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Surrendering To God
Contributed by Tim Smith on May 28, 2015 (message contributor)
Ravi Zacharias tells the amazing story of a young Christian, Hien Pham, whom he met in Vietnam who served as an interpreter with the American forces. Shortly after Vietnam fell, Hien was imprisoned on accusations of helping the Americans. His jailers tried to indoctrinate him against democratic ideals with daily readings of Marx and Lennon and it began to take its toll. ‘Maybe,’ he thought, ‘I have been lied to. Maybe God does not exist. Maybe the West has deceived me.’ So Hien determined that when he awakened the next day, he would not pray anymore or think of his faith. The next morning, he was assigned the dreaded chore of cleaning the prison latrines. As he cleaned out a tin can overflowing with toilet paper, his eye caught what seemed to be English printed on one piece of paper. He hurriedly grabbed it, washed it, and after his roommates had retired that night, he retrieved the paper and read the words, ‘And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him for I am convinced that nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.’ Hien wept. There was not a more relevant passage for one on the verge of surrender of his faith. He cried out to God, asking forgiveness, for this was to have been the first day that he would not pray. And every day since, he has chosen to live by faith and stand on the promises of God.
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