I was born into a conventional Christian family. With regards to matters of God-worshipping, we were fervent believers and accepted Jesus with faith, except for godliness, which remained to be worked on.
So, the habit of church-going had always been our customary practice and delight. In November, 1996, my wife Anna and I went overseas for the first time on migration to Auckland, New Zealand, under the skills migration category. This was also the beginning of Gods guidance for us to enter into True Jesus Church.
It was, coincidentally, on the morning of a certain Saturday when my wife asked me: "Shall we go and attend the service of True Jesus Church which is to be held today?" upon reading an advertisement in the Chinese newspaper about the church services of True Jesus Church.
At this, I was quite amazed and wondered: how on earth could there be any gathering for service on Saturday? However, I said to her: "Why not? As long as it is a church believing in Jesus, we can go."
So on that very morning, with the help of a map, we set out in our car and managed to find our way to True Jesus Church to attend the service there.
My faith in Jesus started from young when I was in China. During that time I heard many sermons from the pastors, but seldom read the Bible.
For this reason, I was totally ignorant of the Word of salvation or the only church to salvation - True Jesus Church. Hence, Saturday, the blessed Sabbath of God was yet to be discovered.
When I attended the first service of True Jesus Church, I was deeply impressed with the word delivered by Elder Lin on the topic "The Lords Impending Coming".
It was not without reason, because we were in the midst of all the inconveniences and had a sense of loss in our struggle to adapt to a new environment. In fact, I was longing for the speedy coming of our Lord Jesus.
On the other hand, my wife was touched by the love and warmth that the believers shown her after the service.
We would go attend the Sunday service of another denomination the following day after the Sabbath as this was the exhortation from my parents from early days: To attend services regularly and to worship God wholeheartedly.
By then, I was still in the dark concerning the Truth of True Jesus Church and her distinctions among other denominations.
It came to pass when I woke up early on that Sunday morning, I started to have a fever, headache and vomiting, all beyond my understanding.
The symptoms did not go away with medicine; neither did it get any better with prayer. That was what stopped me from leaving my house that day. The same thing happened to me the following week when we planned to carry out our schedule again.
Only later did we come to understand that God had kept us from going to other denominations for services through inflicting sickness on me. God had preserved me so that I might seek the Truth undisturbed in True Jesus Church -
the only church where the gospel of salvation is. Henceforth, we became regular church-goers in True Jesus Church, and held fast to every opportunity to hear the sermon.
Thank the Lord for His grace in guiding us in pursuit of the Truth; in enabling us to understand the Truth and listen attentively to the tapes of the sermons of Preacher Tet-Rheng Liang.
We were very much consoled and nourished by the Truth during such a troubled time of our migrants lives. The Word of God filled up the void within our hearts with abundance and joy.
Enthralled and nestled in a state as this, my heart began to glow with enthusiasm in the belief. Basking in adoration for the Truth, I was motivated to take on the pleasant routine of daily Bible-reading and constant prayer.
To get to know the gospel of True Jesus Church is the most blessed and valuable matter in the whole world.
Thus, in May 1997, during the spiritual convocation, my wife and I were baptised into Christ in True Jesus Church, transforming ourselves into the children of the heavenly Father.
After our baptism, we wrote numerous letters to our friends and relatives back in China, informing them that the True Jesus Church is the only church to salvation. In addition, we also gave them a precise account of the testimonies we heard and the Truth we learnt; hoping that they would also receive the invaluable salvation.
We thank God for His merciful guidance and keeping, that in the course of a few years, 17 of our relatives have been baptised into Christ receiving the goodness of the gospel along with us.
2.The Lord Bestows True Peace
My mother was overwhelmed with gratitude and joy after her baptism in Auckland Church. The reason being that the chance granted to her to enter True Jesus Church at her old age was something out of her imagination. This is a spiritual church established by God Himself where one can receive the sound gospel of salvation.
My mother was not highly educated, but because of Gods enlightenment, she could comprehend that True Jesus Church is a church built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (Eph. 2:19-20).
This church also has the abidance of the Holy Spirit; proclaims the biblical truth, testifies to the power of God with signs and miracles in witnessing True Jesus Church as the church of God. Since then, my mother had a profound faith in True Jesus Church - the only church with salvation.
Although she believed in Jesus from her youth and has heard numerous sermons from pastors throughout her life, she had never heard such sound doctrines as those in True Jesus Church.
Having full confidence in the Lord, her life was one filled with peace and joy. She would never let go of any opportunity or be absent from attending church services even in times of bad weather.
Rather, she would make use of every opportunity to come to church to listen to the Truth and worship God. One day, my mother had fallen ill. She vomited whatever food she ate and this continued for a few days.
After a check up in Auckland Hospital, the results showed that she had cancer of the esophagus that already spread to other organs; at the same time, the lower part of her esophagus was blocked with cancerous cells that stopped her from swallowing any food except for water and broth. Doctors dictated radiotherapy for her.
As my mother had planned to go back to Mainland China to preach the gospel, she thought her plan would be deterred from realisation.
