Testimony #12

Testimony #12

Today is the twelfth testimony in our Hokkien Harvest series. Pastor James Lim interviews Yang Shi-Qiang, who also shares his story in Hokkien. Pastor James shares that he has known Yang Shr-Jang for a period of time and seen God’s grace in his life. Let’s listen to hear Yang Shi-Qiang’s story of how his life since his youth has changed. Below is also an English summary of Yang Shi-Qiang’s testimony.

Yang Shi-Qiang’s testimony

Thank the Lord Jesus. Good day to all of you! When I was young, I lived in a village. It was not a bad place to grow up because my grandfather was the village leader and a Chinese medicine physician and was considered a very important person. Because of that I felt that I didn’t have anything to worry about. In our villages there are many gangsters and I gradually began to mingle with them. I was also influenced by TV and movies and at that time I began to learn martial arts, like boxing. So I started to fight and my interest increased to the point that I wanted to become a hero. There’s a saying that if you don’t wind your watch it won’t work. Or regarding fighting fish, if you don’t put it in the water, you won’t know which one will win. So if gangsters don’t work hard and show up for the fight, how can they win and become famous?

So since my leader thought I had potential, I wanted to work hard and show him my skills. So from that point forward I joined the gang. We became like fighting cocks, always looking for an opportunity to fight someone. We felt very proud to be part of the gang. I was very proud to have so many followers, and wasn’t afraid of anyone, not even my parents. But these glory days would not last. As expected, one day I was caught by the police. The first time I was caught I tried to talk my way out of it with the police, but it didn’t work. I wanted to run, but then decided not to. When I was in jail, I was given a chance to see my father. He was very ill and as thin as a stick. It didn’t look like he had long to live. However, one word from my father touched my heart. He said, “Quiang if you really did it, then you go your way and I will go my way”. After hearing this word I didn’t think about running away anymore. I told my father that I would go my way, and for him to go his way in peace. So I began my life in prison.

I didn’t have a very good experience in prison, because the first day I stepped inside I realized that there were gangs. They have the underworld in prison too. Thank God that in prison we had the opportunity to attend Sunday services. Initially I attended the worship service with wrong motives. This was a place where I could talk to people and exchange things since we were all in different cells. Initially when I joined I did not pay attention to the worship songs or the pastor’s preaching because I was talking to people. However, slowly I began to notice the Christian men and women were full of love, and they always came to greet us with smiling faces. They would come, shake our hands and comfort us. Initially I felt that they were just taking pity on me, and I didn’t need this.

In the beginning I refused to shake hands with them. I felt that I didn’t need their love, for me to love myself was enough. However, slowly I began to notice that their handshakes and gestures were sincere and I began to change my impression of them.

In the beginning I would sit at the back of the service, but gradually I moved to the front. Actually, I was interested in joining the worship team because there were many benefits. So from the first day that I tried out for the worship team until now, I never quit going. God had already chosen me.

For anyone who is released from prison, whether you are a Christian or not, life is very hard unless you have someone outside who is willing to receive you. If not, people are afraid of you. Actually, after I was released from prison I decided that I would continue my work as long as I didn’t hurt anyone. But my friend told me “Your hair is dry, don’t get it wet again. Jesus is holding on to you tightly, so don’t worry about anything else.” In other words, don’t go back to that old way of life.

After I was released someone approached me and wanted to give me 20 million dollars to become a loan shark. It is a very lucrative job. However, for a criminal like me, we don’t want to owe anyone a favor especially in the area of finances. The person who approached me was not part of my gang, and I considered him an outsider and would not accept the offer. Thinking back I know that was Jesus who made the decision for me. I mean who doesn’t want 20 million dollars.

After I was released from prison, a group of Christian brothers followed up on me and invited me to attend Sunday worship services regularly with them. However, actually my faith wasn’t very strong. My mouth said I believe in Jesus, but my heart didn’t really totally believe in him. I even preferred snorkeling more than attending worship. But one day when I was snorkeling I saw a very colorful fish that was beautiful. God spoke into my heart and said that this is one of my beautiful creations, but you still do not believe in me? So I told the Lord, “Please forgive me. You are creator God.” From that moment on my life began to change. So my pastor encouraged me to get involved in ministry and service. After serving the Lord like this, I whole heartedly followed Jesus. No more going snorkeling. I committed myself to serving through the church and begin to see God bless me and my family abundantly. God is my grace and my refuge.

