What Does Our Hand Tells Us

The thumb, being the biggest of our fingers represents God and the index finger represents us – man. Long time ago, man got separated from God’s love because of sin that is why as you can see, our index finger is far away from our thumb.  It shows us how away we are from our God. After the separation, man tried to live a contented life away from God but failed to have it. There is always missing in their lives. What’s missing? Well, obviously, GOD. Man was not created to be away from Him. The purpose of man’s creation was to please God and having been separated from his purpose, man became weary, violent, liar, lonely and incomplete. In order to fill in what’s lacking, man find ways to bring his self back to God. Man go to church, help others, became good with their families, in short, man does good works in order to bring his self back to Him. But it was said, for all have sinned and fall short in the glory of God, no matter what man does, it’s still not enough, he still can’t reach God and it saddens man so much. On the brighter side, God loves His creation so dearly, He can’t take it seeing them waste their lives, so God made a very huge act to save His people. The middle finger, being the tallest of the fingers represents this huge act that God made. What’s this act? It was said, for God so love the world that He gave His only begotten son that those whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have an eternal life. In order to save man, God sent His only begotten son. But with this act comes an offer, a proposal, like a man proposes a woman for marriage and puts a ring on her ring finger, God also gives a proposal to man that whoever believes (just believe) in Him (His son), will not perish but will have an eternal life. And what man could do? Very simple and very small like our tiniest finger, just believe and accept Jesus as his Lord and personal saviour. Just believe and accept Him wholeheartedly and voila, man is saved.
 

Very easy, right? So, after reading this, I’d like you to know that God is proposing to you saying, “I have sent my Son for your salvation, will you accept Him?”. 

Blessed Beyond Doubts

I believe God speaks to us every day, may it be through an article we read, through a traffic jam, through a picture we see in the web and in many more different forms of communication. We just couldn’t see it sometimes because our minds are so preoccupied with things we have given attention which in the first place should gain the least of our concern with.

I have an experience where God had spoken to me many times but sadly, though I’ve heard Him, doubt had overpowered me and weakened my faith in Him. However, despite the doubts, God has still blessed me.

Right now (16^th of Decemeber, 2014), I am an UMEMPLOYED (still waiting for God’s perfect plan) Registered Chemical Engineer. The board exam was on November 21-23, 2014 and I have received the news that I passed the exam on the 24^th which is the day after the third day of the exam. However, before the victory was achieved, I was on an almost 6 months serious battle of perseverance, trust and faith.

Before this story lengthens, I would like to give you the first message that God had spoken to me and became my verse for this whole battle. It’s from the book of the prophet Isaiah and here it is:

“I will give you the strength you need although you do not know me. I do this so that everyone from one end of the world to the other may know that I am the Lord and there is no other God. I create both light and darkness, I bring both blessings and disaster. I, the Lord do all these things. I will send victory from the sky like rain; the earth will open to receive it and will blossom with freedom and justice. I, the Lord will make this happen.” ISAIAH 45:5-8

This is the very reason why I am writing this right now.  After reading the verse, I told myself that when I pass, I’m gonna make the world (well, if not the whole world, at least some part of the world) know who my God is and who gave me the victory I am enjoying. With this, they will seek who my God is because they’ll know that my God is a very powerful God. 

The first few months of the review were smooth. I do study, yes, but not to the extent that I used up all my energies studying. I even had more time sleeping than solving problems and reading review materials. Confident that the exam is still a few months away, and that I still have a lot of time to study everything I need to learn in order to pass, my heart is not yet troubled and I still have the guts to say that “I’m gonna win this!”. The real battle of faith was not on the first few months but on the last month before the exam. So let’s fast this forward to make the whole story short.

When I only had a month left, I panicked because I know to myself that I really am not ready. Yes I know, there are times that people say they’re not ready even if they are but exclude this one to those times coz I honestly am not ready. Really, really not ready. Due to the pressure, I can no longer study well, I keep on crying while thinking I’m gonna fail, I keep on sleeping (coz that’s what I do when I’m pressured), I cannot do anything well, in short, I am troubled, really, really troubled. With this, I told myself, “I need to find peace”, so, I decided to go to church everyday so that I could solemnly and wholeheartedly talk to God coz I am very much aware that only in Him will I be able to find the peace I need at the moment. And it felt good. On my pursuit of peace, along the way, I was reminded of HEBREWS 11:1.

“Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.”

This has been one of my life verses but I sadly have forgotten it the time I needed to remember it the most. But gladly, God had pulled me back to Him and reminded me of His promises. I started to regain my shattered faith and I acquired a little confidence but unlike others, I was not strong enough, my faith was not strong enough, and a few days after I regained it, it was shattered again by my doubts. But God, who loves me so much, had spoken to me again and this time, it is through a photo posted on facebook. 

Just see the message of this photo. Amazing. God had really used this one to speak to me and remind me AGAIN of how faithful He is to His promises. See how direct and precise this message is for me. After I read this one, I felt happy and calm believing that God would really help me make it and He would really make me make it. But sadly, when it was a week(I think) before the exam, I was worried again. This time, thinking that I still have a lot to read and a lot to review and I only have a few more days left, I can no longer focus, I always feel uneasy, I kept on crying. At that moment, my faith is 60-40, 60% of me believes I’ll pass and 40% believes I cannot make it. And God, having been so disappointed (I think He is) in my faith had talked to me again. He spoke to me through the reading of the gospel at that day while I was attending the mass. What amazes me with this moment is that the reading on the mass was entirely different from the reading guide we had at home (which I haven’t read yet for that day). While the reading guide points on the verses about Zacchaeus on a sycamore tree, the reading on the mass talks about Jesus walking on the water. While I was listening to the gospel at the church, the line that struck me the most was when Peter sank on the water and Jesus told Him “YOU OF LITTLE FAITH”. By then, I realized that God is now starting to get mad at me (maybe) coz of how doubtful I am despite the promises He has clearly presented to me. (It was only after I have reflected God’s reminder have I knew that the reading was different from the reading guide. It was my friend (who attended the same mass with me and who happened to read the reading pointed on the reading guide) who told me that they were different.)  AMAZING right? Knowing that God really is working for you, knowing that He’s not only listening but also is speaking to you, WOW!, AMAZING! HE IS JUST SO AMAZING.

Starting that day, everytime that doubt would try to invade my heart (and it always does), I just remind myself of the happenings, the verses and the words that God had spoken to me and voila, the fear of failing then flies away.

On the day of the examination, what strengthened me was the thought that “whatever the outcome, I know that God had planned it for me, and since it was His plan for me, it was the best for me.” I learned to hope for the best to happen but with an open heart and mind that if it is not what I desire, I’ll accept it and try again. I told God that whatever’s gonna happen, I’m still gonna praise Him. And I asked Him to give me the heart and strength to accept whatever the result is. I was so blessed coz even if the exam was really hard (trust me, I mean it), God has calmed me all throughout. I managed to survive the three days of torture calmly despite of the fact that on the second day, my sure answers on the exam has not even reached 50% of the total number of items.

The result, like what I have said above was announced the day after the third day, and YES, I PASSED! What I lacked, God has really filled it in for me. Those right answers on the exams were not from my ability but from the grace of God. And I know that He willed it to me coz He knows that I’m gonna make His name known through my victory.

I was victorious and I will always be a victor because my god is God, the one and only true God. 

This is my testimony. GLORY TO GOD IN THE HIGHEST.