Many times in my past, I used to ask God why He is “unfair” since many people are living in abundance and having a complete family, while my life wasn’t. That time, I have a big question to God… “Why?”

 

I am sharing my life testimony through The Voice Magazine and through sharing it to others, to glorify God and be an inspiration to those who have been going through many hardships.

 

My father left for Japan and for many years we never saw him and had no communication; and during that long period, my mother is the one who stood as the head of our family. As the years went by, my father and mother got separated and my father got his own family there. After that, my mom left us too and she entrusted us to our grandfather and grandmother.I was 13 years old then and I have two brothers and one sister. Our eldest went to another family and my big sister went to Manila; so, it was me and my little brother who lived together with our Lolo and Lola. During that time, we were maltreated by our grandmother and she did not show us love that we craved for.

 

When I was old enough to go by myself, I left my little brother in my grandma’s house feeling much sorrow and compassion for him, because we stayed together for many years. I needed to go away because of loneliness and hatred, so I went everywhere my feet would take me. I was involved in drinking, drug addiction, and bad peers. I would throw stones at our local church when I was drunk. I used to mock God and the church.

 

I decided to move again in Zamboanga City, to my mom's place and it’s the same story. I got involved in drinking, drug addiction and for the time the first time, I used shabu. I started carrying a long rifle gun on the street. My mom was married to a military man and so that is why I have a gun.

 

One day, a pastor on a wheelchair came and invited me to his Baptist church. That pastor is my uncle, my mother's brother. I did not attend on his first invitation. He gave me a Gospel tract, but I ripped it and I laughed in front of my friends. I told them that the picture in the gospel tract was “TARZAN.”

 

We moved to Tawi-Tawi where my mother's military husband was assigned until one day, we received a call from the military camp that my mother had died on a motorcycle accident. That was the saddest day of my life, I felt so hopeless that time because I felt like I lost everything, and no one will care for me. I had nowhere to go. Then God came to the rescue!

 

During that turning point in my life, I was approached by my uncle pastor to stay with them because they are the

only family I have. But before that, he sent me to a Baptist seminary and livelihood place, and it was like a

rehabilitation place for me. They trained me how to pray and how to exhort and share the Word of God. That time, I felt the love of Jesus. I was full of hope and God answered my question, WHY? It is when we are on the edge of our lives that our path leads to God. He turns our life around. God is an expert of doing purpose out of chaos, He allowed our mistakes, sorrows, troubles in life for His purpose.

 

There my life was changed. It was like rehab and a retreat for me at the same time. I stopped my vices and I created music for the Lord. Then I became involved with church planting. Like missionaries, we went everywhere preaching the Gospel. There was no turning back to my old life.

 

I got menial jobs until I was hired by a distant relative as a cable man. We would go to different parts of the Philippines to install telephone cables. One day, the Lord brought me to Novaliches, Quezon City. I started attending one of the Christian churches there, and there I met my future wife, Sis. Jo-Anne Cuyugan. I joined the Music Ministry where she was also serving the Lord. In time, despite my low self-esteem (because she is educated and has a good family unlike me), I prayed for her and courted her. I never left Novaliches since then and I lived in our local church since I didn’t have a home and a family.

 

With God’s grace, we were steady for 6 years and 4 years more, when God brought us both in Bahrain. On December 17, 2009, with the blessings and support of JIA Community Bahrain, we got married. As of now, we are 13 years in Bahrain. Nine years of that was wilderness for us. God allowed us to go through a very tough life in Bahrain to mold us to be His servants. We moved from one job to another due to delayed salary, or our companies closed, politics, etc. By 2014, our breakthrough finally came. We found the right job and been there until now.

 

My wife and I are very passionate to serve God. It is the reason why we live. Our lives are made to glorify Him alone. We are still waiting for God’s promise of a blessing as the fruit of our love. We will continue to serve the Lord until Jesus returns. This song reflects my life: Lord, I offer my life to You, everything I’ve been through, use it for Your glory. Lord, I offer my days to You, lifting my praise to You; as a pleasing sacrifice. Lord, I offer You my life.

May my “teleserye-like” life be a living testimony to those who are passing the wilderness or going through storms. In Christ, we have hope and a future.

 

 

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