THE LORD WILL DO SOMETHING GREAT IN YOUR LIFE!
Before Pastor Jessie Soriano Sucaldito joined the ITP family, he already met Pastor Gani Sison, IT’s Executive Director. In 2015, He met him at a church where Pastor Gani was a guest speaker. Pastor Gani spoke to him and said, “The Lord will do something great in your life”. Hearing those words from Pastor Gani left a great impression on Pastor Jess’s heart. He believed that God had a special task for him to do. Therefore, he continued to pray for God’s guidance.
The following year, Ptr Jess joined International Teams and signed up for the Access Mission Training. After the 1st phase of mission training, he decided to take the next and final part of Access Mission Training which was going to be held in Thailand. Pastor Jess was able to book his ticket and saved up some money for this trip. Then the day of his flight came, and his faith was about to be tested in ways he never imagined. Their scheduled flight was at 11 PM and at an earlier time before their flight, Pastor Jess and the other trainees had a briefing at the ITP office so they would know the do’s and don’ts when they are in the mission field.
During the briefing, Pastor Jess suddenly felt an excruciating pain in the upper right portion of his abdomen. He didn’t know what to do but he tried to endure it until the briefing ended. The briefing was over, and he must go home first. He and his friend were on their way home when Pastor Jess felt that the pain became unbearable. “Lord, what should I do?!” he asked God. He couldn’t take the pain anymore and Pastor Jess’s friend was so worried and suggested going to the hospital. They got into a taxi and made their way to the nearest hospital. When they arrived at the hospital, the doctor ran some tests and checked Pastor Jess’s condition. They found out that he had some kidney stones formed in his kidneys that were the cause of the excruciating pain he was feeling. With his condition, he was contemplating whether he should go to Thailand or not. “Lord, if this pain goes away then I will go, but if not then maybe it’s your will that I won’t be able to go to Thailand” Pastor Jess prayed and surrendered this matter to God. The doctor gave him some medicine to ease the pain. But he was still unsure of his condition so he told the doctor about his plan on that day and sought his advice on whether it would be possible for him to still go to Thailand. The doctor answered, “If you can endure the pain, then you can go”. It was very confusing for him to have heard the doctor’s remarks. Pastor Jess had to think once more about the situation he was in. After a while, the pain was surprisingly gone. Thus, he decided to go home first and then prepare his luggage for his flight in the evening.
When he arrived home, his family got so worried after hearing what happened to him. They urged Pastor Jess not to go because of his condition. But he wanted to honor the commitment he made with God, he wanted to move forward. Because of the earlier incident, his pocket money was spent so he was hoping his brother would give him some money. Out of concern, his brother didn’t want to give him money, so he won’t go anymore, but that didn’t stop Pastor Jess. He prayed to God and believed in God’s provision. A little later, he received a phone call and his friend told him that he had sent some money to Pastor Jess’s account. He was so grateful to God that all things are working together for his good! The pain was gone and now he had enough money to go to Thailand.
Pastor Jess and his friend were on their way to the airport and while he was in the taxi, some unsettling thoughts crept into his mind. “What if the pain returns? What will you do when you are in a foreign country?” The spirit of doubt and fear was trying to dissuade him from going. Pastor Jess prayed and magnified God instead of getting defeated by doubt and fear. As they got out of the taxi, they were not charged by the driver who was an acquaintance of Pastor Jess’s friend. It was another blessing and affirmation that God was with him.
He and the other trainees flew to Thailand and arrived at their accommodation safely. He only brought a plant called ‘sambong’ for added measure. In his ten days in Thailand, he never felt any discomfort or pain. He knew that it was God who relieved him from all the pain caused by kidney stones. Despite the healing he received, he also experienced God’s provision during his stay in Thailand. God used men and women of peace to provide for his needs especially at the end of his trip when he was running low on cash. What he experienced in Thailand was a great encouragement for him to pursue going on missions.
If God can provide for all his needs and heal him, then he has nothing to worry about when he is out of his comfort zone. Pastor Jess continued flying to other countries and saw God’s goodness in his life. He also invited his church members to join in IT’s International Conferences. He wanted them to experience the miracles and blessings he received from God through IT. “It’s great to be a part of the ITP family” Pastor Jess quoted. He believes that whatever the desires of your heart if you delight yourself in God it will be given to you. For he had experienced it on his trips. Even though there are risks, our God is Sovereign, and you just have to keep the faith.
You have nothing to fear, even the attacks of the enemy can’t take you down if you put your faith in God. He is sovereign over the whole world and everything that happens in it. He is never helpless, never frustrated, never at a loss. And in Christ, God’s awesome, sovereign providence is the place we feel most reverent, most secure, most free! Praise to the Sovereign Lord; our Mighty God!!!
Jeremiah 17:14
“Heal me, O Lord, and I will be healed; save me and I will be saved, for you are the one I praise.”
(Written by: Venus Jablo)
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