NBA首位美籍华裔球员林书豪(Jeremy Lin)自去年7月份与金州战士队(Golden State Warriors)签约后,人气急升,赢得美国华裔和台湾NBA球迷的爱戴。在将近一年的NBA生涯中,他经历过成败得失、荣耀羞辱,最终靠着信仰克服了黑暗的幽谷,重新得力勇往直前,并真正地领悟到人生的真理:要为天国的奖赏而活。
At the age of 47, just because she “wanted to do something for the faith” and made the album after 17 years, Zhou Huimin (Vivian), known as the “head of the jade girl”, produced her first gospel album “HIM” before Christmas in 2014, “HIM” stands for “God”. And on New Year’s Day in 2015, the cover story of the January issue of “Angel Heart” was published “Grace is Waiting for a Person – Zhou Huimin”. The magazine details his experience of faith, and the full grace of God awaits everyone.
As a Hong Kong female singer and actress, Zhou Huimin grew up in a Christian family and participated in campus fellowship, but in the ups and downs of life, she brushed shoulders with faith many times until she truly received this grace and returned to the arms of her Heavenly Father in 2009.
After the faith, Zhou Huimin’s life was completely renewed and changed, she was enthusiastic about her faith, and even made a comeback, returning to the entertainment industry, not only releasing her first gospel album “HIM”, singing for God, but also joining the new movie “Waiting for a Person’s Coffee” in 2014, and the theme song “Coffee is Waiting for a Person” is also a song of the gospel disc.
On January 1, 2015, “Angel Heart” published the cover story of the January issue, entitled “Grace is waiting for a person – Zhou Huimin”, in which she explained the ups and downs of her life and how to meet the wonderful experience of grace, which is tortuous and wonderful.
Spend your childhood in worry
In the magazine, Zhou Huimin mentioned her childhood, which was supposed to be the happiest and carefree period, but Vivian was the opposite, she was a girl with a lot of worries when she was a child. Since she was a child, she would worry about her mother’s health and practical problems in life and spent her childhood in anxiety.
When her father died of a heart attack, Vivian had not yet been born, so she never saw her father and the whole family was supported by her mother alone. In the washing and polishing of the cruel reality, Zhou’s mother became serious, not smiling, stubborn, and played the role of the head of the family, while Vivian’s grandmother played the role of a mother, not only very gentle but also laughed with her, so the optimistic part of her personality was influenced by her grandmother.
However, when Vivian was less than 10 years old, her mother fell ill and needed surgery urgently, which could be life-threatening, which made her very panicked, during the long wait for her mother’s surgery, she thought about many things: Will she never see her mother again after the operation? Grandma is old, if her mother has any strengths and weaknesses, who will take care of herself? and so on.
Fortunately, the surgery was a success and her mother gradually recovered, but Vivian still worries about her health from time to time. She knows that her mother works hard, so as not to worry about her mother anymore, she will automatically do her homework consciously after class, go to bed very early at night, and gradually develop a stubborn character behind self-discipline.
Because there is no man in the family, when she grows up, the responsibility of supporting the family gradually falls on the seemingly weak Vivian, but she is very stubborn in her bones. Because she doesn’t want anything wrong, people like her tend to be more anxious than the average person.
Since she was a child in a Christian school, Vivian has always participated in school fellowship, but she does not know much about the faith and does not take it too seriously, because of the difficulties she will encounter in life, she gradually develops the habit of prayer, although she is not sure whether God is listening, but she has no one to talk to, so she has to express her heart in prayer.
First time going to church: Heavenly Father, I’m home
Vivian, who has always been accustomed to relying on herself, went out to work in her teens after graduation and felt that she could not be bullied and must be self-reliant, so she was in a state of “fighting” for a long time. In a testimony she wrote on Christmas Day 2013, she said that relying on others or religion is an act of weakness.
Until one day in 2009, a casual conversation with a friend turned her life around. “That day, I had a casual conversation with a friend who had no religious beliefs, and he said that many religions focus on personal cultivation, but those self-imposed standards are indicators that are difficult for mortals to achieve. Christianity emphasizes ‘salvation by faith,’ but I have a hard time accepting this argument because this kind of free salvation is completely contrary to my usual beliefs.
