Good Friday Testimonies

Transformed by the Holy Spirit

Miranda Hew

I was born on 20 September 1993. As my mother is a Christian, I was brought up with a relatively strong Christian background. Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths”, has been ingrained in my heart due to my mother’s constant reminder. Throughout my childhood, I have been frequently exposed to the gospel of Christ and taught that Jesus is my Lord and Saviour. At the tender age of six, although I could not reconcile the doctrine of the Holy Trinity, I accepted the fact that Jesus is God.

I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Saviour in 2003. I was led to say the sinner’s prayer and confess that Jesus is the only Saviour in a Pentecostal church. However, I felt that throughout my years as a Christian, while I tried very hard at times to do good out of the love for God, it was not His power behind it.

It was not until 2011, in the midst of my A levels preparation, that I was brought to True Life Bible-Presbyterian  Church (TLBPC). I was touched by the Holy Spirit during the services and when I went home, I surrendered my all to Him and prayed for Him to take control of every aspect of my life. I felt that this was the turning point whereby I became a true Christian. My life, heart and my innermost being was completely transformed by the Holy Spirit. I never had greater zeal and love for the Lord and His Word. Thereafter, the Holy Spirit started convicting me and teaching me through every service I attended. I started to look forward to the Sabbath day and relished every moment I spent reading His Word.

I thank God for His endless mercy and grace to choose a sinner like me to be His child. Throughout my life, I could see God’s providence and grace upon me. Looking back, I now truly understand what it means to say that when we are unfaithful, God remains faithful. Although I have strayed and backslidden many times, God has been gracious and merciful unto me, chastising me and calling me to return to Him time and again. I could also see God’s providence especially when I strayed. Being a lazy and disobedient child in primary school, I did badly for my PSLE. However, by the grace of God, I managed to enter Tanjong Katong Girls’ School (TKGS) via Direct School Admission. Throughout my years in TKGS, God took care of me and displayed His unending love for me by giving me good friends and even good O levels results. I am extremely thankful for God’s grace upon me. While I have always wanted to be baptised, I did not have a chance to in my previous church. However, I thank God that in His perfect timing, I was led to TLPBC and now have a chance to be baptised. I thank God also for placing Michelle Tee in my life, for if it were not for her, I would not have been brought to TLBPC.

It is my desire to follow the footsteps of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, to be baptised as an act  of  obedience and to publicly acknowledge Jesus to be my Saviour. I pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide and teach me as I take this step of faith.

Taking This Step of Faith

Galen Hew

I must have recited the sinner’s prayer a few times, without receiving baptism. Why was I not taught to be baptised despite having been a believer since the age of eight? Why did I not attend Bible study lessons? In stark contrast to my sister (Miranda), I find my Christian upbringing a vague, weak and passing one, except for remembering more pronounced verses such as John 3:16. Yet, I do not remonstrate, but am thankful that my sister has brought me to the True Life Bible-Presbyterian Church.

My mother was a member of a church located near our house. It organised weekly cell group meetings in our house. I was taught stories such as David and Goliath, Solomon and the baby conundrum and so on. Yet I did not have a thorough understanding of the Lord and I knew that. It frustrates me greatly to spend time in church without being educated and analysing the scriptures. And then I went with my mother to a small Pentecostal church where people spoke in tongues and cried during worship. I found it bewildering. Later, a close friend invited me to a Chinese Presbyterian church. But I was stumbled by the conduct of the teens in that church. Thus I stopped attending church and life seemed to coast along just fine.

Despite departing from the Lord several times (not reading the Bible or going to church), I have always firmly believed in His existence, His blessings for me. It is now my desire to follow the footsteps of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, to be baptised as an act of obedience and to publicly acknowledge Jesus to be my Saviour. I pray that the Holy Spirit will continue to guide and teach me as I take this step of faith.

To Be Deeply Rooted in His Word

Kelly Wong

I come from a non-Christian family and used to follow the beliefs of my parents who are ancestor-worshippers with Taoist beliefs.

I first heard the gospel when I was studying in Perth in the year 1999. I was invited to attend the Sunday service of the Bible Presbyterian Church of Western Australia. Out of curiosity, I accepted the invitation. I attended the service preached by Dr S H Tow. I came to know that Jesus is the Son of God and that He came to die for us and only His blood can wash away our sins. I bought my first KJV Bible and continued to search His Word and attended Sunday services. I eventually accepted Jesus Christ as my personal Lord and Saviour in the year 2000.

I am very thankful to the Lord for leading me to FEBC’s 16^th Pilgrimage to the Holy Land last year. God has revealed Himself to me even more in His infallible Word during the pilgrimage. He has also led me to this fundamental Bible-believing church where I could be deeply rooted in His Word. Hence, without hesitation and in obedience to the Holy Spirit’s prompting, I have decided to be baptised.

As I looked back over the years, I thank the Lord for being with me, helping and guiding me in everything I do.

May our gracious God continue to lead me to learn more of His precious Word and to serve Him faithfully. All praise and glory to His Name!

Pointed to Christ

R Lalitha

I was born an Indian and lived as a Hindu with strong beliefs in Hinduism. There came a day when I turned 18 that a tragedy happened when I lost my dearest mummy. I went through depression, sorrows and many other hurdles and obstacles. During the mourning period, Aunty Devi pointed me to Jesus Christ. I was moved to believe in Jesus Christ and after I accepted Him as my Saviour, I have seen miracles in my life. My character now as a teenager is better than what I used to be, and thank God I did well for my GCE N Level exams. Praise the Lord. “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.” (1 John 5:1)

Learned to Trust and Obey

Sophia Cheow

I was born to a Christian family and attended Sunday school from young. I confessed and accepted our Lord Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour in Primary school. However, I had constantly questioned myself if I were truly saved. I felt that I, a terrible sinner, wasn’t worthy of the grace and mercy given to me.

While growing up, the worldly life tired me with studies and other activities, and my laziness would often prevent me from being consistent in my daily walk with God. I would use being tired as an excuse to skip Quiet Time and not read the Bible for many days in a row. The bad and terrible habit greatly obstructed my spiritual growth.

It was only last year, while preparing for my O level examinations that I truly started being more consistent in doing my Quiet Time. Through that, I learned much that I had missed these past many years. Many thanks to the Lord God Almighty that I learned to trust and obey Him, that I just had to put in my hard work and He will guide me.

I’ve learned many lessons regarding how I should live my daily life. I’ve also learned that those who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ—who died and rose again for our sins—have been justified and saved by the grace of God. All we have to do is to accept the Jesus Christ as our Lord and Saviour.