GOD IS MY REFUGE & DEFENSE IN THE DAY OF TROUBLE

Another testimony....

A started her pharmacy training at a retail pharmacy in Kepong. Unknown to her the customers were mainly Cantonese speaking. Our youngest girl, though smart in picking up languages, struggled for 2 weeks in her job but just could not cope.

She found that speaking conversational Cantonese was one thing but trying to describe the medicines in Cantonese was really tough. Her self-esteem really plunged and she was in tears over her inability to service the customers. She slumped into depression after 2 weeks of working there.

She told the pharmacists that although she may know the names of all medicines in the shop, she was not of much use to her customers as she could not prescribe them to the Cantonese speaking customers. 

What I did not know was that she became depressed over this job assignment so much so that it affected her sleep. She then started to blame us for not putting her in the vernacular school. Like the typical 'banana' she could only speak English although she was Chinese through and through!

I did the only thing I knew...turned to God in prayer. 

One morning while praying I came across this Bible verse "God is my refuge and defense in the day of trouble" and I sent it to her to comfort her.

She then told me she wanted to quit but before doing so she decided to show me her employment letter. To my horror, there was a clause stating that she had to pay damages of RM70k plus if she quit her training as a pharmacist within a year!

Hey....you know your mum is a lawyer and you did not consult her before you signed? Hello....?

I said that you would have to stay with them for one year as your mum would not have the money to bail you out!

I told her to talk to management nicely to release her without having to pay any money. After praying for her, I was relieved to hear that the management had no choice but to let her go as there was an escape clause. 

As A had to get her pharmacist trainee number from the Pharmacist body before doing her training with the retail pharmacists and as she had not done so in this case, her training stint was not recognized by the Pharmacy body!

When they realized the mistake, they agreed to let her go but without any pay for the 2 weeks of work....which was better than her having to pay back the damages!

God & me as CSI

This is surely a testimony that will be told again and again in my family and we will surely not tire of telling it to our children's children for generations to come......

SAMUEL'S TESTIMONY

Recently my car got towed away from Times Square. I had no choice but to go DBKL to get it back. While completing the form at DBKL, I inadvertently left my new and expensive iphone 6S on the table and walked away to hand in the form. While driving away, I kept feeling that something was not right.

Upon checking I realized that my iphone was missing! 

I hurried back to DBKL but it was gone. I suspected that it was either the DBKL staff or the Indian ladies behind me who could have taken away the phone. As there was no CCTV, I could not conclusively say who took the iphone.

Suffice to say that at this time, I needed to tell you that I had not activated the find my iphone apps thus there was no way I could have traced my phone. Whoever took it had shut it down immediately.

The following day which was a Tuesday, God gave me the wisdom to put up an advert to all the dealers at Low Yat and Pertama Complex. 

I offered a reward to any dealer if they could alert me if anyone contacted them to unlock the phone. I got a call from one dealer who alerted me that someone (an Indian lady) calling to ask about unlocking an iphone but she did not bring the phone.

Immediately I suspected that the Indian ladies (3 of them in a group) could have taken the phone. I lodged a police report, took it to DBKL and requested for a copy of her IC citing the reason that I needed to contact her as she was a most likely suspect.

I got her details and actually went to the address but was surprised to see a Chinese lady there. It was then I knew that the address was either fake or not updated. I even went to JPJ to look up her car no and JPN but both addresses were similar to the IC address thus I knew that I was at a dead end.

Sharing with my mum, she prayed for me and encouraged me to go for morning watch and corporate prayer. It was a public holiday and it was my first time praying in the morning watch. I did not feel tired at all surprisingly. 

That night I joined the corporate prayer and cried out to God with all my heart. Despite all odds and all the negative comments that it was impossible to get back the phone I had the peace in my heart that God will help me get back my phone. In fact, I whatsapp my mum about this and she prayed for me to locate the thief.

On Saturday after morning watch my mum said that while praying over this, God asked her to tell me to look for her on facebook. Well I keyed in her name and lo and behold her name appeared! I was so excited. 

The lady rejected my friend request but I started texting my phone no and told her that I knew that she had taken my phone and that I had all her details which I could give to the police.

God gave me the wisdom not to be hostile but to talk nicely to her. At first, there was only pure denial but finally after a series of text messages, she finally admitted that she had taken my phone.

I asked her to call another number and I told her that if she gave me back the phone, I would not pursue the matter further. I told her that I had offered a reward and would give it to her if the phone was returned to me.

On Saturday night I got a call from a third party asking me to go to Batu Caves at midnight to make the exchange. My parents advised me not to go back so late at night as it could be dangerous.

We agreed to make the exchange at 12 pm the following day (which was a Sunday).

To cut a long story short, we were at Batu Caves after church and the exchange was made.

I got back my iphone after a week of crying out to God, some sleuth work, some hard negotiation and lots and lots of prayer back-up! 

Did I give the reward? Yes I did albeit minus the value of the phone cover but I considered it well worth as the iphone 6S was a very expensive phone and just under a year old!

I learnt many lessons from this experience but there is one thing that I learned which no thief can take away from me which is JESUS IS AWESOME!

(Mum – at first I was thinking that this is impossible but when I read my son’s faith declaration that ‘God will help get back my iphone for me’ faith arose in my heart to believe that God is a God who will surely respond to faith such as this! Amen)