May the Lord Find Me Faithful
Rebecca Chan
My earliest memory of knowing Christ was at the age of five when the seed of the Gospel was planted in me by my cousin. She had a beautiful set of children Bible storybooks and she took the opportunity to tell me the story of Jesus Christ who died so that man might live. I did not fully understand the whole story at that time, but since then, I always had the notion of a heavenly Father who watches over me as I grew up.
By God’s loving grace, my father, an atheist, sent me to Anglican High School for my secondary school education. In December 1986, the Gospel was once again preached at the school camp and I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour. On 25 December of the same year, I was baptised at the All Saints Church. Almost immediately, I faced strong persecution from my father who forbade me to go to church on Sundays. I attended some fellowship groups on Saturdays, but without strong grounding in the Christian faith, I gradually stopped attending all church events after a while.
My schooling days were, regrettably, godless. Although I never departed from the knowledge of my salvation, my life can hardly be called a Christian life. Once in a while a friend would ask me to go to church and I would, but only for a few months. Being pulled by worldly temptations, my teenage years were spent going after friendships, entertainments and even vices, in between the pursuit of exams and certifications. Upon my return from my overseas studies in 1997, I had the opportunity to join Sharon Bible- Presbyterian Church under Rev Peter Chua. It was in Sharon that I came to know the B-P Church and its teachings. I am very sure I had disappointed the Lord Jesus once again, when I left the church after one year, being pulled back to my worldly pursuits.
Looking back at those years since 1998, no words could describe the life I led, how worldly, sinful and utterly degenerating. The pursuit of a career by working hard with long hours occupied practically all my time and my thoughts. I dedicated all that I had to my job and the money and prestige that came with climbing the corporate ladder. What I thought was a successful life was the expensive lifestyle that came with corporate recognition – worldly pursuit of luxuries and pleasures. This was the focus of 10 years of my life. There were brief moments of remorse, when things in my life went wrong – lost promotions, failed relationships etc. Only then would I find a church, any church – Methodist, Presbyterian – to satisfy my need for a higher power to solve all my problems. However, none lasted. I went quickly back to my worldly pursuits the minute the pain of such losses passed, with no further thoughts of Christ or church.
I truly thank God for not giving up on me altogether after 10 years. In early 2009, after being hit by another of my life’s problems, I went in search for a church yet again. The still small voice of God in my heart finally moved me to seek my faith and learn more about this God whom I have believed all my life. I knew about the Far Eastern Bible College (FEBC) during my days at Sharon B-P Church. God gave me the strong desire to attend FEBC classes to learn more about Him. It was then that I found information on True Life B-P Church, and since then I have not looked back. The various fellowship groups, Bible studies, FEBC night classes have firmly anchored me to God. I thank the Lord for the faithful teachings that I have received which have confirmed my belief that True Life B-P Church is indeed the church where I can grow in the Lord.
I thank God for finally opening my eyes to the sinful past and led me out of such darkness. The changes God made in me are so significant that it would be unthinkable to return to my old ways. The worldly desires that I had in the past have gradually faded away and are replaced by a strong desire to study God’s Word. I finally see God’s will for me so clearly and can confidently declare that I am truly dead to the world and born again in Christ. All that I desire now is to walk closely with the Lord every minute of my life, to learn all that I can and serve Him wherever He wants me to. May the Lord find me faithful all the days of my life, always giving Him all the glory and praise.
Now I Live a Meaningful Life
Mary Ann dela Vega
I am Mary Ann dela Vega. I was born and grew up in a Catholic family. Every Sunday I went to church but not heartily or willingly.
My life was like a happy-go-lucky kind of life. My parents did not bother about what I was doing. They never asked about my school life or whether I had problems. So I told myself, “Be free and enjoy life.”
When I was in secondary school, things changed. My parents quarreled every day and every night I cried because there was nothing I could do. I was still young to understand what was happening and I asked God why all these things were happening to me. I wondered why I did not have the right to be happy. I reached a point when I blamed the day I was born.
One day I decided to run away from home so I could find peace for myself. I stayed at my teacher’s place. I helped to do the housework so that I could continue in my studies. My parents did not bother about me because they were busy themselves. As I stayed at my teacher’s place, I kept on thinking about my younger brother and sister because they were still too young to take care of themselves. After six months, I decided to go home. Still things did not change, and I just focused on my studies and looked after my brother and sister.
