Jamaica Gleaner

God is a promise keeper, lawyer testifies

“God is not man that he should lie ...” – Numbers 23:19

- Shanna Kaye Monteih Gleaner Writer familyandr­eligion@gleanerjm.com familyandr­eligion@gleanerjm.com

ATTORNEY-AT-LAW SHANIKA Sutton recently boldly professed that the God she serves is undoubtedl­y a God of His Word who possess the ability to turn around any situation, regardless of how gloomy it seems at first.

Recalling how hard she worked to earn her credential­s, Sutton has been using her story as a testimony of God’s faithfulne­ss.

She completed her law degree at the University of Technology, and in order to further her pursuit of becoming a lawyer, she had to sit an entrance test to be admitted to law school, a test she failed three times.

CONFUSED, EMBARRASSE­D

“When I sat the exam for the first time and wasn’t successful, I was confused and embarrasse­d, but God had another plan. He led me into teaching part-time that year.

“The second time I didn’t make it, I was distraught. It was the first time in my life I felt such grief and disappoint­ment. I thought God forgot me even after serving Him and living by His commandmen­ts. However, God sent me a word that brought me comfort. He said, ‘Next year is your time!’ He even told me the date, which was September 9, 2014,” she recalled, also noting that further confirmati­on came through a prophetess, who prophesied of her imminent success as a lawyer.

STILL FAILED

But despite this and the direct word she believed she got from the Lord, Sutton told Family and Religion that she again failed the exam the following year. “I tried to understand with my natural eyes, but it didn’t make sense. Why would God make me a promise then allow me to fail? I even considered the possibilit­y of being accepted if there were more spaces, however, I was competing with hundreds of people. “The grades were released in August, so I thought maybe September 9, I would hear something like He showed me before, however, the 9th passed! Of course, I reminded God that He told me in His word that He cannot lie. Little did I know I did get accepted on the 9th. I just didn’t know until the 11th!” she revealed. Sutton, who successful­ly completed law school in 2016, is now an attorney-atlaw and a college lecturer. “I only wanted to practise law, but through my disappoint­ment, God led me into teaching, and with years of experience as a teacher, God provided a job for me as a lecturer. “I learnt from this experience that God will do exactly what He said He will do even if the situation does not match up to the promise. I failed a highly competitiv­e exam, but my God is a promise keeper and He uses our disappoint­ments for our good and for His glory,” she testified.

 ??  ?? SHANIKA SUTTON
SHANIKA SUTTON

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