But when I think deeper, if what the Bible says is true, then no matter how good my cultivation is, because I have not accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior, I am still a sinner; even if what the Bible says is not true, I have no loss after reading the Bible, and my cultivation will only improve, not regress. I shouldn’t judge what I don’t understand, but I am only qualified to judge when I read the whole Bible and go back to church to hear the pastors preach. ”
It was this mindset of learning a little more that suddenly swelled up in Vivian’s heart, wanting to understand this belief that she had previously held biases. At the same time, she also told her husband Ni Zhen about this idea and received support.
Vivian’s first visit to church was at the Easter service in 2009, when she was so excited that she struggled to suppress her tears. She turned to God in her heart and said, “Father, I’m home!
Witness to faith through music
When she got to know God again, Vivian knew that her singing gift came from God, so she was willing to sing for God, hoping to interpret God’s faith through her music. When she conceived the gospel album, the words of the Bible became her inspiration, and she knew that the gospel disc was made for “God”, so the album was titled “HIM”, which means God. In this album, each song conveys a different theme: judgment, gender relations, life and death, and the heart of a child.
This was the first time Vivian had written a song for God, and she wanted to write about the title “Ribs” from the very beginning. “God created Adam first, saying that it was not good for the man to live alone, and decided to create a spouse to help him, and I realized that this woman was created to fulfill Adam, and in other passages of the Bible, the husband is described as the head of the wife, so I understand that a wife needs to be wise to submit to her husband’s leadership. And how did God make the woman? He put Adam to sleep and took out a rib to create a woman, and Adam woke up and said, “This woman is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh, so husbands should love their wives as they love their bodies.” As I studied this passage in detail, I gained a deeper understanding of the roles of men and women and how partners treat each other. ”
In addition, she composed a song “A Love Like This”, which counted the grace in her life. On January 8, 2015, she wrote on Weibo, “After writing the song “A Love Like This” last year, my intuition is very compatible with the English lyrics, writing about grace and faith to change my life, and the music part is conceived to tie Him, fresh and simple arrangement so that the vocal’s feelings can be highlighted. ”
Vivian put a lot of effort into making this gospel disc. She mentioned the creative team in a video posted on Weibo on January 9, admitting that although the creative team is not all Christians, the requirement for choosing a lyricist is that she must be familiar with the Bible, because ordinary unbelievers may feel that Christianity, like other religions, leads people to goodness. But in fact, many Christian values are not universal values, so as the creative supervisor of the whole album, she must make sure that the lyrics are correct and do not misinterpret the Christian faith. To this end, Vivian spent a lot of time writing the concepts behind each track, and communicating with the lyricists.
It took a whole year from the preparation to the production of the gospel album, and Vivian admits that she has experienced a lot of waiting and a lot of struggle. On January 9, 2015, “Zhou Huimin Idea Studio” Weibo posted a video of Genesis TV’s interview with Love Earth Observatory “Zhou Huimin Sings for HIM”, in which Vivian talked about her process of recording the album. “I want each song to be produced by a different person, to be able to record in different studios, so that I can learn to let go of the old way of recording over the years and open myself up to work with the team instead of being the controller. I have experienced a lot of struggles in the process, because I am a very demanding person, and I have to let go of myself and accept other people’s opinions humbly in teamwork, so when there is a break in the studio, I will calm down and pray, and give everything to God, because I don’t want to be a disc that makes a singer, this is a disc that makes someone else. ‘HIM’, or God, is the protagonist of this disc. ”
She also talked about how to face criticism after public belief because she is an artist, “Since I have faith, I have found that I don’t worry too much about people’s criticism of me, and I won’t pursue it according to world values or universal values, because I won’t measure it according to this ruler.” I don’t use my own standards to ask others, which is a big change for me. ”
At the same time, she also mentioned that one of the songs in the gospel album, “Stone Rain”, is precisely about the judgment of the world, inspired by a well-known biblical story: the story of a woman who committed adultery and was stoned by people. “A lot of people say I’m an artist, will I be hypocritical? Some people will say that an artist is a hypocritical person. Sometimes I think about this story, I think people who believe in the Lord understand very well that everyone is full of a lot of sin, and if we are all full of a lot of sin, what right do we have to comment on others? So in the title of each song, you can bring out a lot of thinking. Vivian added.
