Chapter 6 - The Encounter
During that one year, I have been active in the church.
I've been promoted to be a team leader in Kid's ministry. I don't know if I am deserving of that, but I thanked God for giving me that opportunity. I am spearheading the coordination of every class and the volunteers are on my care now.
Ian also trained me to become a speaker in the singles gathering. I passed the mock preaching set by the core team of its ministry. I just started to speak in front of people. I did not know that I have also a gift in preaching until Ian discovered it from me.
Whatever it is, it's all for God's glory. I am just an instrument and a vessel. I may not be deserving again, but God chose me and that is a great privilege to serve the King of Kings.
Since then, I began to love speaking and preaching the gospel in multitudes of people. So, I signed up in a ministry for wake services. I underwent training on it and now I speak in some of the wakes of church members.
There is this sense of joy every time you shared comfort on the bereaved families, but what's more important is you shared the gospel to them. That death is not the end.
But in spite of the ministries I have, the main ministry is a small group. So Ian endorsed me to become a small group leader and I have now a few members also. We meet sometimes on Saturdays if some of them are available.
This is in obedience to the Great Commission before Jesus went back to heaven in Matthew 28:19-20 -
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe what I have commanded you, and I will be with you at the end of the age"
I also started inviting my family to church. I also shared gradually God's word to my officemates and some of my friends.
I had a more intimate relationship with God and diligently studying his Word more. That one year of actively waiting was fruitful to me by the grace of God.
One year also later, The Way Fellowship has grown so big that it needed to transfer to another location.
The leadership already built a big facility that started years ago in a neighboring city and it was the right time when it was finished that the Miracle Hotel can no longer hold the multitude of people coming to the megachurch.
But what about Rachel? She was still single. I'm glad that still, I don't have any news that someone courted or interested in her. I don't know why some men don't appreciate her, but for me, that would be better to have no competition at all.
She may not be the most beautiful girl in the world, but she made my world the most beautiful. It's a famous quote and it's true because that's how I felt. She made my world appealing.
She was promoted to become one of the worship leaders. I got to see her more visible as she is now at the center of the stage.
She gets more fascinating and is more mature as she is now a year older. She is more anointed in singing and the passion for singing for the Lord was still there one year ago.
She also had another ministry which is Live Production that takes care the lights, sound, videos, stage, and the main hall of every worship service . That is why whenever I do not see her on the front, I can see her in the back of the main hall.
I always pass by where they are located to glance her pretty face. She is still the one that I had fallen to. Her sweet voice, her beautiful smile, and yet still simple is what captivates my heart.
She is like a princess maturing into a beautiful queen.
The shop she manages already now has a branch. She was transferred there to supervise it and she also shares God's word with the rest of the employees. She also invites some of them to church. That one year has passed also was fruitful to her by God's grace
But still, the connection between us is still in the status quo the same as one year ago. I did not have a chance again to hang out with her. God still closes the doors between us.
Small talks I had with her are rare and I even consider them as a miracle. Most of our encounters will happen because I pushed myself so that I could connect to her.
I always pray that God would finally open a door for us to be friends. Every page in my journal, her name was always there because I write about Rachel every day.
For that one year, I still manage to compose again a poem for her:
If you know how I feel
That my feelings for you are real
You controlled my mind and my will
In my heart, your name is the seal
If you know I'm crazy over you
I'm in love with you and I really do
If you just only really knew
How you made the sky always blue
If you know how I was hurt
That you did not see my worth
I always made an effort just to insert
To be known to you that I existed on earth
If you know what is my dream
That in my shoulder you will lean
So that you will hear my heart is saying
That your name that was always beating
But that drought has finally ended. It was when one of Martha's small group member's father died. I was called by the church if I am available to officiate a wake service by tomorrow.
When I knew that it was requested by a small group of Martha, I had now a clue that Rachel would possibly be there. But I don't want to expect too much because I don't want to be hurt. I just need to act normal.
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So that Saturday evening came. I came to the funeral early to talk to the family of the deceased to get some idea what are the dead person's memories when he was still alive.
Then minutes passed I saw Martha and Rachel together with the rest of the small group coming. She saw me and just smiled at me. A few moments later the wake service started.
She was the one who sang the opening song for the wake service. Her voice made me fall for her more as she also singing to my heart.
After her was my message. I shared to the people inside the funeral about Ecclesiastes 7: 1-2
"A good name is better than fine perfume, and the day of death better than the day of birth. It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting"
The irony of this verse is that the day of death is better than the day of birth. Another is the day of mourning is better than the house of feasting.
Ecclesiastes was written by the wisest man in the world at that time, King Solomon. So there is a wisdom behind this and that is that funerals and burials are a great reminder that life is short.
And if life is short, you must arrange your priorities well and especially you must prepare where would you be in the afterlife.
Better invest your relationship with God by accepting Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior because it has eternal effects in this very short life as it is compared to a mist. That was my message to them.
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After the wake service, I overheard that Martha and the rest of her small group that they will have dinner. When I saw that they are now leaving the room, I also rushed to go outside.
"Martha, are you coming home now?" I asked.
"Not yet, we were going to have dinner outside," she replied.
"I see, I'm also hungry, can I join with you?" I asked again.
"Sure, you can come," she answered.
We are eating on a fast-food and I noticed Rachel was entertaining me now.
"Let's eat, Jacob," she said.
I don't know if this is now my answered prayer or a miracle, but for now, I am thankful for it. We are talking like friends and I was so happy to finally talk to her like this.
She was comfortable, she was laughing with my jokes, she was even teasing me. I pinch myself many times if this was just a dream, but yes, It was real!
As we are going home, we rode on the same jeepney just the two of us and we resumed our conversations there. I wished to have more traffic on our way so that we will have more time with each other.
"Jacob, I was blessed by your message on the wake service. Praise God you are now speaking. Thank you for being an instrument for God," Rachel said to me.
"Yes, all to glory to God!" I replied while pointing up.
"Jacob, I will just drop by here, God bless," Rachel said when the jeepney stopped as she was going down.
"Okay, God bless Rachel, good night," I replied.
"I hope this would not be the last time that we could hang out like this," I continued. She was amused.
When I arrived home, I literally jumped for joy because finally I had the first step on her after a year of waiting and I know there are so many steps I should take.
Yes, I must have more opportunities like that so I need to carefully plan what to do next.