THE STORY OF RICHIE

It was in April 2011 when I first met Richie. My fellow disciple Totoy Famero and I went to Bucal to share the gospel to the young men there. At first, Richie was one of those who would "run away" whenever they see us. Eventually, through God's Grace, Richie sat down and listened; he started opening up and reading the Bible with us. In God's time, Richie yielded to our invitation for him to join the Encounter. His life turned 180 degrees after that. From being 'cursed' due to the vices he had enjoyed (e.g. smoking, drinking, and yes, even drugs) he transformed into a man whose life would become one of Kingdom Ministries' most challenging and motivating testimonies.

Satan's job is to trick us away from the tremendously blessed life that God has designed for each one of us. For seven long years, this worked well with Richie. He was a 'tambay' all throughout; he was a burden not just to his family but also to society as a whole. I must say I was intimidated during those days; I feared being beaten up by their 'gang'. At the back of my prejudicial mind-set, I thought "this guy's hopeless, I'm wasting time" (Later on, God revealed to me that prejudice is also one of the enemy's ways for us to stop sharing the Word. Makes sense right? Start thinking that people are hopeless, later you'll start thinking "why bother sharing if no one's gonna listen?")

Richie is one of my life's greatest achievements, even greater than earning a college and master's degree. He is God's constant reminder to me, "Son, if you stopped, where could his life be now?" He's also a solid proof that when you surrender your life to Christ, greater things shall follow; blessings will overflow.

I wrote this not to brag about myself. I wrote this to encourage you. I'm not so different from you. I've had my share of failures and sins. But you see, when you accept Jesus as your personal Lord and Savior, you'll start to realize a lot, a lot which will unleash the spirit of excellence in you.

Don't stop. Don't quit. Tell the world about Jesus!

(Richie has just graduated last Saturday, March 8, 2014 from Working Hands School in Balubad 2nd, a TESDA certified school with a diploma in Auto Mechanic. Graduating isn't the end of God's blessings; it's God's first step towards Greatness!)