Pastor Donnie was jailed in the Al Malaz Prison of Saudi Arabia for eighteen months on the charges of being a preacher. He was jailed by mistake, a case of mistaken identity, Saudi authorities were looking for a murderer but since it was a mistaken identity he was freed of those mistaken charges, Saudi authorities confiscated a photograph during a raid which showed him serving Communion to Christian believers, fearing that the authorities would come back he decided to remove items that could be used as evidence against him he took his Bible, cassette tapes, videos, and Christian pamphlets and placed them in safe keeping in the house of a close friend. He kept the photo albums that had pictures of his wife and children. Then the raid happened 5 Saudi authorities in civillian clothing entered his apartment handcuffed him, he was kicked, slap, spat on his face and strangled, and he nearly passed out, he was manhandled and was brought to the Sulaimaniah Police Station where he was interrogated, though no evidence was found against him , he was charged with having a fake passport, when he told the officer that he was sponsored by Saudi Airlines he was charged again of another crime which is murder but he denied having involvement of any murder since he didn't do such a thing he received slaps and then they accused him of being a priest and denied this charge again. Then he was charged with preaching Jesus as God. He did not deny that he preached the Gospel, but he denied that he was a priest (When I later had time to reflect on this experience, I realized that the religious police were correct when they accused me of being a priest. In I Peter 2:9 we're told that "We are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation." Indeed, I am a priest by the Biblical definition.-Pastor Donnie Lama). With no concrete evidence against him he was released but the problem was not over, he was arrested again on the accusation of being a priest and detained him, he was sent to an isolation cell, beaten up tortured and accused him of crimes he did not commit, he felt disappointed, bitter and disappointed, no friends could visit himbut despite of all he suffered, he would recall psalms 91"Whosoever goes to the Lord for safety, whoever remains under the protection of the Almighty can say to Him, 'You are my Defender and Protector. You are my God; in You I trust.' He will keep you safe from all hidden dangers and from all deadly diseases. He will cover you with His wings; you will be safe in His care; His faithfulness will protect and defend you. You need not fear any dangers at night or sudden attacks during the day or the plagues that strike in the dark or the evils that kill in daylight." The temptation in jail is great, he was tempted and was offered immediate freedom if he renounced his faith and embraced Islam and he will also be paid, enticing as being released from jail but he did not do it since this would mean turning against his Christian faith. He spent 18 months of his sentence with 70 lashes, he would also remember Stephen a persecuted Christian who was stoned and yet he did not pray that the Lord would save him. Instead he prayed, "Lord, do not hold their sins against them." He had compassion on the people who stoned him to death until his last breath. So Stephen followed in the example of our Lord Jesus Christ, Donnie remembered Stephen when he was being whipped, the whip was 1 ½ meters long with a heavy lead attached to the tip. Pastor Donnie told us the story of his family that he left in the Philippines, his 6 years old son asked his mom when will his dad come back, Donnie's wife told her son to pray to God as she closed the door the child went and prayed to God to see his dad again not knowing that Donnie was already released in prison, at that point of his story Pastor Donnie was weeping and so are we who were listening to his testimony were deeply touched, he was about to comeback, but he is suffering Hypertension and was having difficulty in breathing, he begged the doctor to permit him to go and the doctor asked if there was a nurse on board the airplane and there were and assigned the nurse to look after him because of this he was transferred to the business class and so was the nurse, he had no money with him In the middle of the flight a passenger from economy class approached him and handed him an envelope. It contained money that were collected by passengers during the flight. He was speechless as tears welled up in his eyes and flowed. He thanked God that in spite of the terrible tests he had endured as God showed His love and compassion through His children even in the flight. The flight attendant insisted on taking him to his residence. His family was there awaiting for his arrival. When his wife saw him approaching the house she rushed to him and wrapped her arms around him and both cry. It was the day before Easter, but to Pastor Donnie, it was already Easter when Jesus was resurrected and He rendered powerless the gates of hell. It was a tearful reunion, and yet this shows victory over death. Pastor Donnie showed the move of faith to God to touch others that there is Hope and that God's love is forever with us.
The picture above was taken at Parkleen Carwash with me and Pastor Donnie Lama with a Reader's Digest Magazine with his story entitled "The Courage of Donnie Lama".