In the final video, it says, “May Vivian be able to use her gifts to do more beautiful testimonies.” I believe that this is also the expectation and blessing that God and every Christian expect from her.
Sun Yat-sen has both a strong, holy, and great side, as well as the limited and fragile side of our ordinary human nature. Throughout his bumpy and colorful life, he has not only been zealous in serving the Lord, but also has been tested by temptations, low tides in faith, and has experienced successes and countless difficult tests, and even the cruel blows of many failures, and has borne all kinds of heavy and painful crosses. From a historical and practical point of view, as well as from a religious point of view, the Christianity he pursued had a profound impact on his spiritual life, revolutionary pursuits, and ideological concepts, and has given a beautiful testimony to the faith he pursued.
After being baptized in Hong Kong in his early years, Dr. Sun Yat-sen devoted himself to church ministry and spared no effort to spread the Gospel of Christ to his fellow citizens. While in secret custody in London by the Qing embassy in Britain, he prayed fervently to the Lord and relied on Him with all his heart. He once recalled to his friend the prayer life in prison and the change in grace he received: “My brother is in prison, and he will die. At this time, the only way to do this is to repent and pray earnestly. For six or seven days, he prayed day and night, and the more he prayed, the more earnest he became. On the seventh day, there was a sudden comfort in my heart, and I was completely carefree, and unexpectedly, I answered this prayer and received God’s favor. This is a natural, genuine expression of the feelings of a devout Christian.
Sun Yat-sen denounced superstitious elements and bad habits in religion, including rejecting the idolatry of witch culture in folk beliefs in his youth, and in the anti-imperialist patriotic movement and the first “non-Christian movement” in the early 20th century, he criticized the church system as a politician and denounced the words and deeds of some people in the church who were tainted with colonialist and imperialist ideology. As the founding head and political leader, it was also inconvenient for him to go out in public and attend public congregational services in churches or prayer halls, and to attend public liturgical services of the church community every Sunday. He may have even had periods of confusion, disappointment, and coldness away from the church. However, this was not enough to lose his Christian status, and future generations have no right or denial of his Christian status.
Standing in the long river of human history, today we should take a fair, objective, and inclusive attitude to examine the people including Sun Yat-sen, the founding father of the nation, and the difficult history of the Chinese nation, as well as his radical words, behaviors, and attitudes towards religious circles, including folk beliefs and churches. Even today, the utilitarian words and deeds, superstitious colors, and religious extremist fanaticism that exist in religious circles should still arouse the attention of all sectors of society, including religious circles, and resolutely reject and bitterly criticize them, and thoroughly eradicate them.
As a Christian and the father of the nation, Sun Yat-sen loved the church respected the religious community after entering politics, and established friendships with religious circles. In 1912, he donated 3,000 silver dollars to the Nanjing YMCA as the initial funding for its establishment, and in 1919, he also donated 10,000 taels of silver to Nanjing Qixia Temple to assist in its repair. Sun Yat-sen’s concern and support for religious circles without discrimination and his tolerance are worthy of appreciation and commemoration.
Sun Yat-sen attached great importance to the contribution of religion in moral construction, believing that “morality begins with the country, and morality begins with the world”, and introduced religious ethical values that are beneficial to the nation and the state. He was the first to advocate the separation of church and state and freedom of religious belief in China. On the occasion of the 150th anniversary of Sun Yat-sen’s birth, all sectors of society, including China’s religious circles, should remember, cherish, and practice.
At the same time, as a zealous Christian, Dr. Sun Yat-sen strongly identified with the spirit of “freedom, equality, and fraternity” based on Christianity. On the basis of the spirit of “concomitant love” of benevolence and Mozi in traditional Chinese ethics and morality, and the gospel of Christ’s unconditional compassion, love and service to one another, Sun Yat-sen put forward the ideological concept of “fraternity” in the context of traditional Chinese culture, and advocated the concepts of “the world is for the common good” and “the world is in harmony”.
