found in the promise of the nearness of God, that means the furnace I have been in is the furnace he has chosen for me." (Page 130)
February 1, 2017
Russ Ramsey made me cry. Multiple time, he made me borderline sob. And Lisa Ramsey doesn't get off the hook, either. She only wrote the afterword, and she still made me cry. But the emotions evoked by Ramsey's book were so necessary and so good. As he narrates some critical times in his own life, and the lives of others, Ramsey displays his pastoral abilities by constantly pointing to the overwhelming, all-consuming grace of God. What makes it that much more impactful is that he does this while maintaining a transparent humanity that equally affirms the desperate grief and clinging hope that defines all believers in the midst of tribulation. One of the endorsements compares this work to Lewis's A Grief Observed, and that is a pretty apt comparison. I already have a friend I will be giving a copy of Struck to and plan to come back to it myself on a semi-regular basis....basically anytime I need a good sob and an encouragement that God is worthy of my trust.
ARC provided for review.
ARC provided for review.
April 6, 2017
This book has been a gift. It is not only a book about a man facing the reality of his own death (which we all face) it is about affliction, suffering, grief, lament, trust, and hope. We will all face suffering. We are told to expect it. How will we face our suffering? How will we face our sadness? This book is a call to trust the lover of our souls and to embrace the life He has given us. This is hard work, but a work that is worth it. I can't recommend this book highly enough. Thank you Russ for writing it and for pointing us all to truth. God is using it greatly to bring much healing as we all wrestle through the hard questions of our faith.
December 4, 2016
I wish I had had a book like this one when I was diagnosed with MS in 2004. Mr. Ramsey approaches illness, mortality, and hope from an honest and open perspective that makes this a refreshing read. He doesn't sugar coat his story with the typical Christian self-help talk, but he does't shy away from the hard stuff either. He strikes just the right balance and explains and how to live through challenges an authentic way. A refreshing read well worth it if you're facing a daunting illness or love someone who is.
November 7, 2016
Enjoyable, thoughtful read on tough subjects: suffering and grief.
Recommended for anyone going through some suffering now (physical, emotional/mental, or spiritual) or walking with someone going through a difficulty.
As I consider my own grief, this book was helpful in putting words to the pain.
Recommended for anyone going through some suffering now (physical, emotional/mental, or spiritual) or walking with someone going through a difficulty.
As I consider my own grief, this book was helpful in putting words to the pain.
May 20, 2019
I was able to interview Russ Ramsey about his thoughts on writing and good books not long ago. Within five minutes of that interview, I bought this memoir on his encounter with death because I loved the way he processed life and its fleeting ways. I don't know many who enjoy a book about suffering and potential death but Russ's writing felt like home. I didn't know Russ well but within the first ten pages, I developed a deep appreciation for his writing and humility in the way he approached life and how to live it well. When you stare death in the eye, it must change the way you live your remaining days. Russ chronicles that journey and I loved every poetic page of it.
March 15, 2017
I have known Russ for a few years and have often said, "If Russ is talking, I'm there to listen." The same could be true of his books: if Russ is writing, I'm reading. While I love Behold the Lamb of God and Behold the King of Glory for the way Russ opens my eyes to the day-to-day realities of the stories of Scripture, Struck opens my eyes to the day-to-day realities of pain, and the ways a relationship with the God of Scripture carries us through them.
In honest, at-times heart wrenching, language, Russ walks us through his own affliction and encourages us to seek a similar path of faith through our own. We live in a broken world and affliction is all around us: "No one was trying to hurt us. No one had done anything wrong. But the world we inhabit is one where children feel sorrow long before they have the words to express it. It just hits them like a punch to the gut and hollows out a part of their insides."
For anyone who's been punched in the gut by life, I recommend Struck.
In honest, at-times heart wrenching, language, Russ walks us through his own affliction and encourages us to seek a similar path of faith through our own. We live in a broken world and affliction is all around us: "No one was trying to hurt us. No one had done anything wrong. But the world we inhabit is one where children feel sorrow long before they have the words to express it. It just hits them like a punch to the gut and hollows out a part of their insides."
For anyone who's been punched in the gut by life, I recommend Struck.
April 8, 2019
Written by a man who suddenly came to face physical affliction, which of course led to emotional and spiritual affliction as well, Struck chronicles Russ Ramsey’s story of a heart failure diagnosis, a reckoning with his mortality, heart surgery, rehab, and the journey of pain in being struck down and rebuilt.