A word from Pastor Lim:

Dear friends, through this testimony we see that the most important thing in life is to know Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Just as in Mr. Yang’s story, because he did not know Jesus, he encountered many different kinds of problems in life. However, through his faith in Jesus Christ he experienced change in his behavior, thinking and habits in a huge way. You too can experience change in your life as well. Because of Jesus’ love, we all have this same opportunity to have a new beginning. I encourage you to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior.

No matter how bad you have been in your past or whatever you have done, Jesus’ love is the same and never changes. If you are willing to believe in Christ, then follow me as I lead you in prayer:

Lord Jesus, I thank you. You love me. You are willing to save me. I know I do not have a perfect life. I invite you to come into my life and cleanse me with your precious blood. Please come into my life and be my Savior. Only you are the true Savior and Lord. From today forward I know that I will be transformed. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

May God bless you.

Hokkien testimony #11

Testimony #11

Today is the eleventh testimony in our Hokkien Harvest series. Pastor James Lim interviews Li Siau-Leng, who also shares her story in Hokkien. Pastor James shares that Li Siau-Leng loves to sing. Throughout her life singing has been something that is very important.  Let’s listen toseee  Li Siau-Leng’s  story and how her life has changed. Below is also an English summary of Li Siau-Leng’s story.

Li Siau-Leng’s testimony

I have always loved to sing. Formerly I sang contemporary or popular songs, but now I love to sing Christian songs. There are many different kinds of songs, and they definitely affect our lives and speak to us in different ways.

When I was growing up, my parents were not believers, and I married very young. Consequently, since we had children at a young age, we were also pretty young when our children grew up which left us with a lot of free time. So my husband and I loved to go and sing karaoke together. My husband especially enjoyed singing Hokkien songs. However, through this venue, my husband also was drawn to another woman. I did notice and was jealous, but I was also very sad and hurt. I would go to local idols to ask for help and worship in many different temples, but I never received any answers or peace. I ran from one idol to the next, but I received no help to resolve my problem.  

During this time, my friend saw how miserable I was and told me that I need to trust in the Lord because he could change my situation. Well, I thought this sounded good, but of course I knew nothing about Jesus. However, the first time that I heard a Hokkien Christian song, I was very moved. The Lord’s love entered my heart. After hearing the Hokkien songs I just kept crying. These were tears of joy. I was so happy. So the next week when my friend invited me to go back to church, I was ready to return and hear more of this kind of music.  

When I returned to the church and heard these Hokkien songs, I admired the people as they sang. God knew the desires of my heart. I would also go on Friday to listen to them practice and sing along with them, and I was so happy to be involved with them. So from that point I wanted to be involved in singing with them and giving praise to the Lord. As Pastor Lim reminds us, some people who are not Christians may just think that singing these Hokkien songs is just an opportunity to entertain and show off. However, because they are not Christians they do not really understand.

I joined a small group at church and this gave me an opportunity to understand what it meant to believe in Christ as my Savior and Lord. Originally I had worshiped so many gods; however, now I knew that Jesus is the one true God and I wanted to praise and glorify his name. I did not live with my mother-in-law, but family worship tablet was at our house. However, I told my husband that I would not worship idols anymore. He understood that I was a Christian and refused to worship other gods. I knew that I had found the one true God. Pastor Lim clarifies about the family tablets and the relationship that we have with our ancestors. We revere and respect our ancestors, but we do not worship them. As Christians we use a different kind of way to show our respect to our ancestors. We want to be filial to our ancestors and show our reverence and appreciation for all that they have done for us.

My small group met in my house and they told me that I should not be worshiping these idols. Actually, my mother-in-law was also invited to attend. For her to hear that I accepted Jesus was very difficult, but God was at work and the decision was made to remove the idols the next day. Amazing. After experiencing this I wanted to share the Gospel, because I knew that Jesus is the one true God. I prayed and shared my faith with all of my family both children and extended family members. I wanted them all to accept Christ. They were willing to follow the Lord. This is not because of anything that I did or said, but it was the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Lord has really blessed. I have seen how he has changed our son and brought other blessings into our lives. Since accepting Christ, things have just progressed more smoothly in our lives. The truth is that I gave my burdens to the Lord, and I also led my husband to the Lord. I forgave him of the relationship that he had with this woman, and he accepted Christ. As Pastor Lim mentioned, for a wife to forgive a woman of this kind of offense is not easy. Early on I would not have done this, but because of God’s love I was set free and was willing to forgive and share my desire for both of them my husband and this woman, to come to Christ.