He believes that the “benevolence” in traditional Chinese culture is a concrete manifestation of “fraternity” in the three dimensions of “benevolence to save the world, benevolence to save people, and benevolence to save the country”. In terms of the concept of governing the country, he put forward the concept of “fraternity and benevolence”, regarded “fraternity” as “the treasure raft of mankind, the extreme rule of politics”, and further took the concept of “fraternity, the world for the common good, and the world harmony” as his motto, and gave many inscriptions to comrades and friends to encourage him, taking it as his ideal and life pursuit. He integrated the values of Christianity into his political concept of salvation and survival, led the Chinese people to overthrow thousands of years of feudal imperial system, brought hope of democracy and freedom to the Chinese nation, and tried to build a society where everyone is equal, rich and poor, free of oppression, no exploitation, no war, freedom, democracy, fraternity, and the common good, and fought for it all his life.
On his deathbed on March 11, 1925, he dictated the “Fourth Testament” to his comrades, family, and close friends on his sickbed: “I am a Christian, commanded by God to declare war against the evil spirits! In some historical periods under the special political background, this “fourth will”, which could not be publicized publicly and would not be taken seriously, proved that Sun Yat-sen was a true Christian.
His son, Sun Ko, also testified to his father’s affectionate teaching to his children in his family letter: “The day before my father died, I proved that I was a Christian and had struggled with the devil for more than 40 years. Sun Yat-sen witnessed the Gospel of Christ in his words and deeds, lived out the true meaning of Christianity, and was worthy of the identity and title of a devout Christian. Sun Yat-sen’s persistent pursuit of life goals, religious beliefs, and revolutionary ideas, his unremitting struggle, his tremendous contributions to the survival of the nation, national unity, prosperity, and world peace, as well as his noble character of selflessness, are models for political leaders in the three regions of the Taiwan Strait, as well as for all the people and religious circles, including Christians, to emulate and learn from today.
另外她还作了一首《A Love Like This》,内容数算了她生命中的恩典。2015年1月8日,她在微博上写道,“去年写了《A Love Like This》的曲后,直觉很配英文歌词,写恩典和信仰给我生命的改变,而音乐部分构思以结祂为主,清新和简单一点的编曲效果,令vocal的感情可以突出一点。”
由筹备到制作福音专辑,足足花了一整年,Vivian不讳言经历过很多等待、很多挣扎。2015年1月9日,“周慧敏主意工作室”微博发布了创世电视访问——爱地球观察站《周慧敏为 HIM 唱歌》的视频,其中,Vivian谈到自己录制这张专辑的过程。“我希望每首歌都由不同的人去监制,能在不同的录音室录歌,从而学习放下自己过往多年来的一套固有录音模式,开放自己去配合团队,不要成为操控者。过程中经历过很大的挣扎,因为我是一个很高要求的人,团队合作中必须要放下自我,谦卑地去接受别人的意见,所以在录音室当一有break,我便会静下来祷告,把一切交托给上帝,因为我不要做一张造就歌手的碟,这是一张造就别人的碟。‘HIM’,即上帝,才是这张碟的主角。”
Thank you and praise the Lord for making it possible for me to fulfill my long-awaited wish and come to Israel! When the plane landed at Tel Aviv airport, my heart was so excited that I wanted to cry.
At Peter’s ordination, the tour guide shared that here the resurrected Jesus asked Peter three times, “Do you love me?” and my heart asked myself again, “Lord, do I love you?” Lord, I know I don’t love you enough, please help me to love you more. This time we were in Israel, and most of the churches we went to were Catholic churches, among which there was a statue of Jesus crucified on the Beatitudes, and the tour guide took us to sing hymns in front of the statue we sang hymns in many places, but here, when we sang hymns, in front of the statue of Jesus being hung on the cross, I wept, and I said, “Lord, I am so small, so unbearable, so unworthy, you are still crucified for me, what can I use to repay your salvation?
Coming to the Jordan River to be baptized was a very important purpose for my visit to Israel. But because it was quite cold two days ago, I was a little withdrawn. But because our tour guide is a very emotional person, she shared some testimonies of leading a group before, saying that when a group came here, because the weather was very cold, the tour guide advised them not to go into the water, so as not to get sick if the water temperature was very low, but the whole group of them said that no matter what, they must go into the water. This passage touched my heart and made me decide to go into the water, even though I didn’t bring anything I had prepared, but thank God that God was prepared for everything and was baptized in the Jordan River. Thank you very much, Lord! When we were baptized that day, we not only saw doves [a type of the Holy Spirit], but also a rainbow [covenant]after baptism, and a water duck [with a water duck], and the tour guide said that this was the first time she had seen a rainbow when she brought so many groups to the Jordan River. After being baptized, in the locker room, I once again gave thanks to the Lord, because I knew that if I didn’t get baptized this time, I would regret it very much.
