He who is able to calm any storm

He who is able to calm any storm

This Friday, we were privileged at FGB Chapter Jaya One to have brother Richard Ling share his testimony with us.

Come 2011, Richard Ling has been a Christian for 40 years now. He has 2 sons, and will be a grandfather next month. In his Christian life, he has had many ups and downs. He has fallen into the world, and endured suffering at different stages of his life, with and without Christ. However, one great truth brother Richard found out is that when you cry out to God, He will always come back. He is truly an ever loving God who answers prayers. He can completely transform a terrible situation. Man tends to doubt God, but God is faithful.

Being an orphan from an age of 9, brother Richard moved on to the contracting line. At that time, he was half right with God and there were issues of corruption in the industry which bothered him. Brother Richard prayed and God opened the doors for him to go into a different business which lost money at first, but turned around later and became profitable.

However, a terrible incident happened in his factory when there was a salmonella issue which caused a complete halt in production for several months. This resulted in massive losses and caused a great storm in his life. Looking back, brother Richard encourages us that in a storm, we have to rely on Jesus, who is able to calm any storm.

Fighting hard to find a solution to his financial crisis, brother Richard at first got the support of some of his siblings but they pulled out at the last minute, leaving him in a lurch. Still, he did not blame, but chose to trust God. Then miraculously, as he continued to pray and cry out to God, a major business partner came in and bought into his business, injecting critical cash flow. Throughout his struggles, God gave brother Richard wisdom. It is so important not to dwell on the past. Sometimes, God’s work can seem illogical to man. His financials showed yearly losses, and his finance manager said his business was going down. In a crucial business meeting, he decided to go alone with God. The investors chose to see potential, and looked forward rather than at the financial figures. It was like God was putting words in their mouth. This new business partner continued to support him, and he recovered everything and received much more.

His wife, who was a missionary in China was once led to pray that God would restore the years that the locusts had eaten, and indeed God did, and so much more. When God opens a door, nobody can close it.

Even in family, God answered prayer. His son had drifted and was even considering marrying a partner of a different religion. The parents prayed, and their son came back to the truth, and later even went to Bible college. We need to trust God always as He always has His reasons.

Lately, brother Richard underwent an operation where he lost his voice. He was saddened and he loved to sing praises to God, so he prayed to God for recovery. When he next saw the doctor, he was shocked at how much brother Richard had recovered. The doctor had expected him to require another operation but it was no longer needed. Brother Ling could have wallowed in self-pity but he believed everything has a purpose. This was another opportunity for brother Ling to glorify God. Throughout our lives, it is so important for us to be still and know that He is God.