So there’s this guy in my 5:30 evening English class named Sumnut.
He’s awesome. He is super honest and forward about faith and culture and religion and such.
He asked if we could all share our testimonies…to take some time and tell what God has done in our lives to get us to this point in time.
I shared first. I took maybe 3 minutes, 4 minutes tops.
I told about how I grew up in church, how I was blessed to have been raised by Christian parents, how I got saved at a young age, strayed away from God during my high school/college days, and just the past year have considered myself to be a follower of Christ. God had pursued me all those years, but just the past year I’m leaning into His pursuit instead of running from it.
Jamie and Chase shared their stories too. We each took about 5 minutes, assuming he would do the same.
He talked for at least 20 minutes.
He started at the beginning.
He grew up Buddhist, and became a Christian later in life.
His brother broke his leg by falling through a trampoline. He contracted some kind of disease from the broken bone, and doctors said they would have to amputate it.
His brother cried out, “I don’t want to lose my leg!!”
The family called for a witch doctor to perform healing on his leg.
The witch doctor did the spells or chants or whatever they do.
After this, the leg got worse and worse and worse.
There was no choice but to cut it off.
Sumnut went out on a limb, and asked his family to pray over the leg with him…believing it would be healed in Jesus’ name. They had given up hope, so they agreed.
Everyone prayed for the leg.
No immediate results of healing.
But starting the following day, the leg got better and better.
Day 2, even better.
The doctors were perplexed.
In just a few short days, his brother was walking around the hospital.
His brother became a Christian, as did the rest of his family, just by Sumnut’s act of faith in the hospital that day.
When he was finished telling his story, I sat there with my mouth open, trying to process what I just heard. Goosebumps covered my body the whole time he talked. This is my God, too, was the best thought in the world at that moment. I pray that I’m always in awe of God and His power like I was when I heard this story.
I share this story with you for a couple reasons. First, to encourage you to take every opportunity you can to tell your story. Your story matters!!! Your story will touch someone in some way that you will never know unless you share. People need to hear all types of stories of how God has been faithful in their lives.
Second, I think this is super cool to think about…if his brother hadn’t broke his leg in the first place, he may not ever have became a Christian. This shows how God uses all things, the good and the bad, for His glory and for good. Remember that we can’t see the bigger picture. We see something bad happening as God not existing or being mad at us, when actually He is turning the ‘bad’ into something beautiful. We just need to be patient and have faith in that promise.
Third, to ask you the question…is this your God too? Does Sumnut’s story make you say “Thank you Father” and just be in awe of His love and healing to us humans? If not, I want to tell you that He can be your God today just as much as He is mine and Sumnut’s. There is nothing special about us…we are just sinners saved by grace, trusting in a mighty God who performs miracles on a daily basis.
This is real life. God is here and alive and present. If you have any questions about how to make God your own, please message me!!! He is waiting and He loves you!!!