On the night of Jesus’ betrayal, he came to Gethsemane to pray, and said to Peter, James, and John, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful, and I am almost to death, and I knelt and prayed, saying, ‘Father, if you will, take this cup away, but not my will, but do your will.'” An angel appeared from heaven and strengthened him. Jesus was in great pain and prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground. [Luke 22:42-44]. When we came to the Garden of Gethsemane, where I felt the fear and fear of Jesus, but also the obedient heart, I wept again and confessed my sins to God, saying, “Lord, I’m sorry, forgive me for my sins, because there are things I can’t do at the moment, I still can’t obey.” May the Lord have mercy and add more love to me, so that I can live out my love truly.
To come to the Wailing Wall is to pray. In the process of prayer, God moved me to bless Jessica, me, and my family with Psalm 23. That night, the team leader took Tian Tian and me to accompany Jessica to the Wailing Wall again [because Jessica was uncomfortable staying in the car during the day.]Jessica was comforted, sweet, and unexpected, and I felt calm and secure. Coming out of the Wailing Wall, the team leader took us to the “King of Kings Asian Temple of Prayer to pray”, which was the tour leader’s itinerary. They prayed for three hours from 6 to 9 p.m., and when we arrived late, we could feel the difference in the spirit in this prayer hall. The three of us knelt in prayer, and in the process, I felt God’s love for the people of Israel, the longing for their return, and I couldn’t help but weep and beg the Lord to give me more time. In prayer, I also knew more clearly that it was urgent to pray for Israel and pray for the peace of Jerusalem.
The last trip was to the Holocaust Memorial, and the whole mood was heavy. I don’t understand why the same people can be so cruel and merciless to abuse, poison, and kill, and ask God to forgive us for our sins.
This trip to Israel, although tiring, but full of rewards. Hallelujah, thank you and praise the Lord, and thank you to the brothers and sisters who remain in the church for their intercession, so that we may be full of peace, blessed when we go out, and blessed when we enter. May the fire of love ignited by the Lord in our hearts continue to burn, and may it also influence those around us to rise and prepare ourselves as well-decorated brides for the Lord’s return. May all thanks and love be given to the Lord who loves us!
To be able to testify for the Lord again on Thanksgiving is in itself a thanksgiving thing, at least to show that we are alive and powerful, breathing, and experiencing God’s grace and works!
I especially like to sing “Amazing Grace.”
The poem. The lyrics in it touched my heart deeply, especially this year after going through the process of Mr. Jimmy’s illness. Whenever I sing, “I have passed through many dangerous trials and snares, and by the grace of the Lord, I am not afraid of safety, and I am led back home.”, I am full of emotion In the song, I saw how God’s hand was leading Jimmy out of the valley of the shadow of death, restoring his health, and allowing him to return to our midst, what a great grace!
Jimmy has been meeting at Bread of Life for three and a half years, and everyone knows him and knows that his health has always been okay. We have a physical examination every year, and all his physiological indicators are normal, he has no history of high blood pressure, no heart problems, and no high cholesterol. The blood item has always been good. No one would have thought that on the first day of February this year, he would have a heart attack. Due to the suddenness of the onset, he lost consciousness, and in the process of fainting, his head hit a 90-degree angle on the counter, causing a traumatic fracture of the left head, external bleeding, and intracranial hemorrhage. Lives are at stake!
