My name is Jun Jamosmos, and I was born and raised up in the Philippines from a middle class family. We were always taught the value of hard work and self-discipline. I was 23 when I got engaged to a girl older than me, for four long years and was in love with her thinking that I would end up with her for the rest of my life. One of our good friends invited us to a worship service one Sunday at a non-denominational evangelical church. In the course of attending that church, my girlfriend and I learned about God's love, His forgiveness for our sins and His plan for us with the promise of eternal life through the great gift of His Son Jesus. It was not hard to understand and embrace the concept of salvation, forgiveness and holiness coming from a religious background. However, as we read the Bible all the more, my fiance and I were both convicted that our relationship was not pleasing to the God we knew through reading the Scriptures. We both came to a defining moment of ending our relationship and breaking off the engagement because God TOLD US SO. It was crystal clear in our hearts and minds our relationship cannot continue on the way it was and the decision to sever the relationship for this and no other reason seemed illogical, irrational and insane.

And so in May, 1990, my fiance of four years and I broke off our engagement, I was totally devastated and broken from that breakup, I cried for days on end, even at my workplace. It was something I knew I just had to believe that God has a plan for us and that His perfect plan was apart from my fiance's life. It was coming to a crossroad where I knew exactly where God wanted me to turn, and it was in September 1990 that I chose to move on with my life and not look back at the pain of being apart from a loved one for no aparrent reason (in the world's point of view) - our breakup and cutting off the engagement just like that didnt make sense at all.
God told me to move on. I made a covenant with God that the next girl I will date will be the girl I am going to marry. Life as a single person enjoying and following the ways of the Lord was one of the best things in my life. In retrospect, I would never have exchanged the life of single blessedness as I experienced the fullness of life in His light, wisdom and understanding. God healed the wounds of the past over the years, and for five solid years I was going out with my single friends, unattached and very much a single Christian bachelor. I had the little promise I made to God about my future wife tucked away in my heart.

In March 1995, I was slated to migrate to the United States leaving my life in the Philippines and permanently moving to California. As soon as my plane took off for San Francisco, I knew in my heart that I was going to marry someone from the church I was attending in Manila. I felt like I just left my "wife" at that time since I was setting my sights on my new life in the US. That was a weird moment but again, I knew in my heart that was what God wanted me to do. Now the big questions were - WHO? HOW? Was it supposed to be one of my friends from whence I came from and whom I just left behind? How is this marriage going to take place since I was halfway through the world on a plane to a place I have never been before, to a future I was not certain of. To the things that I do not see, it is hard to trust, it is IMPOSSIBLE to trust something you havent even seen or tested.

The Bible says in Matthew 19:26 that with GOD all things are possible. Knowing that and believing that was a turning point for my life (actually the second turning point after giving my life to Christ).

I had to talk to God about His plan, I needed to know the details, and so I did talk to God about His plan for me by coming to Him in simple prayers and casual conversations with the Father - whom I know I can trust and rely on to do everything that He says. It was a faith stretching exercise to go through the first three months I was in the US. I told God to impress in my heart THAT girl He has planned for me, and that I be impressed in HER heart as well. I believed it has to be a two way street of a deal. And so I made plans to go back to the Philippines for a few months to finish off some work projects I left pending when I migrated and...to propose to my future wife. ON OUR FIRST DATE - whoever she may be, however it will be going to happen, and whenever that will happen in the course of my short visit back home.

A month before I was slated to go back to Manila, God has a put a FACE, and a NAME to the woman I was going to marry. I prayed hard for that girl ever since she was impressed in my heart. I prayed for "feelings" for her since my initial reaction was "what Lord, you mean HER?". As it turned out, SHE was actually a very good friend of mine whom I have worked with in Sunday School from years back. We were worlds apart in terms of social status, since she comes from an upper class elite family. But she was the ONE God wanted me to marry.

God paved the way for my feelings to come one day shortly before I left for Manila. He made sure as well that my future wife was prepared for my coming and our future union. Beyond what I have imagined, God was working in her life as well to prepare for me and for the time our first date came.

I flew back to Manila, bold as a warrior and armed with the confidence only God can give. The rest is history, so to speak, but I will say believing in the God who knew me inside out and trusting Him for what I did not see - paid off big time.

     I went back to my homeland,

     I secured a date with my girl,

     I proposed on our FIRST date,

     and we got engaged a couple of months after.

I came back to the United States a different person, an engaged bachelor ready to face the world with the most beautiful girl I have set my eyes on - ELA or Adjing as I call her fondly. Her name Ela by the way means "Beautiful".

We got married in 1997 here in Stockton, CA and are blessed with a beautiful daughter and a handsome son. Adjing has been a source of blessing and joy for me and she is the one has really encouraged me to pursue my interest in painting. I am an artist (aside from being an accountant during the day) working with oils and acrylics. As for the Lord, I have dedicated my gift and talent of painting to HIM who makes all things possible.

Today, I paint for God's glory and honor, for what He has given me, I give it back to Him. I do commission work whenever I can, display my artworks at a local gallery, and paint LIVE on stage on special events. I have done commision work in the Central valley of California. Several churches have invited me to appear on stage to paint LIVE to the music band or a pastor's sermon.

I will not forget how God has worked in my life and will continue to bring glory to Him by always lifting up my family as a great blessing He has given me each day. I love God, I love my beautiful wife, I love my kids, and I am walking each day by FAITH , not by SIGHT.