PASTor Oliver's Journey
“Kung kelan madilim ang buhay mo, doon mo makikita ang tunay na liwanag.”
-Pastor Oliver
This is the realization of Pastor Oliver Ranuda had after all the things that happened in the past. His story which he claims to be somewhat like that of Job in the bible.
“Tatay ko’y babaero, magsasabong… mga kamag-anak ko ay marami akong tiyuhin na naka patay, kung baga yun yung kultura ng pamilya namin, maglalasing, mambabae… lumaki ako sa ganoong kultura,” Pastor Oliver narrated.
He grew up in this environment and it was hard not to follow his father’s footsteps. He became a womanizer, a gambler, and a drunkard rolled in one that his children were afraid of.
Because of him, they fell into poverty. One by one everything they had slowly disappeared—his job, their money, their furniture, everything.
While looking for money just so he could feed his family, he came across a book— a bible. He opened it and the first thing he read was the “Book of Job”— a story similar to his wherein Job was tested by God and took away everything from him, his wealth, his children, and even got sick.
“Nawalan lang ako ng trabaho, hindi naman ako nawalan ng anak, hindi naman ako namatayan ng asawa, hindi naman ako—wala naman akong sakit, pero bakit parang ako’y bagsak na bagsak,” he said.
That is when it hit him, one story of the bible made him change his view for once. He thought maybe he was just being tested by God so he decided to get up and give himself another chance to redeem himself. He accepted the work abroad for the sake of his family, bringing the bible with him.
In abroad, he met born agains and got to explore the world of God more. He was there silently watching from a far while people there were preaching like there was no tomorrow. He attended all the masses and later on just found himself standing in front of the people, sharing bible verses and his experiences and became one of the leaders of the bible study.
He decided to come back to the Philippines and the first thing he did was preach and spread the word of God. He made his home a chapel and was later known as Pastor Oliver.
Pastor Oliver is now preaching with his family and is sharing his experiences with anyone who hasn’t seen the light of God. He has gone through many problems in his past but that won’t stop him for his past does not define his present. (Nyssa De Guzman)