When he was sent to the emergency center of the hospital by 911, his heart stopped beating twice, and after many rescues, the doctor told us that there was no value in continuing the rescue, advised us to give up, and told us that the three major arteries that came out of Jimmy’s heart were 100% blocked, one was 80% blocked, and one was 40% blocked. Although the blockage was relieved by the stent treatment, the brain was deprived of oxygen due to the cessation of the heart beating and the cessation of blood supply, resulting in brain damage, brain cell necrosis, acute failure of multiple organs, hydrops in the lungs, and kidney failure. And told me that even if I was saved, I might never wake up with a breath. Even if you wake up, you may not be able to recover your intelligence, you may never be able to breathe on your own, and you may need dialysis for life because of kidney failure, maybe. Possible. The doctors told us that they did what they had to do, what they could, and the rest was up to God!
Life is so fragile, how limited what doctors can do in the face of death, and we are full of too many questions and worries about what will happen to Jimmy in the next minute!
Thank the Lord that our God is loving, merciful, and omnipotent! Our breath of life is given by God, so what man says does not count, but what God says!
Just when Jimmy was rushed to the emergency room of the hospital for emergency treatment, and I was so frightened that I almost fainted, our Pastor Mo was the first to rush to the ER after hearing the news. God’s love and peace came into my heart through the pastor’s comfort, encouragement, and prayer, calming my heart and seeing hope in the midst of despair!
At the same time, our two churches in California also initiated church-wide prayers for Jimmy, and our daughter May’s church in Bangladesh, Heatton Chinese Church, Arcadia Chinese Baptist Church and many other churches, as well as our relatives and friends, joined in praying for Jimmy.
It was the unanimous prayer of the heavens and the earth, the shaking of God’s hand, and the miracle happened! God used His supernatural method to turn Jimmy’s condition very much around in a very short period of time – the fever subsided, the heart function gradually recovered, the blood pressure and breathing stabilized, the kidney function index gradually decreased, the hands and feet began to move, although not yet fully awakened, Jimmy began to respond to external stimuli. Until one day he woke up, his limbs could move (he was not paralyzed), and although he could not speak, he could hear our voices and respond accordingly. The hydrops in the lungs gradually faded, and they were able to breathe on their own, without the help of the ventilator, their kidney function completely returned to normal. Jimmy was discharged from the hospital, his swallowing function gradually recovered, he could eat liquids, he could urinate normally, could regain the function of speaking, and he could write, draw, stand, walk, and eat a normal diet. Every day Jimmy progresses by God’s grace! Every day we see the miracles of God’s hand in Jimmy!
In less than three months, God brought Jimmy back from death healed him, and restored the function of his body’s major organs. Now Jimmy is basically normal in all aspects except for his short-term memory, which needs to continue to recover. We believe that since God has already begun His work to bring Jimmy back from the dead, He will also heal Jimmy 100% and make his memory fully healed shortly!
When Jimmy was finally discharged from the hospital and we were rejoicing that his body had recovered greatly, we faced another difficulty – that is, his medical expenses totaled more than $1 million! More than $1 million is an astronomical amount for us! Our hearts are overwhelmed by this medical debt, and we know that we will work two jobs in our lives, and we will not be able to finish working until we meet the Lord, what should we do? The pastor’s wife knew our difficulties, prayed for this matter in prayer meetings many times, and called everyone to pray for us in various ways, and told us not to worry, but to cast our worries on God.
Allelujah, thank God that we believe in is a true and living God, our God is a God of love and mercy, our God is a God who hears prayers, and our God is mighty and omnipotent!
WHEN WE LOOK TO THE LORD WITH ALL OUR HEARTS, HE ONCE AGAIN PERFORMS MIRACLES AND DOES GREAT THINGS! THEN WE RECEIVED VARIOUS NOTICES OF FEE REDUCTIONS ONE AFTER ANOTHER, THE BIGGEST OF WHICH IS HIS HOSPITALIZATION FEE OF MORE THAN 320,000 YUAN, UT PHYSICIAN $7516, SYNERGY $3978, REHABCARE $569, ALL WAIVED, BALANCE IS 0! AND SEVERAL OF THEM ALSO GIVE US A 50% REDUCTION!
What a great blessing of grace! Once again, the Lord has delivered us from the bondage of debt and given us financial freedom! Our God is great, He is truly worthy of our great praise, the One we believe in and rely on all our lives! God knows every word of our tongue that He has prepared for us for all our needs, He is so loving, and He understands our weakness. Thank you again for the miracles that have risen from the dead, the miracles that have walked alone, and the God who has loved and married!
