The Storm

Hallelujah, in the name of the Lord Jesus I bear testimony:

September 16, 2018 was a memorable day for Hong Kong as it experienced its worst typhoon in many years. Typhoon Mangkhut was forecasted to be the most severe storm in Hong Kong history. Before it made landfall, many residents were caught in a state of emergency as they geared up preparations to embrace themselves for the storm. Supermarkets and shops ran out of food, water supplies and cellophane tape were used to secure windows and homes. Though I did prepare myself somewhat for the storm, I was not extremely worried as I thought my faith was strong. The main task I did was to shut my windows tight and waited calmly for the typhoon to arrive. And indeed, when it did, it caught me off-guard and totally shocked me.

My family was incidentally out of town on holiday during the time of the typhoon, so I was home alone. During the calm before the storm, I was reading the Bible quietly in my room. Suddenly I could hear the wind stir up as it gained speed and intensity. Rain came with the strong winds and it was hitting furiously against my windows, as if it was raging war. I started to feel uneasy and frightened, all the more as I looked out and saw the trees sway profusely, with branches and leaves flying wildly in the air. It then dawned on me that Typhoon Mangkhut indeed was no ordinary typhoon, living up to its name. With butterflies beginning to gather in my stomach, I decided to kneel down to pray.

Thank the Lord that as I prayed, my anxiety gradually gave way to peace. Though I could hear the wind howling loudly in the background, including a loud bang, I was not disturbed and continued focusing on my prayers. When I finished praying, I continued reading the Bible.

After a while, I remembered that I heard a loud bang during my prayer. I wondered if something had fallen from my terrace roof upstairs. So I decided to go up to the rooftop to check. Once I reached the rooftop, I was taken aback by what I saw. My neighbour’s house was under renovation and a piece of bamboo scaffold had fallen off, leaning precariously against the outer wall of my apartment. It looked like it was going to hit my window anytime. Immediately I ran back to my apartment downstairs to see what could be done. Thank God for His protection. Though the bamboo scaffold did indeed knock against one of my windows, it did not cause any damage at all. In fact, it was only a tiny bit away from smashing right through the glass. My window was completely intact.

“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians 4:6-7 )

Thanks be to God. Through this incident, He has helped me to recognize my weakness. My faith was insufficient but His grace abounds. He was merciful towards me and helped me to learn that I must always trust and rely on Him, the maker of heavens and the earth, the master of all creation, the everlasting Lord, the one true God, and father of all mankind. The storm has helped me to experience the wonderful grace of God. Besides the storm, there were many incidents that took place thereafter that strengthened my faith that revealed God is almighty and gracious. I look forward to future opportunities to share my testimonies with you.

May all glory and praise be given to the true God in Heaven. Amen.