In my final year of secondary school, I planned to find a job to support my family’s needs. I grew up lacking everything—we used the old things over and over again especially school things. After my graduation, I told my father that I wanted to go to Manila to find a job so I could help the family. At first my father said no but I was very persistent and insisted on going whether he agreed to it or not. So I asked my friend to find me a job in Manila and thank God I found a good job as a saleslady of electrical products. At that time, I did not go to church at all. I was busy earning money. I worked there for two years. Then I went home because my mother got sick. I chose to look after her and take care of her. After she became well, I went to work again. At that time, I just did part-time work as a cleaner. At least I had an income. At the same time I was there for my mother.
One day my neighbour invited me to attend a fellowship meeting. At first I was undecided whether to attend or not because I thought it could be a waste of time. I needed to work and my time was very precious, but since it was on Sunday I said okay. I would go and have a look first. Only then did I realise that I never spent time with God. I just did things according to my own ability and strength and made my own decisions. The pastor’s sermon was about how important it was to have God in our life. I started to cry and felt sorry for all the years I had spent without God. I realised that without Him I could do nothing. God is the One who knows me and what is best for me.
I went to church every Sunday, and I slowly learned about God. I was given the Bible and I read it. But I was still distracted. I was too weak and lacked faith. I backslided again. I was back in my old ways. I continued to work and support my sister until she finished college and now she is a teacher.
I got married and have two sons. After I gave birth to my second son I decided to apply for work in Singapore. I knew that Singapore was quite safe for domestic workers. My first two years with my previous employers were very hard because they were of a different race and culture but I was hoping to adjust. I kept observing the lifestyle here in Singapore and realised that worldly things did not bring real or true happiness. I see that this was part of God’s plan for me. God enlightened me to realise that worldly things are only temporal. All along my desire was to have money to buy whatever I wanted. I never placed any importance to my spiritual life. I was very hungry for God’s presence, and God answered all my questions.
One night I had a quiet time for myself and I prayed to God. I asked God for forgiveness and I gave thanks to Him because He guided me back into His kingdom. After finishing my contract, I went back home. I applied again to work in Singapore and prayed to God to give me a Christian employer so I could go to church every Sunday to refresh myself and to serve Him. I was happy to know that my employers are Christians. I started attending True Life Bible-Presbyterian Church with my employers and I thanked them for allowing me to attend the Filipina Bible Study so that I could learn God’s Word and know about God’s plans for me and how to follow His path.
My one year here in True Life has been a very happy one. I learned so much about God and it changed me completely. God changed my point of view, and my priorities in life. Now I live a meaningful life as a parent and wife and a servant of God. God is the centre of my family because He is our strong foundation. God is my strength and my refuge. I hope those who read my testimony will find that life is meaningful only if they make God the centre of their life. Thank God that He used True Life to bring me back to where I belong. Now I am attending Catechism Class. I plan to get baptised to become a Christian and a servant of God.
The Lord Was Always with Me
Rosaleen Cheong
I was born a sinner into a staunch Buddhist family. I came to know the Lord through a classmate during my primary education. To attend Sunday church services, I told lies. My brother and I were beaten and warned by our parents when we were discovered. Although I backslided for more than 15 years, the Lord is always in my mind. The Lord forgave my parents and they were even baptised earlier than me. The Lord was gracious to them. On my part, I tried attending church services again, but I found no peace in the churches that I attended but the Lord was always with me.
When I met my husband, Kok Hong, he was a non-believer. I wanted to be a Christian, but I also wanted to convert him and be baptised together with him. When we shifted to Chancery Court, Life Church was nearby. I was overwhelmed because we could go to Life Church and prayed that the day would come when my husband and I could be baptised there.
I found peace when I entered the church. The late Pastor Tow preached from the pulpit and his sermon touched us. We were not active in church but we attended Sunday services regularly. My Lord answered my prayer when my husband told me one day that he desired baptism. Imagine the joy when Pastor Tow baptised both of us. What a blessed and happy day that was for us.
We believe that the Bible is 100% true and that late Pastor Tow was right in starting True Life B-P Church. Whatever happens, we are proud to be members of True Life B-P Church.
Baptism, Reaffirmation of Faith & Transfer of Membership, Easter Sunrise Service, 4 April 2010