Another amazing thing is that I also was able to lead my uncle to Christ. This was not easy. He was all over the place – a real mess, and I invited him to join us at church, but he would not come. However, I did not give up and he eventually came and accepted Christ. It makes me so happy to see how many souls have been saved. I also shared the gospel with our workers, and they too came to accept Christ. This truly has been the desire of my heart.

A word from Pastor Lim:

Dear friends, thank you for listening to Li Siau-Leng’s story. In her life she has definitely passed through some storms. When her husband went after another woman, this was definitely a challenging time for her. However, when she went to church she experienced real change and had the courage to face her husband and share the gospel with him. It is evident that our Lord is a very special Lord. He loves us and doesn’t hold our past against us. We may have dirty and difficult pasts; however, our Lord is willing to forgive us of these past wrongs and love us. Just like our sister in this testimony, her life was changed and she is so excited to share with others the love of God. And seeing all of these people come to Christ is definitely proof that Jesus is alive and is the true God. So today are you willing to believe in this one true God? How can you believe and accept him? Just invite him to come into your heart.

At this time, I would like to give you the opportunity to accept Christ to be your Lord and Savior. If you are willing to open your heart and receive Christ like Siau-Leng, He can change your life and resolve your family problems. Are you willing? If you are willing, then follow me in prayer.

All you must do is to express a simple faith in Jesus. If you sincerely pray after me, you will see that your life will change. Follow me as I lead you in prayer:

Lord Jesus, I thank you because you love me. I am a sinner, and I ask you to forgive me of my sin. Use your precious blood to cleanse me of my sin. Lord Jesus I invite you to come into my heart and be my Lord and Savior. I invite you into my life to take away my worry, my hurt and all the bad things that have been in my past. I believe that from today forward you will give me a new life. I ask you to give me peace, joy and eternal hope. And because I trust in you, I believe that my life will experience a great change. Thank you Jesus. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

May God bless you.

Hokkien testimony #10

Hokkien testimony #10

Today is the tenth testimony in our Hokkien Harvest series. Pastor James Lim interviews Chhoa Kim-Eng, who shares her story in Hokkien. Pastor James shares that Chhoa Kim-Eng has a special story. She married when she was very young, so she also became a grandmother at a young age. People may look at her life and feel that she is a very blessed person; however, as she shares her story you will realize that she has faced a lot of storms and challenges throughout her life. Below is an English summary of Chhoa Kim-Eng’s story.

Chhoa Kim-Eng’s testimony

From my earliest childhood I faced some real challenges. When I was only 7 or 8 years old my parents divorced, so I had no father at my side as I grew up. It is so difficult for a mother in this situation to earn money and care for the family as well. As far as my education, I only studied through the first year of middle school and did not continue. I really didn’t have the heart to study because of the needs of my family. So when I married, I was only 16 years old.

As far as my family life, there wasn’t a lot of difference and it was basically the same as before. My husband was the kind of guy who didn’t want to work. So I made the decision to leave him. At the time I had two children. I also thought about how I would survive. In our society if we have needs, we can borrow from friends or family and not necessarily pay it back. This is not uncommon in our culture. However, I didn’t want my children to know that I was doing underhanded things to get money. I also gambled big time involving a lot of money. It was an addiction for me, and I couldn’t stop this bad habit. I was a prisoner inside of this addiction.

Every Saturday and Sunday I was gambling. It didn’t matter whether I won or lost, I continued to gamble. I owed people money, and sometimes people owed me money, but this was my life that was all wrapped up in my gambling addiction. During this time my sister accepted Christ. I was really surprised because originally she was very fervent about her faith in local idols. She traveled all around to different temples to worship these local gods, so I was taken back to hear that she left them to follow Jesus.

My sister came to visit me and told me that Christ had completely changed her life. My two older sisters also were Christians as well and they were praying for me. After hearing my sister share and seeing the transformation in her life, I was very curious. She and her family all experienced a huge change in their lives. Since I had huge financial problems, I thought I should check it out. Maybe there was something to it. I prayed to God and told him that I owed a huge amount of money, and if he was indeed real, then I hoped that Jesus would open a way for me to solve my financial issues.

