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 (16th 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 24th 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.