A Journey with God
From University of Toronto Chinese Christian Fellowship
This testimony was given at Coffeehouse 2006.
Hi everyone,
I’m really thankful for the opportunity to share with you tonight about my journey with God thus far. To be honest with you, I wasn’t even supposed to be here tonight. See, I had originally planned to be at a dance my church was holding tonight and I was going to buy tickets for it about a week ago. Problem was, I didn’t have any money with me when I went to church on Sunday. So, I went back on Monday, but the receptionist wasn’t there. So, I went back on Tuesday, but they couldn’t find the box with the tickets. And they told me to not come in on Wednesday, because no one would be around, but to come back on Thursday. Well, that Wednesday, I got an email from Grace asking me to speak at coffeehouse. So I’m really grateful for the way things worked out and that I am here with all of you tonight.
If you had asked me a year ago to stand up here and tell you about my relationship with God, I would have close to nothing to say. I was brought up Catholic and for a long time, God’s existence and infinite love and grace was more or less an afterthought. But last July, through no intent of my own, God spoke to me and made me realized that I didn’t want to be the kind of Christian that seeks God when it was convenient for me. I realized that He was calling me back to Him, asking me to walk with Him.
The biggest thing that I can share with you tonight is that this is a JOURNEY.
It’s a journey of opportunities and challenges.
About 3 weeks after my realization, I had an unexpected and very hurtful falling out with a very close friend. And I can say without a doubt that He had prepared for me it by growing my faith. On my own, I would have weak, I would have been angry; I would not have the strength to endure. But in that moment, I found peace and hope and I knew He was asking me to trust Him, that this was for my own good. So even though people will disappoint us, God will not.
Going into my final year of undergrad, God has presented me with more opportunities than I can discuss tonight. I started going to church regularly and it’s something I look forward to doing. Going to mass used to be a chore for me, something I would put on my New Years Resolutions and forget about by February. He found me a parish that encompassed the Catholic community that I longed to be a part of. I went on a retreat last November with my church. And I didn’t know anybody that was going to be there. I spent the week before the retreat, anxious and unsure, wondering if I should back out. I went. It wasn’t easy, but I had to let go of my own insecurities and my own barriers. I had an amazing time and it was only because I was learning to rely solely on Him.
It’s a journey of hindrances and growth.
As I said, I’m in my final year and I spent a lot of time this year trying to figure out what I was going to do next year. In December, I was ready to do just about anything that came my way. I was just waiting for God to give me something so I could do it. Have you ever felt that way? Exasperated, just waiting for an answer, any answer? I did. I just assumed that God was going to give me an answer one of these days. He gave me an answer, but it wasn’t the one I was expecting. See, God wasn’t going to tell me answers because I was waiting for them. So it means I might never truly understand why I lost a friend last August. And it means I wasn’t going to figure out what I was going to do next year by waiting. See, what matters more than our answers is that we desire Him and His way even when it doesn’t meet our expectations. God wants us to follow anyway.
A journey with God is one that’s full of potential, excitement and PURPOSE.
What I have come to realize, what I believe, is that God has a plan for me. A plan that is rich and rewarding and beyond what I could imagine for myself. A plan that was made uniquely for me, that if I didn’t complete it, no one else would do it. See, I would have settled for less. I would have settled for being mediocre. So, maybe God didn’t reveal His plan for me then because I hadn’t even begun to realize what was possible.
My journey with God has been about transformation. He’s been transforming me, teaching me, moulding me to be more like Him. But being the person that God wants me to be is a life-long journey. There won’t always be earth-shattering events or sudden inspirations that significantly impact your life. I’ve been fortunate to be able to experience some of those moments. But most of the time, living a God-inspired life is about the daily grind. It’s about finding God in the ups and downs and growing closer with Him each passing day. The reason I’m up here today, sharing all of this with you, is because He has been changing and preparing me throughout this year. I’m so thankful for this opportunity.
Thanks for listening.