He hits all the right angles in describing his grief, anger, fear, resentment, weakness, faith, & lament. Ramsey put into words much of my own sadness & angst...it was so therapeutic to read & feel understood. But the book is not a downer; he writes of a newly awakened longing for our great hope & reward. And a more sacred regard for the days the Lord has given us to live. There’s no neat bow, however, to tie it all up, because it really is an honest, raw grappling. I urge not only the afflicted to read this, but also the one who loves the suffering friend.
He hits all the right angles in describing his grief, anger, fear, resentment, weakness, faith, & lament. Ramsey put into words much of my own sadness & angst...it was so therapeutic to read & feel understood. But the book is not a downer; he writes of a newly awakened longing for our great hope & reward. And a more sacred regard for the days the Lord has given us to live. There’s no neat bow, however, to tie it all up, because it really is an honest, raw grappling. I urge not only the afflicted to read this, but also the one who loves the suffering friend.
April 3, 2018
This was an excellent memoir style book on Russ Ramsey’s experience with open heart surgery.
I found this book to be tremendously comforting. It’s chalk full of scripture and Ramsey is an excellent writer.
Needless to say this was timely book for me, and I’d highly recommend it if you’ve ever wrestled with your own mortality.
I found this book to be tremendously comforting. It’s chalk full of scripture and Ramsey is an excellent writer.
Needless to say this was timely book for me, and I’d highly recommend it if you’ve ever wrestled with your own mortality.
March 4, 2017
So much to ponder in this book! It will take repeated readings to glean everything. Fortunately, Russ Ramsey is an engaging and entertaining writer. His example of owning his grief and fear makes me want to be brave.
July 29, 2019
What a brilliant writer and a compelling story. Loved every page of this work.
April 1, 2017
The title got my attention and drew me in because I’ve faced my mortality with cancer, lightning strike, and two bouts of infection leading to sepsis. And I am a Christian. Ramsey’s questions have been mine: “What happens when you come face to face with your mortality? When your body fails you, what happens to your faith?”
Ramsey walks through his encounter with a bacterial infection which settled in his heart and then open-heart surgery, revealing anger, depression, fear, sense of deep loss, need to grieve and lament.
Throughout his illness, rehabilitation, and recovery, he began to see life through the lens of affliction—and decided not to miss any of it, opening himself to new depths of insight and understanding about himself and eternal life.
Reading Ramsey’s memoir helped me put words to my own experiences of loss and pain. My book is filled with margin notes and markings.
Ramsey walks through his encounter with a bacterial infection which settled in his heart and then open-heart surgery, revealing anger, depression, fear, sense of deep loss, need to grieve and lament.
Throughout his illness, rehabilitation, and recovery, he began to see life through the lens of affliction—and decided not to miss any of it, opening himself to new depths of insight and understanding about himself and eternal life.
Reading Ramsey’s memoir helped me put words to my own experiences of loss and pain. My book is filled with margin notes and markings.
January 24, 2023
A powerful book. Moving account of dealing with illness and how that intersects with one’s faith.
Also beautiful comments about marriage (which I wasn’t expecting). I “dog-eared” many pages, which I normally don’t do.
Also beautiful comments about marriage (which I wasn’t expecting). I “dog-eared” many pages, which I normally don’t do.
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March 10, 2017I've benefited from Ramsey's past work and I'm glad to see that his latest book is a continuation of his growth as a writer. Ramsey has a particular gift of weaving story, sermon and memoir together in ways that you can't quite put your finger on. In the end, you feel like you've been with a pastor, a mentor, a counselor, a poet, a friend and–most importantly–a person who understands his own frailty. A beautiful book that touches on death, mortality, suffering, depression, marriage, and the longing ache for what we were made for.
October 17, 2018
What would you do if faced with a diagnosis that meant you might be facing death?
For many of us this would be a challenging time. As Christians many thinks that we don’t face these challenges or that we should not go through many of the same challenges and emotions that others do.
In 2017 when our family experienced four significant deaths in the family in a relatively short time my wife expressed concern that I was dealing with depression to someone. Their response was, “Doesn’t Jesus fix that?” I must admit I laughed but it struck a cord with me about how we often present ourselves as Christians.
This is written by a pastor who at a relatively young age is diagnosed with a heart valve infection that will lead to open heart surgery. It is an honest look at having to deal with life threatening illness and finding the balance between healthy concern and faith. When faced with our own mortality it opens our eyes to what we truly believe but it doesn’t take away the real challenges we face.
Faith does not stop many of the physical dimensions of a medical problem. The body still suffers pain and the post-surgery challenges of pain management, depression, drug addiction and simply being worn out are just as real for Christians as anyone else.