In this season of thanksgiving, in addition to thanking God for all the glory and praise to Him, we also want to take this opportunity to thank pastors, Mrs., and the brothers and sisters of the church for their love, encouragement, support and help in every stage of Jimmy’s recovery when we were in danger, and thank you for your prayers for us! You are amazing! It is because of God’s grace and hope that you have given us, and because of your love and support, Jimmy and I have the confidence and courage to persevere to this day. We are so blessed and happy to have this spiritual home, and to have you, our dearest family in Christ! We love you so much!
In addition, I would like to say a few more words to those of us who have not yet come to know the Lord Jesus. No one knows what tomorrow will bring, but if we know that the Lord is in charge of tomorrow, we will have peace and hope in our hearts when the storm comes. Therefore, we should seek God while He can be found, and do not delay! Because money, fame, status, and learning are all meaningless in the face of death, and only the Lord Jesus is our life’s reliance and hope! Knowing the Lord Jesus and becoming God’s children is the greatest thing in our lives, not only to bless us in this life, but also to have eternal happiness because of Jesus! Please don’t miss this opportunity to be blessed!
Hallelujah! Thank God, God’s name is worthy of great praise!
正是大家同心合意感天动地的祷告,摇动神的手,奇迹就出现了!神用祂超自然的方法,在很短的时间内,使Jimmy的状况有很大的翻转─ 烧退了,心脏功能逐步恢复了,血压呼吸平稳了,肾功能指标逐步下降了,手脚开始动了,虽然还没有完全苏醒,Jimmy对外界刺激开始有反应了。直到有一天他苏醒过来,四肢可以活动(没有瘫痪),虽然讲不出话,但是能够听到我们的声音,并作出相应的反应。肺积水逐步褪去,逐步能自主呼吸,脱离呼吸机的帮助,肾功能完全恢复正常。 Jimmy 出院,吞咽功能逐步恢复,可以吃流质,可以正常大小便,恢复说话的功能,可以写字,画画,站立,可以行走,可以吃正常饮食。 Jimmy每天靠着神的恩典进步!每天我们都看到神的手在Jimmy身上所创造的奇迹!
Nine times out of ten, life is not as expected, and life after believing in the Lord does not mean that it is smooth sailing. But a man of God will never lose peace and hope amid trouble. Just like in a dark tunnel, when the light at the mouth of the tunnel comes in, even if it is a small and faint light, I unconsciously breathe a sigh of relief, and suddenly a sense of security comes up. This light is our God. He is the light in the darkness, the light that brings hope, warmth, and comfort in the darkness. This is my God, the God who lifts me every time I fall into the abyss.
This fall, before he enters his third year of doctoral studies, he will have to complete the rigorous doctoral qualifying examination. There are two stages of the qualifying examination – written and oral, and the oral examination can only be conducted after passing all the subjects of the written examination. If you pass, you can become a doctoral candidate and continue to move towards your dream, and if you fail, everything will return to the original point and go home.
We have been praying about this, and our daughter would add the phrase “Pray that the Lord Jesus will let Daddy pass the exam” when she prays for thanksgiving. I am confident that God will open the way and that my husband will pass the exam again without any problems. It wasn’t until the eve of the exam that I realized that I was under a lot of pressure. For my husband to concentrate on preparing, I had to turn on the “pseudo-single mother” mode again. I asked myself to be a competent wife so that my husband could prepare for the exam without any worries, and I asked myself to be confident that I would not show the slightest hint of “if I have to go back to Taiwan.”
I asked myself to be independent and brave and to give my daughter a full sense of security even amid instability. I thought I believed in my God, I thought I had faith, but I didn’t, I was worried, I was afraid, the fear of failing the exam was going to consume me. This dark thought and emotion binds me and I can’t breathe.
In August of this year, in order to improve my language skills, I searched the website of Second Baptist Church near my home and wanted to sign up for an ESL course offered by the church. After searching for it a few times, I didn’t have any ESL information, but I accidentally found that there was a “Breathe for Mom’s” party class starting in September, holding the “It’s okay if there are no fish and shrimp.”
If you want to speak, you should practice speaking and listening, so I signed up for this group course.
