IN HIS GRIP: I HAVE FOUND

I wouldn’t forget that day. I received an odd comment from someone I work with at RBI (Resources for the Blind, Inc., Philippines). We were working when out of nowhere, she blurted out, “Ate Kat, bakit yung mga mata mo parang masaya? (why do your eyes look happy)” It was odd because I wasn’t particularly happy that day. I even remembered crying that morning while I was praying to God, because I was feeling discouraged with everything going on around me. So to hear from someone that my eyes seem to reflect happiness was really ironically weird for me.

So I dug deeper, I did feel happy. There was this kind of joy inside of me that was unexplainable. Deep inside my heart, I felt this peace and contentment. I know this is the kind of joy that comes from the Lord – the peace, joy, grace, and contentment that faith brings. 

God made me remember Paul in Philippians 4. He was in prison, shackled in chains when he said, “Always be full of joy in the Lord, I say it again – rejoice!” How on earth could Paul say these things while in chains?

If you would read the Bible in Acts 22, you will find that Paul was trained under Gamaliel, a teacher of the Law of God which He gave to the Jews through Moses. Gamaliel was honored by all people. He sure had lots of credentials! Since Paul was his student, that made Paul a theologian, a Bible scholar, an expert on the Law of God.

But everything was simply head knowledge, until Paul had a personal encounter with the Jesus. It was then that the Law of God became alive and real to him, that God became more real to him that ever before. He was never the same again. From being a persecutor of those who believed in Christ, Paul became the most influential apostle with an unshakeable faith in Christ.

Because Paul knew the God whom he served, he knew that even in the darkest hours of his life, God was with him. He focused on how big God is, not on the intensity of his troubles. He even said in verses 6-7, “Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God’s peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. His peace will guard your hearts and minds as you live in Christ Jesus.”

It was really humbling for me to know that with God, everything will turn out well no matter what I go through. In every pain and suffering, God’s love will always be an ocean of comfort, peace and grace that I can sink into. In trials, I will remain unshakeable because God is my strong tower, my anchor.

I went home that day carrying this “peace, which exceeds anything I can understand,” grabbed my guitar and began praising God with a song I’ve been listening to for days:

“I have found a peace that plows on through the storm,

I have found a joy that jumps over sadness,

I have found a love that lights up every room,

I have found, I found You.” (Jesus Culture, I Have Found)

Like Paul, I have found Christ.

Like Paul, I rejoice in the Lord always!