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Chum ri:ap su:a! Khnom chhmuah Ellie. 🙂

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. Psalm 34:18

When I was young, I was a normal daughter who goes to school and then goes straight back home, day in, and day out, 5 days a week. I also attend church regularly. I thought I was okay. And then, I was introduced to the Bible by my Values Education teacher back when I was in high school. I found the book of Proverbs really amazing. This made me eager to read more of the Bible knowing that I can discover more teachings about life from it. Since I knew nothing about being born again or of any Bible-based church to go to, I stayed with my religion and even tried to join other activities to grow in my faith. I tried my best to behave well and be self-righteous as I could, because I wanted to go to heaven when I die. I even remember answering a questionnaire that my greatest dream was to go to heaven. But all my efforts did not work. I was still living a life full of guilt, condemnation and regret. Just the thought of pursuing heaven until I die made me feel tired, insecure and afraid. I still felt a void inside my heart like as if there was something missing however happy I got and whatever church activity I joined. In short, I still had not found what I am looking for. But then, life has to go on.

When I was already working, I experienced a very painful breakup with my boyfriend then, whom I really thought would be my husband. But God has a better plan. In this miserable time of my life, I started to seriously seek God. I prayed to God to show me where and how I can find Him. Sure enough, He heard my prayer. God led me in discovering that I had an officemate who was attending a Bible study in a Bible-based church. I asked her if I could come with her. Then I started attending this Bible study regularly even without my friend because I really loved what I was learning from it. After finishing all the classes, I started attending the Sunday worship service. Here, God finally met me. I surrendered my life to Jesus in one of the Sunday worship services of July 2009, where the pastor was asking the people to follow Jesus. After that, I attended a singles’ retreat and got baptized there. Since then, I became a part of a small group of believers who guides me, supports me and prays with me in every step I take as I grow in my faith. I now belong to a community of believers as a member of the church.

Again I thought, by this time, for sure I will go to heaven when I die so I am already ok. I have accepted Jesus as my Lord and Saviour, I was baptized, and I am an active member of a Bible-based church. All is good. I am living a wonderful life. But as I grow in my faith, I learned of Matthew 28:19-20 where Jesus says, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Through this verse, I start to understand that being a follower of Jesus does not only mean being saved from eternal hell. It is not only about the forgiveness of sins and about living a wonderful life. Being a follower of Jesus also means to share the love of God through Jesus Christ, His Son, to those who have not heard of Him yet. This was the beginning of my desire to become a missionary. Again, I did not know anything about becoming a missionary. So I forgot about it and as usual, life goes on.

After almost a year of being a Christian, I have been blessed with an opportunity to work in Singapore. Convinced that my workplace will be my mission field, I continued to be an active member of a church there and invited friends to attend our Sunday worship services to share the love of God through Jesus Christ. But my life in Singapore was not easy. I worked for long hours and lived in a boarding house away from my family. I started to feel homesick and prayed to God to give me a reason to go back to the Philippines. I had no idea that all the while, God has been preparing me for His great plan for my life. Everything that I have been through, the hardships and frustrations that I have experienced are just a way of developing my character to serve Him.

Then I had an experience in Singapore that made me do something about my desire in missions. I joined an exposure trip to Thailand just to see the work of a missionary. There, it was confirmed that that is what I wanted to do. At the end of that trip, with a seeking heart for missions, and with all of the realizations & exposure, I finally said yes to God’s calling. After a long time of waiting & constant prayer request, I went home last year with my heart’s desire to be involved to make Jesus Christ known among the nations.

Now, I am a volunteer in a missions organization and God has been faithful in guiding me through my journey. He has been providing my needs both in prayer and in finance. I am now in Cambodia to confirm if God indeed is calling me to serve here. So please include me in your prayers as I discern God’s perfect will in my life.

I thank God for this privilege to share my experiences with you. All of these that I am experiencing now are because I heard the good news that Jesus died in my place, to pay for my sins, but rose again on the third day conquering death and that whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have an abundant, fulfilling, joyful and everlasting life. We are blessed to be a blessing. Hearing the good news and salvation are blessings. Don’t let anything discourage you and keep you from reaching out to other people who has not heard of Jesus. Let us share to them the love, joy and the freedom that we experience because we have Jesus in our lives. Let us continue to serve the King of kings with the thought that someday when we see Him face to face, He will tell us, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”. All honor, all glory and all praise to God alone! 🙂

Posted in My Journey