I’m fond of reading life stories of all those amazing transformations that people undergo when they accept the truth and make changes in their lives. It’s not that it’s too good to be true but sometimes it seems like they only happen on paper. Like you only get to know those people on the printed page. This is probably because they aren’t stories you hear every day. Well, Sunday is the day I realized how wonderful Jehovah is in giving chance for ‘all sorts of men to come to an accurate knowledge” of him. It’s not like I doubted it before but sometimes being able to really talk to a living example of such makes a huge difference. Here’s how it goes:
It was an ordinary Sunday afternoon and I and the girls were in the park doing our Chinese lessons. When we were done, for some reason we didn’t leave right away and just decided to sit down and relax. Then this guy-Ivan walked up to us and asked:” naa moh Bantayanang Torre” (hope got the spelling right). So we all searched our bags and got out Watchtower’s. He then started telling us his story. It went something like this:
He was a former snatcher, thief (climbing houses and all), and alcoholic…basically a CRIMINAL. Well, indirectly, he got hold of one of our mags-it was placed to his Lola- and started reading. That was way back 2008 (if I remember right).
Anyway, he went on with his ‘criminal life’ but always made it a point to ask magazines whenever he found witnesses. Then it happened. When snatching a cellphone, he had to pull out a knife. As he put it: “paghuman know ug dagan, naghinuktok jd ko ky kahibalo ko na sala jd ni. Naa jd toh sa Bible”. So he decided to go to confession but afterwareds “igon nila dpat maau ila paminaw pg human, ako kay wala jud..mrag bugat pa kaau ako pamati sa akong gibuhat”
So he continued with his ‘criminal’ lifestyle when one day, after snatching some item, he took refuge in the park. An elderly witness sat next to him and started preaching. Again, he accepted the magazines.
It seems somewhere in this stage-he couldn’t continue what he was doing. He quit his ‘job’ and became a laborer tending to the plants in the park. Whenever he had the chance, he got our magazines. He decided to change his life. Quit all his bad habits (he wouldn’t go into detail so probably drugs, girls and the lot) recently quit drinking (as in TOTALLY since he was an alcoholic) and is currently quitting smoking.
Now I just found that amazing. He was able to do all this without any study conductor to point him in the right direction, without the help of the congregation and just from what he read in the magazines. Jehovah indeed draws people to him.
The big issue he was facing was that he feels ‘unworthy’. He says, his mind keeps saying “hugaw ka..hugaw ka”. We tried reassuring him but he said “ pag abut sa judgement day, ok ra jud sa ako kung didto ko sa daotan ibutang..sa kadaghan sa akong gi himo-mkasabut jud ko. Dawaton nako unsa ihimo sa Diyos sa akoa..basta ako lang karon-mausab ko. Dili ko mag expect na iforgive pa ko…”
Back to the story, he mentioned that a witness promised a bible study with him and they were to meet in the park last Thursday. He was there, waiting but it rained so the witness didn’t make it. He was busy trying to describe to us this brother but we really couldn’t tell who it could be. Then, this brother ‘X’ walked right up to us and Ivan was so shocked. “nara siya oh!..mao ni ako pasabut!” Mark (the brother’s name) was in the mall he explained and was about to go home but somehow decided to drop by the park even though it wasn’t his schedule.
Now I was getting goose bumps here. It’s just like our job was to keep Ivan Company for the meantime so that Mark could find him in the park. AMAZING INDEED…
So Ivan kept on with his ‘I don’t deserve’ talk while I frantically flipped through my Bible trying to find that text about ‘sins as red as scarlet will become like wool…”..Revelation was it? Or maybe….?? I just couldn’t find it! (grrr..wala pa sa akong list of memorized text eh..) So I whispered to Mark if he knew it and he did.
ISIAH 1:18.I will never forget that text now. I gave Ivan to read. When he was done, he paused for a while and his face just lit up. “wala jd ko kahibalo na naa d I ni na texto sa bible..karon pa jd know ni na basa..naa pa d I ko pag asa bah! Basin maforgive ra ko sa Diyos!"
It seems our ‘job’ was done. Mark was going to start a study with him so it was ‘exit time’. It just didn’t feel right to ride a jeepney home that day so I took the 30 minute walk instead. People must’ve thought I was crazy or something walking alone smiling (maybe even talking) to myself.
All I could think about was WOW! Jehovah doesn’t really ‘need’ us to do the job of ‘drawing people’. The magazines, the bible and the Holy Spirit are more than enough. But he does. He uses us imperfect; sometimes even ‘unappreciative’ humans to help his sheep. What a GRAND PRIVILEGE we have...May we never take it for granted^_^
And one more thing i forgot-He shares everything he reads in our magazines with his 'workmates'.:)
