GOD HEED OUR EMERGENCY CALL

This post was originally from September 12th, but during that time, I had no readers yet, and for the benefit of my current readers, I had decided to move this. I just want to share this testimony to all of you, with a hope that you will learn something from this, too.

Eight years ago, during the time when individuals who had cellphones were just very few (at least in the Philippines ), I was one of those TH society (trying hard he-he-he) who were able to buy a Nokia 3210 cellphone through "sun-up to sun-down" working in a Taiwanese garment factory. (Well, actually, I needed to, because I lived far away from my family then.)

I had a co-worker who I consider my closest in the work area. Of course, I still remember her name, but I still feel that need to protect her dignity, so I will just call her "Miss C". Anything she need, if I had it, I was willing to share it to her to the point of sacrificing my own need. I'm not really that good, maybe the reason why I did that was because I want to keep our friendship. I even told her that she could take anything she need from my purse any time.

I had cellphone and she don't have. She said it don't appeal to her. One afternoon, as the bell rang, we started grabbing our purses and fell in line for guard's inspection before leaving the factory, I found my lunch bag "neatly cut" (obviously by a blade that we used to cut leather for jackets). Inside my lunch bag, together with my lunch box was where I usually put my cellphone. My cellphone was not there anymore. The "neatly cut" lunch bag alarmed me that somebody was doing bad to me I only had one person in my mind. I know it was not right to jumped right into judgment without proving it first, but looking back on how she behaved earlier that day made me very positive that it was her.

Unfortunately, she was no longer inside the working area, if so, I could have call a hold on her. "She was in a hurry," somebody told me. "What should I do?" I asked myself. I tried to catch her up in the transportation station, but she was no longer there. I was so sad. I worked hard for that cellphone. It would take me another several months of saving to be able to get a new one again. In my despair, I decided to go home and decided to try to find her house that night.

Pale and shaking, I broke the bad news to my roommate, Ann. I asked her a favor to go with me to find her house. Before we leave, I asked to pray first. We prayed for recovery of my cellphone, leading to her house and we acknowledged that there's nothing impossible to God. ("For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them." Matthew 18:20 TNIV ) We declared before we go that God heard our emergency call that night. We then heed out.

The only thing I knew about where "Miss C" lived was that it was close to Toyota showroom. (That was what she used to tell me.) We found out that there were hundreds of houses stick together surrounding that Toyota showroom. Of course, we were asking around, but nobody knew her. A couple of hours after, we don't want to lose hope, we have faith in God's power. A little boy led us to her house, but she was not in her house. We were talking to her mother, told us that she was somewhere, and had a friend who was celebrating birthday. We go on looking for her. Somebody else told us that she was seen right at the little store outside, along the road. So we get there. And there she was, standing right the little store along the road. I saw my cellphone with its pouch, it was tucked on her pant's back pocket. I felt so relieved. She saw me, she was surprised. I then approached her, picked up my little pouch from her back pocket. She was trying to explain something, but for me, it doesn't matter. All that matters was it I had it back.

It really amazed me and Ann how God worked in that situation. I mean, in finding her. If we happened to find her inside her house, she could have hid my cellphone. But thanked to God, she made her come to that place where she could not run and she could not hide my cellphone anywhere else.

I told her and the rest of those who knew that it was my fault, too. I was so careless with my things. That may be leading her into temptation. So, I feel bad about it. Of course, it had affected our friendship since then, though we were still friends after that incident.

This is not intended to destroy the dignity of my friend. This is to display God's power and a testimony to His name. This is about how God answered our prayer in an emergency case and how faithful He was to His promise. To God be the glory.