Well, in just a few days after my prayer, my older sister reached out and wanted to help me. I told her about my debts and she said that she would pay them off, but I had to stop gambling. God answered my prayer, and as I result I started going to church.

The first time I attended a worship service I listened to the music and was so touched that I began to cry. The Hokkien music really moved me, and I accepted Jesus as my Savior. The pastor gave an invitation for those who wanted to accept Jesus to come to the front, and I did. My mother, husband and other family members encouraged me to do that. So there were 7 in our family who made decisions to accept Jesus and were baptized. This is God’s grace. Jesus changed my life and took away the bad habits that imprisoned me.  

Pastor Lim asked Chhoa Kim-Eng how she overcame her gambling addiction.

You must believe me when I say that there were many people who tried to tempt me to get back into gambling. However, I told them that I was following Jesus now, and did not gamble anymore. I also was honest with my children and let them know what I had done in the past. God has indeed blessed my family with children and grandchildren. It was my heart’s desire for my entire family to come to Christ.

On another occasion I ran into a friend at a coffee shop. Of course they wanted to know what I was doing, so I shared that I was a Christian now and invited them to go to church with me. They asked if it would be okay to invite a few people to attend as well. As a result my friend accepted Christ and was baptized. That made me so happy. So as Pastor Lim said, as we share about Jesus, this Gospel not only changes our family but our friends as well. As we share about Jesus we can see how more and more people around us are saved.

Before I close I would just like to encourage those who are involved in gambling. You must stop. Gambling destroys so many things including your family.  Jesus indeed has the power to overcome gambling addictions.

A word from Pastor Lim:

Dear friends, thank you for listening to Chhoa Kim-Eng’s story. Through her testimony you can see that we worship a great God.  He can solve the challenges in our life. There are many different kinds of problems in the lives of people. However, as we trust Jesus, He can transform these bad things in our lives into something beautiful. Impossible circumstances become possible. So we offer this same invitation to you. If you trust in Jesus, He can also deal with your problems. Just look at Chhoa Kim-Eng’s story. She owed a huge amount of money and saw no way out, BUT GOD changed everything. So today no matter whether you have physical problems, financial challenges or family problems, if you are willing to trust in Jesus, He is willing to help you.

All you must do is to express a simple faith in Jesus. If you sincerely pray after me, you will see that your life will change. Follow me as I lead you in prayer:

Lord Jesus, I thank you because you are Lord and Savior. You saved me from sin. You died on the cross for me. You overcame sin, death and the grave. So with boldness we can come before you admitting that we are sinners. Lord Jesus, please take away and forgive all of my sin. From today forward I place all of my sin and bad habits into your hands. I want you to be my Savior and Lord and to enter the deepest parts of my life. Lord Jesus I believe that you have already come into my life. From today forward I want to experience change in my life and a resolution to my problems . Thank you. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.               

May the Lord bless you.

Hokkien testimony #9

Testimony #9

Today is the ninth testimony in our Hokkien Harvest series. This is a special testimony as Pastor James Lim interviews Li Hok-Khi, who shares her story in Hokkien. Pastor James reminds us that God indeed wants to bless each of us and give us abundant life. Today Pastor Lim begins the interview with Li Hok-Khi by talking about her name. Her parents named her this name because they were expressing the feeling of good fortune and blessing and later in her life, this would reflect the thought that God also wants to bless us.

Li Hok-Khi’s testimony

As I look back over my life, the most memorable things for me happened after I married. I married in the 71^st year and the following year we started our family. By the 86^th year, our children had caused real havoc with our finances. I wanted to punish our daughter, and I attempted to strike her, but my husband prevented me from doing that and pushed me away. However, as a result my back was badly injured. It was serious, and I didn’t know what to do. I actually ran to local gods for answers. But no matter what I tried, nothing worked. Finally I went to have an x-ray and it revealed that I did have a problem that required immediate surgery. The doctor told me that there was only a 50/50 chance that the surgery would be successful.

Blessed People

At that time I had a good friend who was a Christian. He shared the Gospel with me, and also invited me to go to church with him. However, I wouldn’t dare do that. I was the oldest daughter-in-law in the family. I worshiped local gods and was a vegetarian. My mother-in-law would definitely not approve, and my husband would feel the same way. So there were a lot of reasons that made it seem impossible for me to attend church.

