Emma, Singapore
Emma was brought up in a strict Muslim home in Singapore. Due to her parents’ divorce and dysfunctional family life, at age 16 she made the decision to kill someone: herself.
Emma determined to jump from the balcony of their ten-story apartment. Just prior to carrying out her plan, she cried out in anger and desperation to the God she did not know, “If you really exist, somehow tell me!”
As she made her way down a short set of stairs that led out to the balcony, on the steps lay a Bible! She picked it up and hurried back to her room. The Bible fell open to these words:
“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever.” (Psalm 23)
As Emma read this Psalm, she was overwhelmed by God’s reality AND LOVE. Not long afterwards, she placed her trust in the Lord Jesus who said, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.” (John 10:11)
She became one of His “sheep.”
Emma no longer wants to kill herself. She is a joyful wife and mother of five. Emma’s passion in life is to help others find what she has found in Christ: THE ABUNDANT LOVE OF GOD.
When I sent this story to Emma to check it for accuracy, she e-mailed it back to me, adding the words in caps about the love of God. In the midst of potentially overwhelming pressures and challenges faced by women around the world, Emma finds her daily strength and joy in the Lord’s amazing love and care.
Used by permission. Taken from ONE GOD ONE MESSAGE by P.D. Bramsen