We know that all things work together for good to those who love God, and to those who have been called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28
The date of the first class of “Breathe for Moms” happened to be the week of the written test, and the time of the written test was the date when the teacher was changed and changed. Plucking up the courage to step into the classroom, I was the only foreigner, a bit like a white rabbit who had strayed into the jungle. I chose a table and sat down, looking around, white, white, white, black, Asian, white, my heart beat super fast, I felt so stupid, and it was so self-defeating to want to come to this kind of place to practice English! I wanted to be friendly in tattered English, and when I said I was from Taiwan, the Asian mother said that she was also born in Taiwan and could speak a little Chinese. Later, I observed that she was the only Asian American in the class of seventy or eighty people, spoke Chinese, was born in Taiwan, and was in the same group as me. The theme of the day’s class was “Fearless Mom”, and God made me understand through the limited content that I could understand that I didn’t have to force myself to be a perfect mother or wife in His presence, and He inspired my faith again to rely on Him to be a Fearless Mom. During the group discussion, I don’t know where I got the courage to use my English to tell these strangers who we met for the first time that my husband had a very important exam this week, and if we didn’t pass it, we would have to pack up and go home.
I brought this exam to my worries and fears, the tension and pressure of being a wife and mother, and the helplessness and anxiety caused by the instability of living in the United States in the past few years. At this time, someone brought me tissue paper, someone hugged me, someone comforted me with scriptures, someone prayed for me, and they spoke very quickly, I tried to listen, but it didn’t matter if I understood it or not, my tears kept flowing, and the weight of my heart was released little by little.
Through these strangers, this course message, and these arrangements that are not accidental, God made me understand that He has always been there, never forsaken me, and that His love is so real! There is no fear in God’s love, I told myself that I would no longer shed tears, that my God would fight with me, and that there was nothing to be afraid of! From that moment on, I told myself to trust God to be a fearless mom, to keep watch for my husband and daughter, and to wave the banner of victory!
The thieves have come to steal, to kill, and to destroy, but I have come to give the sheep life and to the abundance. John 10:10
A few days later, the enemy came again and broke my faith. Mr. had a written exam question that was very far from the direction he was preparing for, and yes, he failed the exam. He told me in frustration that the professor knew that this was not his research specialty, so why did he deliberately come up with such a topic to make things difficult for him? He tried his best, and if the professor just wanted to kick him out, he would admit it. At the moment, I am so sad and sad, watching him try his best to fight for this doctor’s dream, this road is very difficult, but I am sure that God is also dripping grease on the journey. But at that moment, I was angry, confused, and even wanted to ask God, “God, where are you? Mr. can’t feel you, so how can he get this salvation?”
No, the enemy laughed at me, as a Christian wife, for not praying fruitfully, so how can I preach the gospel to my husband? My faith was shattered and shattered.
I called home and sadly told my dad that I was disappointed in God. Dad told me, “Praise God for being the God who created the heavens and the earth, the God Almighty, the only true God, and nothing is impossible in His hands. His love is long, wide, high, and deep, He knows that in every dream in our hearts, we must not lose faith in God, if you lose faith in God, how can your husband have faith in God?” Dad’s words immediately woke me up, and I thanked God that although our family was not around, we could support each other through prayer. Through the encouragement and prayers of my father and family, God picked up the shattered fragments of faith in my heart one by one. God continued to speak to me through Sunday messages and group classes, and I began to declare that I was God’s careful creation, no longer bound by any enemy accusations. God put joy and peace in my heart, and I kept humming songs of victory.
A week later, the results of the written test were announced, and the subjects I thought I had failed in the exam were miraculously passed! Although there were still two subjects to be retaken, I could open the book at home. Hallelujah! This result is completely beyond our expectations, and we will experience God’s wonderful leadership again. Our God is true and alive, and His mind is higher than men’s thoughts! He is always there, and He will not forsake what His hand created!
Thou hast crowned thy years with grace, and thy paths have dripped with fat. Psalm 65:11
Thank God, although the qualification process of my husband was thrilling, it had a perfect ending in the great and great grace of God, God had already prepared everything! This year, I learned to be strong in my weakness by Jesus, and I learned to let the power of God cover me. Don’t let the environment obscure the focus, keep your eyes on God, and feel His presence. He has always been there.