purposeFrom the earliest days of childhood memory, I have felt a desire to preach the word of God. Born into a home that had the tremendous influence of a mother who was relentless in instilling spiritual values and demonstrating a self-sacrificing commitment to parenting, it was not hard to have had such a spiritual pull in one’s heart. The Adventist-Christian heritage of my family was very pervasive and though at times it appeared a little bit too overbearing, as is the reaction of most children toward discipline, I will forever be indebted to the heritage that has moulded my character and as in the words of Paul: “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12

This tremendous urge to be a mouthpiece for God has been affirmed by the many opportunities and providential activities of God in my life. From the days of childhood to my current full-time occupation as an ordained minister of the gospel. I will not detail every incident nor am I able to list each of them as the cause of space and time, but I can truly declare that in all of these things, I can truly say that I was preserved for a purpose. Of late the song “Lord in the Morning” (written by Isaac Watts in 1719) has become a reminder of God’s protective care for those who seek to do His will. The song which is based on Psalm 5 in the last stanza says, “The men that love and fear thy name shall see their hopes fulfilled; The mighty God will compass them, with favor as a shield.” This song was a popular number in the early morning devotions that my mother lead out in our very small living room. While God’s blessings fall on the “just and on the unjust”, I have discovered that there is an even greater blessing that attends those who endeavor to align their lives with his purpose. According to the Psalm 1:1-3: “Blessed [is] the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight [is] in the law of the LORD; and in his law doth he meditates day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.”

It is God’s grace that preserves us and it is for a wise purpose. My mother, Veevet Kelly-Peterkin (deceased) and my father, Michael Chambers (also deceased), were never married partners and they were the parents of six of us. That familial set-up created a dysfunctionality that I can again affirm that it was God’s grace that preserved us. Many times, because my father lived in a nearby community we would often visit his house on Sundays and sometimes after school. On the odd occasion, my siblings and I might sleep over; that, for me was a challenge—I loved to be around my mother. However, when I went to visit him I would meet other children from that area and we would have all the fun that children of that day would enjoy. I also was exposed to other adults who were from different walks of life, I saw and heard things that I cannot repeat but, what was a bit disappointing as I reflect, was that my father hardly sought to shield us from these influences—I have forgiven him of this failure. Some of these men, especially, would smoke and curse unabated—though a sign in his tailor shop said “No Loafers”. I can recall on occasions watching them making a marijuana ‘spliff’ from scratch, so much so, I could repeat that process with great accuracy with dried banana leaves or any other dried leaf that came to hand.

There was an occasion that I consider a crossroad moment. I watched one smoker pulling his blunt to the butt and then discarding it. As he walked away, the curious mind inside my head nudged me to go and have a try—“No one would see!”, I thought.  So I walked over, took up the left-over stick of weed and gave a ‘draw’. That moment has lived with me. I felt a sharp pain, as if someone had used something to hit me in the side of my head, that led me to drop it and run for my life. No human eyes may have been watching, but I believe that hit was a “gentle nudge”, by the hand of God. Given my father’s disposition to smoke, I am convinced that had I pursued that path and felt it an ok thing to try, I may have become addicted to the habit.

Along with the exposure to smoking, I was tempted with alcohol also. My father, on more than one occasion, allowed me to drink ‘white rum’, without water or any additive to dilute it, and beer. These occasions, I recount not because I am angry with him still, but I am convinced that the Satan, was using his lack of Christian discipline as a means of destroying us. Almost like a mini-display of the great cosmic controversy, between good and evil, there was one force, our Christian mother with her Godly discipline warring against my father, who lacked the stringency that we as children needed to develop as God-fearing adults. In all of this tug-o-war, I can see the hand of God providentially swooping down and restraining the powers of darkness. The protection here that God offered was from slavery to the addiction of these harmful substances and habits.

It is important that I commit a paragraph to my view of my father. For many years I struggle with the many failures that I saw in him and for the things that I was looking for him as a son. I struggled with anger and bitterness, though I never allowed it to resent him. We still had a cordial relationship and I believe that it was a remarkable demonstration of forgiveness. I grew into loving him in spite of who he was. He was one who was very tender-hearted and kind to even the children around, he never hit us, our mother took care of that and he was always proud of our achievements; like most Jamaican men or men in general, he would talk about us with his friends in the rum bar or where ever we met him. Up to the time of his death (four months prior to writing this February 2017) we shared the relationship of good friends. I would call him, he would call me and the conversation would reflect on what is happening in his life and mine; the conversations were filled with laughter—he had a terse sense of humor. I can truly say I miss him, but I am hopeful of seeing him in the resurrection.

From high exposure to harmful drugs and an addictive lifestyle to close shaves with death is the story of my life. When I was about the age or 4-years-old, I was involved in a serious accident. The bus that was transporting a group of church members on a beach trip collided, from the reports I heard, with a car and flipped. My recollection of the events brings to mind the fuzzy thoughts of men’s feet walking beside the bus, as it sat on its top. When everyone else was evacuated from the vehicle, I was the only one left in the overhead carriage area of the bus; I cried until I was removed. Many persons were severely injured, but thankfully none were fatally wounded.

Another occasion that brought me close to death was when, I was in third form of high school, Cornwall College. I was sitting on a wall, enjoying my lunch. Now, the side where I was sitting was low enough for me to rest my feet as I ate. Without noticing my mischievous friends sneaking up, they caught me by surprise and tipped me over the other side of the wall, which was roughly twelve-foot high. When I fell, I really did not feel anything that would have caused any concern to my health. I, however, jokingly rolled over my eyes and so my friends ran, after thinking that I was going to die. Well, you may ask, how is that life-threatening? Well, two years later I had, a Jacob’s-wrestling experience with God. It was the night I believe that the Lord called me to ministry. In an interesting episode of prayer, asking God what path my life should take and reading the book “The Desire of Ages” by Ellen G. White. In the late hours of the night, I felt a great impression on my heart to answer the call to preach God’s word. Almost with distinct tones, the Lord asked me “Have I not preserved you? When you almost died from the fall at school? There were angels that brought you down and broke the fall. When the bus met the accident and you were spared.” These were some of the thoughts that I captured and the many instances that the Lord brought to my attention that proved his protective care throughout my short life. Then the question is asked, “will you accept my call to live and preach Christ and Him crucified.” I am not claiming to have had some vision or some mystical experience but I can only ascribe to God the kind of deep reflection and spiritual encounter that I had that night.

Today, I preach and serve because I know that God has called me to do so. The book of James 1:5 became very near to me at this stage of my life, it says: “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all [men] liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” I was at a stage of my life when I was performing below my capacity, academically, and it was taking a toll on my self-worth and I really felt ‘dunce’. This is probably the first time I would have expressed it in such candid terms. However, I began to spend more time with the Bible and I called on the influence of my brother, Damian to encourage my new found motivation. You see, though I was a member of the church, I never really had a deep spiritual connection with God. I came to realize that church membership meant more than my name on the records, but a relationship with God was what He expects of me. I then discover books such as “Steps to Christ”, written by Ellen G. White and “Alone With God”, by Matilda Andross. These books along with the Bible provided a foundation for my faith that served to anchor my faith in the truth that: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10

Well, you could say the rest is history, my story continues to unfold and I will preach the word of God to people far and near and it is my intention to allow God’s power and presence in my life to guide me as I move forward. For someone reading this and might feel a sense of purposelessness, your story may not unfold like mine, however, God promised that he has great plans for your life and you just have to trust and obey him. If you are not where you want to be right now, remember God is not just looking at where you are coming from, but where he wants you to be. You are alive because you were preserved– for a purpose.