Tag: Trust

Christian Walk, Faith, God, Reflections, Testimony, Uncategorized

Lest We Forget

rebekahhime

Have you ever been in a situation where you were extremely stressed about solving your problem? Oftentimes, being independent as I am, I always try to solve my problems by myself. As much as possible, I don’t seek help from others as long as I deem it solvable by myself. I always tell myself, “I can do this.” When we try to solve a problem, we look deeper to understand it and eventually find a solution. However, as I focus more on the problem and try to figure it out, the more I get frustrated.

January is my birth month. I wanted to celebrate my birthday with my family and friends. However, the supposed resources for my budget didn’t materialize because of some unexpected circumstances. As my day gets nearer, the more I get perplexed. I started to get worried.  I tried to solve my problem my way but couldn’t seem to find a solution. I poured out my anxieties to God. I couldn’t help but cry out of my helplessness. After praying, I come across some motivational videos which say, “seek ye first the kingdom of God (Matthew 6:33).” As I watched more videos from that page, I heard a song with lyrics that say,

“Turn your eyes upon Jesus, Look full on his wonderful face..

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace…”

My tears were pouring as I realized, how could I be so proud by trying so hard to be self-reliant! God reminded me that instead of focusing on the problem, I need to turn my focus to God. The more you focus on your problems, the more your problem gets magnified, and find yourself overwhelmed. Instead of seeking solutions to your problem, seek God first.

When it dawned upon me, I surrendered to God my problems. God helped me realize that He is in control. That I should not worry if things get out of hand if things didn’t go as planned. God made me understand the deeper meaning of His word when He said, “come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest (Matthew 11:28)”. That night I told God, “Lord, here are my problems, I could not handle it anymore, please take care of it.” I said to myself, I should have surrendered it from the start. After surrendering to God everything, I decided not to care about it anymore because that is how it’s supposed to be. Do not leave any worries for yourself. Give it all to God. Leave it to God. That’s why people say, “Let go and let God.” That night I was able to sleep well. The next morning, lo and behold, a friend of mine messaged me and asked me if I was interested to do a side job. I was amazed at how God has solved my problems. He paved a way for me, and He even gave me more blessings. Blessings overflowed, and so does God’s love and mercy. He gave me more than what I asked for, more than what I expected.

When storms arise, may we not be shaken. May we remember the God, our Father in Heaven who is omniscient and omnipotent. He is our Father who cares for us. I praise God because when I forgot His promises and His instructions, He did not hesitate to remind me that He is my Father who loves me and promised to take care of me.

In this experience, God did not just remind me about His promises, He also taught me how to humble myself in His presence. He taught me that I should put my trust in and on Him, to trust Him completely, with all my heart (Proverbs 3:5-6). That I should not rely on my own strength for I am weak.  That I am just a human, a finite being, but I can rest my hope to Him, a God who is also my Father whose wisdom and power are infinite and unmeasurable. A God who can do things that are impossible to man. And, above all, a loving Father who does not want to let His child get astray if he forgets his way.

Faith, God, Testimony, True Story, Uncategorized

Left Alone in a Screening Facility

rebekahhime

One Thursday night, it was the 30th of July, our family was traveling from Dubai to Abu Dhabi to send our parents to the airport. At the border of Abu Dhabi, there was a stop for Covid-19 screening. My brother, sister-in-law, and I had gone for testing except for my niece, and nephew who were below 10 years old. My parents were exempted as well because they were on visit visas.

The result came out, and among the three of us, only my brother and sister-in-law were both permitted to pass the border. It was unfortunate that I was the only one who didn’t make it. I was left behind because I was given the result of “NOT PERMITTED” [to cross the border]. I asked some Filipinos who were at the screening facility about my result. I thought I was positive. The staff told me that it didn’t mean that I had a virus. He further added that, it was just detected that I had an immune response similar to those who contracted Covid-19. In UAE, if you failed the rapid test, it is mandatory to do a swab test. And so, I did. It is to make sure if you are infected or not. I had to wait for my swab test result after 24 hours.

It was time for my family to head to the airport. For the last time, my mom wanted to hug me, but I stopped her thinking that I might have the virus. I might get her infected. I couldn’t help but cry seeing them off. I was just sitting alone crying. I remembered Paul and Silas who were singing hymns in prison. So, I decided to sing as well to make myself feel better. I sang to myself the song called ‘Just as I am’. The song reminded me about how precious I am in God’s sight that His blood was shed for me. After some time, my brother phoned me, and my father was telling me to have faith. He tried to comfort me by saying that I didn’t have Covid-19 because I didn’t have a fever or any symptoms. I responded to my father and said, “I have faith, papa. God has a plan and I trust GOD.” Despite uttering those words, the feeling of being left alone made me cry. My brother asked me to recall all the sermons that I’ve heard. My mom was crying in the background. My niece was also crying. The mobile phone was then given to her so that she could talk to me and would know that I was alright. My family told me that she was crying the whole time! Though I was stressed myself because of the unprecedented circumstance, I ended up comforting my niece who was more frustrated than me. Poor child. I told her not to cry then added, “Don’t cry Dafni. Our God is Almighty! He will take care of me.”

My family in the airport. I was not able to join them.

I didn’t know what specific sermon to recall at that time but, I believed that the Holy Spirit impressed me to think of Hannah—she was crying but, with the Lord. And, I also recalled the teaching about guarding your aloneness or alone time just like Daniel in Babylon and John on the island of Patmos. After that, I stopped crying. I prayed in my mind and surrendered it all to GOD. After all, my life is in HIS hands. My brother, together with his family came back from Abu Dhabi. I was waiting for them outside the screening facility. They fetched me and we headed home together.

I was quarantined in their room for 24 hours. The result came. It was flat out NEGATIVE! I was relieved. When my family knew the result of my swab test, my 7-year-old niece and my 1-year-old nephew went inside the room to hug me. Out of joy, I shouted, “Praise the LORD! Thank you, Jesus!” And all of us were praising GOD. When I saw my family after the 24-hour quarantine and got ‘reunited’ with them, I imagined the similarity to the second coming of Jesus Christ when the dead will be resurrected and be reunited with their loved ones in a moment, in a twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet sound.

When I was in distress, God’s promises comforted me. I thank and praise the Holy Spirit for reminding me about God’s Word. I also praise the Lord for the lessons that I learned through our Bible study group called The Final Herald, which is being led by Sister Ruth Paul and our speaker Dr. Ronald Robin. Moreover, I praise God for those people who are willing to be used for the glory of God.

And lastly, I wanted to leave you a message from the book of Jeremiah 33:3,6 which says, “Call unto me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not.” Verse 6, “Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.” That is why it is said in Habakkuk 3:18 that,

Yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation.”

Habakkuk 3:18

Let’s always remember that whatever we may be facing right now, we should not fear nor lose hope for God is always with us. Let’s just put our trust in Him.