However, this Christian brother was so loving and kind, and he really made an effort to take care of me and keep me in his prayers. Finally, I was desperate and felt that I must accept the suggestion from my doctor and follow through with the surgery. Three weeks following surgery I was able to return home in a wheelchair. I also had to keep my waist and torso wrapped and covered. It required a lot of work.

In these circumstances I really couldn’t do much of anything. I couldn’t walk and even the effort to use the bathroom was not convenient. I was also in a lot of pain. I continued to get thinner and even more discouraged. I also diligently continued to worship local gods, but to no avail. Nothing worked.

My mother-in-law continued to give advice to my husband as to where he could go to find help through the local gods. However, I received no help at all. I was really down and hopeless, and I even began to think about death. The truth is that I wanted to die to get away from all of this, but was afraid of death. Praise the Lord that I was afraid, so that my life was spared. However, during this most miserable time, my Christian friend continued to check on me and encourage me.

He never gave up, and finally I agreed to go with him to church. However, the morning that he was to come and pick me up, he arrived late. I was angry and lost my temper. I told him that I didn’t want to go, but he continued to encourage me telling me that it would be just two hours. I began to think about sitting for two hours. How would I do that? It would be so painful. Typically, after I was up for about 30 months I would want to lie down. But he would not take no for an answer and told me that if I started to hurt, then he would take me home.

When we arrived at the church building, I had such a joyful feeling. The Christian brothers and sisters were very loving and kind, and I was led to the front of the room. I loved the singing, especially when they sang Amazing Grace. How beautiful. The pastor and a number of people prayed for me. Immediately I began to have a warm feeling that filled my body. I knew that this Jesus is indeed real.

After I returned home I knew that I was not the same.  Something had happened to me. My husband noticed that for several nights I didn’t call for him to help me go to the bathroom.  I told him that I was healed. He actually thought that I must have sought out a doctor to get acupuncture or something to heal me.  I just told him that I had not gone to the doctor for help; however, I didn’t dare tell him that I had gone to church. So he asked our daughter, and she told him that our friend had taken me to church , and this changed everything. He was actually willing for us to go to church if this was the kind of help I would receive.

So as Pastor Lim reminded me, the Gospel not only changed my life, it also changed my husband as well. I believed, and then my husband accepted Christ along with our two children. The entire family came to Christ. When my mother-in-law found out, she just howled. I actually have three mother-in-laws and the other two really love me. But the truth is that when all of them saw that Jesus healed me, there was nothing that they could say. It was the truth. Even the older mother-in-law also accepted Christ.

Pastor Lim reminds us that the Bible says if we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, that we and our family will be saved.

A word from Pastor Lim:

Dear friends, thank you for listening to Li Hok-Khi’s story. Our Jesus is indeed the real Lord and God. So when we believe in Him, we experience a change in our life. In Jesus we find a tremendous unique gift. If we are dealing with illness, we can go to him and he has mercy on us and can give healing.  If we have faith in Jesus, we will know that He is real. If we just open our heart and receive him as our personal Savior, He will save us and never abandon us. He never stops loving us. This salvation is offered to all of us. Just as in today’s story, when Li Hok-Khi received Christ, eventually her entire family accepted Jesus. Through this story we also see the loving kindness of this Christian brother who continued to encourage and exhort Li Hok-Khi and her family. He didn’t give up, and never missed an opportunity to show love to Li Hok-Khi. Because he knew that Jesus is real, he was passionate to share his faith with others.

So today if someone shares Christ with you, I would encourage you to check it out and see what God has for you. It’s very simple to believe in Christ, just ask him to come into your heart. If you would like to experience this kind of change in your life, then follow me in prayer. I believe that Jesus will change you just like he changed Li Hok-Khi and her family. By asking Jesus into your life, you will see how God transforms your life.

Follow me sentence by sentence as I lead you in prayer.

Lord Jesus, I thank you because you are my Savior. Even though I may be ill, weak and have problems in my life, you want to save and help me. At this moment, I ask you to come into my heart and wash away my sin. Please heal me and be my Lord. I believe in you and receive you as my Savior. I believe that I will be set free and receive your healing. My life will have hope. Thank you and praise your name Jesus. May all glory go to You. In Jesus name we pray, Amen.

May God bless you.