SUNDAY WORSHIP SERVICE 林美均
I come from a non-Christian family. My mother, who was very superstitious and strong-willed, was against Christianity. When I was 18, I very much desired to pursue a degree in the UK. As my family could not afford to send me, the only way was to obtain a scholarship. Knowing that my chances were slim, I prayed desperately to a ‘god’, without a clue as to who or what ‘he’ was. Unbelievably, my prayer was answered!
By divine appointment, my university was situated next to Holy Trinity Brompton, the church that developed the Alpha Course. I frequently walked past the publicity banner for Alpha. Feeling a tugging in my heart and remembering my answered prayer, I thought I should find out more about “the questions of life”. I became a believer at the end of the course and with hindsight, I can see that God’s divine hand was upon my life.
In the same year, by faith, I brought my mum to an evangelistic event. She was so convicted by the Holy Spirit that she renounced all her idols and bondages. To this day, she is eager and bold in sharing her powerful testimony. In 1998, my entire family of five - parents, siblings and I, were baptised in COR. What seems impossible is always possible with our omnipotent God! COR was welcoming and warm friendships ensured that we were not lost in the crowd.
The Christian walk is not all smooth-sailing. I faced a low point when my beloved father was diagnosed with cancer in 2012. It was hard to pray for God’s will when I only wanted a certain outcome. I am grateful to our COR family, especially Rev Daniel Tong, the visitation team, my parents’ and my cell group, who supported us through that difficult time.
My cell group (J3:16) has been meeting for over a decade and our children have grown up together. Despite our diverse backgrounds, we get along very well and love going on church camps and holidays together. This harmony and love is honest because we hold firm to our common faith in Christ. His teachings keep us humble towards one another and we hope our children will learn how to live as believers within the COR community by our example.
我来自于一个非信主的家庭。因着我妈妈的迷信与执着，她不允许我们的家庭与基督教有任何的瓜葛。在我十八岁那年，我非常渴望能到英国深造，考取大学文凭，尤其是我那时的男朋友也会一同去。因为家里的经济能力有限，无法支持我出国留学，我唯一的希望便是申请奖学金出国。 我知道机会非常渺茫。虽然那时我还搞不清楚神是谁，但在极度迫切的情况下，我开始虔诚地向神祷告。难以置信的，我的祷告竟然蒙了应允， 我甚至得到了超乎我所求的！
借着上帝奇妙的安排，我在英国就读的大学就位于Holy Trinity Brompton (HTB)教会的旁边。‘Alpha Course’正是这所教会所创办的。每当我经过这所教堂时，挂在外面有关‘Alpha Course’的宣传布条总是引起我的注意。因着心里的感动和我之前蒙应允的祷告，我决定参加‘Alpha Course’去多了解关乎生命的种种问题。在课程结束后，我接受了耶稣成为我的救主，成了基督。回想起来，我人生的每一个阶段，从让我有自由去寻求并认识祂，到带领我来到这所很棒的教会， 让我和我现在的丈夫能在这里一起学习建立信心，都有上帝奇妙的作为在其中。倘若我还继续留在新加坡，以我的家庭背景，这一切绝不可能发生！
在同一年，我回到新加坡后，凭着信心带我母亲去参加了一个布道会。那时，在圣灵强烈的运行及感动下，我母亲毅然弃绝之前所拜的所有偶像和捆绑。至今，她仍兴奋并勇敢地向人分享她那大有能力的见证。在1998年，我一家五口，包括父母，兄弟姐妹和我，一起在复活堂受洗。在人所不能的在神凡事都能！每当我思想上帝的恩典时，我的心不禁充满无限的赞叹与感恩！
信主的过程并不是一帆风顺。2012那年，我深爱的父亲被诊断患上了食道癌，令我陷入了人生的最低谷。当我一心只想着得到某个结果时，祈求上帝的旨意成全变得非常困难。我很感激复活堂这个大家庭，尤其是Rev Daniel Tong，探访事工，我父母及我自己的小家，在这段艰难的期间，给予我们的支持。
我的小家 (J3:16)的聚会， 在过去的十年里都一直进行着，而我们的孩子也都在一起成长。即使我们来自不同的背景，我们相处得非常融洽，甚至喜欢一起参加教会的生活营和团体旅行。这份和谐与爱是很真实的，因为我们大家都持守着在基督里的共同信仰。我们在基督里同样的信念及祂的教导让我们学习彼此谦卑。我们也希望能成为孩子们的榜样，让他们学习如何在复活堂这个大家庭里活出基督的样式。
Serene Lim has attended the Sunday Worship Service for 20 years and during that time, she added 4 children to her family. She serves as a teacher in the Children’s Ministry.
This article first appeared in Issue 20, December 2019 CHORUS Magazine.
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