Ramsey takes you on a journey through the process that is open and honest that also shows how vulnerable we become. In the midst of all this there are the challenges of being the one that cares for others and at times you still need to but might not be able to. This includes family, friends and in the case of a pastor the community in which they serve.
If you or someone you know is facing a life-threatening situation or you know someone that is this brief but powerful book could make a difference in your life.
For many of us this would be a challenging time. As Christians many thinks that we don’t face these challenges or that we should not go through many of the same challenges and emotions that others do.
In 2017 when our family experienced four significant deaths in the family in a relatively short time my wife expressed concern that I was dealing with depression to someone. Their response was, “Doesn’t Jesus fix that?” I must admit I laughed but it struck a cord with me about how we often present ourselves as Christians.
This is written by a pastor who at a relatively young age is diagnosed with a heart valve infection that will lead to open heart surgery. It is an honest look at having to deal with life threatening illness and finding the balance between healthy concern and faith. When faced with our own mortality it opens our eyes to what we truly believe but it doesn’t take away the real challenges we face.
Faith does not stop many of the physical dimensions of a medical problem. The body still suffers pain and the post-surgery challenges of pain management, depression, drug addiction and simply being worn out are just as real for Christians as anyone else.
Ramsey takes you on a journey through the process that is open and honest that also shows how vulnerable we become. In the midst of all this there are the challenges of being the one that cares for others and at times you still need to but might not be able to. This includes family, friends and in the case of a pastor the community in which they serve.
If you or someone you know is facing a life-threatening situation or you know someone that is this brief but powerful book could make a difference in your life.
June 16, 2024
This book was helpful to me as I processed the illness and death of a dear friend.
June 7, 2017
This book was very fitting for this moment in my life as I recently lost my mom. His honesty and insights as a Christian approaching death were raw and helpful. I honestly wished he would've went even deeper because what he did write was so encouraging and helpful. I was on the verge of tears multiple times, especially in the sections where he talked about his friend who was dying from cancer.
His discussions on his process of lamenting was perhaps the most important part. Suffering can take so much from you and disrupt your life in so many ways. It's a call to be grateful when things are good and to process things in a healthy way when life isn't so good.
I've seen and lived much suffering but the overall hope in Christ overcomes all. This book is another example of how we long to live here because we weren't meant to die but our bodies are frail and will fail. Ultimately though, trials are a pathway to paradise. Though, often not an easy path. Filled with pain, depression, and grief. But it's all temporary. Temporary pain and trouble leading to eternal rest and joy.
Thanks for this book and I'd love to see you dive even deeper on this topic.
His discussions on his process of lamenting was perhaps the most important part. Suffering can take so much from you and disrupt your life in so many ways. It's a call to be grateful when things are good and to process things in a healthy way when life isn't so good.
I've seen and lived much suffering but the overall hope in Christ overcomes all. This book is another example of how we long to live here because we weren't meant to die but our bodies are frail and will fail. Ultimately though, trials are a pathway to paradise. Though, often not an easy path. Filled with pain, depression, and grief. But it's all temporary. Temporary pain and trouble leading to eternal rest and joy.
Thanks for this book and I'd love to see you dive even deeper on this topic.
May 13, 2019
A beautiful and moving memoir of suffering and faith.
From the publisher:
"When my doctor told me I was dying, I came alive."What happens when you come face-to-face with your mortality? When your body fails you, what happens to your faith?Russ Ramsey was struck by a bacterial infection that destroyed his mitral valve, sending him into heart failure and requiring urgent open-heart surgery. As he faced the possibility of death, he found himself awakened to new realities. In the critical days and months that followed, Ramsey came to see the world through the eyes of affliction. He grappled with fear, anger, depression, and loss, and yet he experienced grace through the suffering that filled him with a hope and hunger for the life to come.This profoundly eloquent memoir gives voice to the deepest questions of the human condition. In the midst of pain, we can see glimpses of eternity."
From the publisher:
"When my doctor told me I was dying, I came alive."What happens when you come face-to-face with your mortality? When your body fails you, what happens to your faith?Russ Ramsey was struck by a bacterial infection that destroyed his mitral valve, sending him into heart failure and requiring urgent open-heart surgery. As he faced the possibility of death, he found himself awakened to new realities. In the critical days and months that followed, Ramsey came to see the world through the eyes of affliction. He grappled with fear, anger, depression, and loss, and yet he experienced grace through the suffering that filled him with a hope and hunger for the life to come.This profoundly eloquent memoir gives voice to the deepest questions of the human condition. In the midst of pain, we can see glimpses of eternity."
May 11, 2017
Thank you Netgalley for a free copy of this book to read and review!
