BY REV. JEREMY PONNIAH
“But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” Isaiah 64:8
As I look back at how God has moved in my life, I see how He is such a loving and patient potter. He gently shapes and moulds us for His purposes and patiently addresses our many doubts and fears.
My call to full-time ministry began when I had just embarked on a career in the government sector. At a church camp in 1987, I received a prophetic message from the guest speaker that God was calling me to be like the “sons of Zadok”. I must confess that at that time, I had no idea who the “sons of Zadok” were! And so, I did a study of the passages where they are mentioned, which included Ezekiel 44:15: “But the Levitical priests, the sons of Zadok, who kept the charge of my sanctuary when the people of Israel went astray from me, shall come near to me to minister to me.” It was a definitive call to serve God full-time! But I could not, with my human eyes, see that possibility and so I just continued in the path I had already embarked on, which was a steady job in government.
Then in 1990, I went through a very difficult crisis in my life and when I was at my lowest point, I cried out to God saying, “If you will bring me through this situation, I will serve you full-time.” And God miraculously rescued me. But in the subsequent years, I did not give urgency to the commitment I had made. I justified to myself that I was already serving the Lord as a cell leader, church council leader, etc.
It took many more years of God’s patient moulding to prepare me and my family. The call to be like the “sons of Zadok” was something God regularly reminded my heart even as I got married to Yee Peng and was blessed with 2 children. He also prepared Yee Peng over the years and she began to recognize that the calling was not just for me but for the entire family to embrace. My mind also regularly recalled the commitment I had made to serve the Lord full-time.
In 2007, as I was praying, the Lord spoke clearly to me through Ecclesiastes 5:4: “When you make a vow to God, do not delay in fulfilling it. He has no pleasure in fools; fulfil your vow.” That was a rebuke from the Lord that spoke directly to my heart.
And so, I made plans to quit my job and in 2008, I became a full-time student at the Trinity Theological College. After completing my theological studies, I joined the staff team in my home church at All Saints’ as an Associate Pastor and was subsequently ordained as a Priest in 2016.
Since joining COR in Feb 2018, my wife and I have been immersed in the rich COR culture and have been warmly embraced. We rejoice to be in this community that God has tremendously blessed with many gifts and a depth of spirituality.
All praise to the Potter who continues to shape and mould us for His glory!
Rev. Jeremy is married to Yee Peng and they have two children – Caleb (17) and Jana (14). He enjoys sports and regularly plays badminton and soccer.
This article first appeared in Issue 18, July 2018 CHORUS Magazine.