Her wish was to go back to her homeland in the shortest time possible to preach to all her relatives the gospel of True Jesus Church. That was why she did not go for radiotherapy.
Apart from a thorough body check-up in the hospital and a blood transfusion, she did not receive any other treatment. She was discharged from hospital eight days later and returned home to have a break while waiting for an air ticket to go back to Kwong-Chou.
During this interval, she received many visitations and intercessions from our church elders, deacons and brethren. Though there were no signs of improvement in her condition, we were deeply grateful for Gods loving kindness and intercessions of the brethren.
God had granted my mother strength and awesome courage, so that she had no fears and bore no worries on her face. Instead, words of gratitude would always be heard from her mouth and smiles be seen on her face.
She had full conviction in Gods election - since He had chosen her into True Jesus Church, He would also guide her throughout her life.
Indeed, the unfailing love and grace of God continued to lavish on her. Her practice of church-going went on as usual and her heart of gratitude did not lessen amidst her deterioration.
However, under the devastation of the cancerous cells and the only intake being liquid and no solid food, she grew skinnier and skinnier each day. Notwithstanding that, she remained adamant and held onto her faith and her words of thanks toward God came even more frequently.
I couldnt help asking her: "Mother, what makes you so strong? How could you still smile when you are so sick?"
"Thank God. I am not strong. In fact, I am very vulnerable. It is God who has been gracious to me by comforting and strengthening me, so that I fear no evils in this troubled time.
You see, this is His marvelous works; I take no pain-killers, either orally or by injection yet He allows me to be pain-free in this condition and makes me experience peace in Him against the troubles in this world (Jn 16:33), that is why I am neither sad nor discouraged." she answered me with a smile.
By the time a flight was available to Kwong-Chou, twenty five days had passed. By then, my mother was very weak, only depending on liquid food to sustain her life.
But this was also gradually taken away from her as the cancerous cells in her esophagus multiplied and filled her pharynx, so that she would belch even with the liquid she took.
We applied for wheelchair service when we boarded the plane. She drank no liquid inside the plane because she would belch as soon as she did. So, the air hostess gave her an ice cone for her to lick to keep her throat moist.
On her arrival at the airport, friends and relatives were glad to see her and praised God because they thought she did not look like a terminally-ill cancerous patient. She would talk and laugh and bear testimonies of the amazing grace of God on her. The most wonderful thing happened when she arrived home.
She was able to start eating food again, regardless of whether it was hard or soft, she would not vomit. Gradually she regained her strength; not only could she sing hymns, say her prayers, testify the gospel of True Jesus Church, she could even do house chores and go for a stroll in the park.
Whenever the local church brethren came to visit her, they would glorify God for they witnessed contentment and joy she had in the Lord.
They too were deeply convinced that it was the amazing grace of God that had made whole in her the true peace. My mother had lived contentedly in joy and peace for more than three months.
One day, Sister Huang saw a vision while praying in her house by the seaside. In the vision, someone clothed in white linen was standing in a very beautiful place. Then a voice said: "This is a believer to be saved, the child of the Heavenly Father." This vision and voice occurred twice in her prayer.
After the prayer, perplexed, she kept wondering about the meaning and the reason for the vision. The riddle was solved the next morning when she and some other brethren visited my mother. She recognized my mother as the one in her vision who was dressed in white linen as soon as she stepped inside our house.
Sister Huang began to relate the incidence that happened during her prayer the day before concerning the vision she saw, and the suspicion she held against it. According to her comprehension and her experiences of faith, it could be that the Lord Jesus was about to take my mother away.
The purpose of this vision is to strengthen the faith of our relatives and friends towards True Jesus Church; to console us by making us understand that the blessings in a believer being called back to the Lord are indeed great. Afterwards, we had a prayer together and amazingly, my mother received the Holy Spirit during that very prayer.
Ever since my mother was baptised, she prayed earnestly and wholeheartedly for the Holy Spirit for more than 6 months without success, yet she would not budge. Her faith in the promises of God did not fail her.
Thank God, after she received the Holy Spirit she talked very little to us, but prayed for most of the two days that followed. On the evening of the third day, the household, young and old alike, gathered in her bedroom.
On seeing that she was still praying, we also knelt down to pray together with her. After the prayer, she told us that she had been seeing angels in white walking to and fro around her during her prayers in the last two days. She felt very contented with exceedingly great joy in her heart.
She felt no discomfort physically; except for a little exhaustion for which she thought she would like to have a rest. At the same time, she requested if we could sing her hymn number 89 (His Grace Aboundeth More).
An amazing thing happened while we were singing the hymn. We saw a smile appeared on her face, and peacefully, she breathed her last.
We missed her very much after she passed away. But we were much consoled and grateful for the Lords mercy granting her the salvation in True Jesus Church and allowing her to rest in the Lord. This incident had an impact on some of our relatives.
They were very much moved and began seeking for the Truth - the profound Truth they had initially heard from her and now seen the wonderful works of God done through her under the guidance of the Holy Spirit. In turn they were also chosen, to receive the sound doctrine of True Jesus Church.