Grief Into Joy

“...you will grieve, but your grief will become joy.” John 16:20

Yesterday, I woke up to the sad but joyous news of Ravi Zacharias’ passing. He was to me, a “lion of God”, and I will forever be grateful for all I have learned from him. I say joyous news, because he is for certain with Jesus now. After all the years of excruciating pain from his back which he did not take painkillers for, preferring to keep his mind sharp, he is free of all pain and suffering. I enjoyed his talks which were always peppered with stories, poignant, funny, memorable stories. 

I listen to the Youtube recordings of Ravi Zacharias a lot. It is fascinating how he makes God’s message riveting and I have no doubt many have been convinced to investigate Christianity because of him and his ministry. He liked to come to the Philippines because he had many friends here, and loved our macapuno icecream. He was here just a few months ago.

One of Ravi’s most compelling stories is what happened to Hien Pham, his interpreter when he spoke to the troops in Vietnam back when he was 25 years old. After Vietnam fell, Hien was accused of working for the CIA and incarcerated. He was forbidden to read anything but writings of Marx and Engels in Vietnamese or French. He was indoctrinated that there is no God day after day. One night he decided, “Tomorrow I am going to live as if there is no God.”

The next day he was assigned to clean the dirty, smelly latrines. He covered his mouth and nose as he mopped up the toilets. As he was about to throw out one bucket, he noticed a piece of paper in English. He surreptitiously cleaned it and put it in his pocket. That night when all was quiet, he took it out and read it. It was a page from Romans 8: “And we know that all things work together for good for them that love God.” No verse was more relevant for him that day and he fell to his knees. The next day he volunteered to clean the latrines again. Each day he would find a page from the Bible, wash it and read it eagerly at night for his devotions. It turns out the Commander had been given a Bible and he would tear the pages out and use it as toilet paper!

When Hien was eventually released, he and 53 other people decided to build a boat and escape. A few days before they were about to leave, four fully armed Viet Cong arrived and interrogated him. He insisted he had no plans of escaping. When the four left, he asked forgiveness from God for the lie and promised to tell the truth if they came again. 

A few hours before he and his companions were to board the boat, the four Vietcong came and asked him again, “You’re trying to escape, aren’t you?” “Yes,” Hien Pham admitted, “Are you going to kill me?” “No,” they whispered, “we want to go with you!”

So all fifty-eight escapees set out. In the high seas, there was a storm and the boat almost capsized but the four Vietcong were the best mariners they could have wanted and because of them, they all safely reached Thailand. 

When Hien Pham visited Ravi Zacharias in his home, Hien said during dinner, “You know you always think you’re going to manage it your own way. It never works. The most important thing is to find intimacy with God, and He will guide you and take you through safely in your journey as you walk hand and hand with Him. When everything comes together, you have wonder, truth, love, and security. That’s what gives life meaning, and you’ll find only God is big enough to do that for you.” #ThankyouRavi