This work was an amazing account of one man's journey through affliction -- having discovered that his mitral valve was destroyed by bacteria and open heart surgery was required, along with extensive rehab to recover. The book delves into feelings about mortality, marriage, each person's impact on community, the little things that mean so much, faith, questioning what God gives you and how we feel when He doesn't answer as we'd like. Very thought-provoking, with a calling for each reader to think about how we see God in our lives and what our own faith journey looks like. Short book, and highly recommended reading. Not preachy, despite the weighty topics.
This work was an amazing account of one man's journey through affliction -- having discovered that his mitral valve was destroyed by bacteria and open heart surgery was required, along with extensive rehab to recover. The book delves into feelings about mortality, marriage, each person's impact on community, the little things that mean so much, faith, questioning what God gives you and how we feel when He doesn't answer as we'd like. Very thought-provoking, with a calling for each reader to think about how we see God in our lives and what our own faith journey looks like. Short book, and highly recommended reading. Not preachy, despite the weighty topics.
May 10, 2017
I read this because I used to know the author, not because I particularly expected to like it. I was so wrong! Although it is specifically about one man's suffering and health crisis, is is also about all kinds of suffering and just the reality of living a life of faith in a broken world. There was so much that stuck with me and gave me new thoughts, even though I'm nowhere near an experience like what he went through. I would love to have Than read this and would also offer it to a friend in a struggle.
October 17, 2017
Recently, while I was at a conference, I picked up Russ Ramsey’s Struck. I had been interested in this book for sometime, so when I had the opportunity to pick it up at the conference, I jumped on it.
Ramsey is a gifted writer who shares out of his difficult experience. It’s a progressive journal of dealing with crisis in his life The following Sunday, I gave a sermon entitled “sacred interruptions“ and happily quoted Russ Ramsey. This is a wonderfully personal, engaging memoir of suffering, and beauty, in the Christian faith.
Ramsey is a gifted writer who shares out of his difficult experience. It’s a progressive journal of dealing with crisis in his life The following Sunday, I gave a sermon entitled “sacred interruptions“ and happily quoted Russ Ramsey. This is a wonderfully personal, engaging memoir of suffering, and beauty, in the Christian faith.
December 11, 2017
I very much enjoyed this book. I share a common history with Mr. Ramsey. I also had open heart surgery, but my trip to the hospital was in 1962. At that time they didn't give any pain medication nor was there any cardio rehab, but I feel that I fared better than the author. Back to the book: the author gives a clear and honest assessment of his journey with compelling spiritual insight. Tangential events, such as Alice and Barbara, added greatly to the story and I liked that the final chapter was written by his wife.
July 21, 2017
Read this when I was expecting to have heart surgery again. The author does a great job opening up and talking through all the emotions and spiritual journeys that go with having a serious surgery, specifically heart surgery which is always in a league of its own. I enjoyed his perspective and would encourage anyone facing a health crisis to read it. You'll feel less alone, and your faith in a God who loves in every circumstance will be refreshed.
June 19, 2017
One of the best books on suffering I've read. Chapters 7 and 15 are especially poignant.
April 28, 2018
I read a couple chapters of the book when they were previously published as blog posts on another website and loved them. I read another one of Russ’ books and enjoyed it. But I had such a hard time with this book and it took me a while to realize why I didn’t enjoy it. I felt like I missed the humanity of the author’s experience because, so often, it was buried under these mini sermons or scripture passages. In one chapter, Russ talks about his wake up call after this brush with death and I felt like maybe I’d missed a detail because I didn’t remember a death scare. Did he fail to describe a brush with death during his many hospital stays or was it simply that this experience made him realize his own mortality? There’s definitely a target audience for this book who will eat it up as the voice of the Holy Spirit and that’s great. But it lacked for me those pieces that make a compelling memoir.
August 9, 2019
This is an excellent memoir of living through a life-threatening disease. I was born with a congenital heart defect and had my first major surgery at sixteen months. Since I had metal valves in my heart, I have been taking blood thinner and getting my blood taken about once a month. I lived with this reality. However, it wasn't until my first open-heart surgery as a young-adult did I finally realize the full weight of my health condition. It truly did alter the way I viewed life and also lived my life. Russ Ramsey does a great job of capturing this new reality and how it impacted his faith and personal life. At times he tends to use a lot of Christianese, which really distracted from the authenticity of the rest of his story, but his second story about Barbara really grounded the entire memoir. I am so glad he wrote this book. There were many times I found myself saying, "YES!" and "He relates to my experiences!"
Displaying 1 - 30 of 57 reviews