God’s Mercy upon My Family

Adeline Lin—Baldwin Park, California, USA

STAYING ANOTHER YEAR

            “There are many plans in a man’s heart, nevertheless the Lord’s counsel—that will stand.”(Prov 19:21)

In February 1997 all I wanted to do was to go back home and find a job there. After all, Taiwan was my birthplace and where my parents, relatives, and friends still lived. Therefore I had no desire to stay in the United States, where I had been living the past two years to obtain my master’s degree.

Knowing that the job market was not good, I even went back to Taiwan during that winter break just to send out my resume and to talk to people, hoping that I could pave a path for my future.

But after talking to a director at the Human Resources Department of a college, I realized that I probably had no chance to get a position in the field I was interested in. I felt hopeless after the interview and became very anxious about my future.

After returning to the US, an unfamiliar idea came up during some of my conversations with my husband (who was a good friend at that time). “Why don’t you stay another year for an internship?” he suggested. Initially I struggled with this idea because it was against my will. However, the thought of “stay another year” was like a ray of light at the end of the tunnel. It gave me hope and even peace, so I decided to give myself a chance to go for it.

Unexpectedly, this journey became smoother and smoother. First, my work permit was approved very quickly. Following the approval, I immediately received a response and got a teaching job right after the interview. Moreover, I was able to find a convenient place to stay within a very short time. I did not have a car, and God had arranged a comfortable apartment that was a few minutes’ walk away from the train station and grocery stores.

All of these changes happened within two months. I, who did not know the true God yet, thought that I was just lucky and gave thanks to my “gods.” I was completely unaware of God’s guiding hand.

Seriously Seeking God

Although I came from a family that observed Chinese traditional religion and had followed my parents in worshipping ancestors and idols, I knew very little about them. My mother was usually the one taking care of all the details of ancestral worship, and the rest of us merely followed her instructions.

However, there were two things that really bothered me. One was seeing my mother exhausted from preparing sacrificial food; and the other was knowing that most of those idol worshipping activities, such as burning incense and paper money, were wasteful and harmful to the environment. The noise of fire crackers and loud music from the lion dance were always a nightmare to me.

I was introduced to my husband at the end of 1996, and he invited me to True Jesus Church family service a few times in the Boston area. Even though I didn’t understand the truth and was very unaccustomed to prayer in tongue, the members received me with great warmth. I gradually grew familiar with the faces on Sabbath, as well as with the way they worshipped. I received baptism in April 1999. Thank God for those brothers and sisters who shared their testimonies, encouraged me, and became spiritual friends with me.

However, I lacked the heart to pursue the truth so I did not receive the Holy Spirit until much later. I could not understand the Bible well, nor could I relate the teachings to my daily life.  During service, I often had a difficult time staying awake. I became alarmed and started to seriously seek God when I realized that I was one of the few at church who did not have the Holy Spirit. I was afraid that God had rejected me because of my wishy-washy attitude.

After praying for a year, during a spiritual convocation in 2000, God finally poured down His precious Holy Spirit on me. I felt a hand lightly tap my left shoulder, and then suddenly my tongue loosened and started to roll. I was speaking in tongue, communicating directly with God.  I finally felt accepted and loved by Him. Ever since then, His Spirit has opened my eyes—the Bible is no longer a storybook, and sermons are no longer a lullaby. And I learned how poor I was in spirit.

God’s hand of amazing grace did not stop there. Over the following years, He cared for my family and brought them to Him, one by one, in miraculous ways.

MY SISTER’S BAPTISM

My younger sister has a strong character and independent mind. From her unpleasant experiences with those who had tried to preach to her, she had bad impressions of Christians. But through her colleague, she started to get in touch with people at a church in Xinzhu, Taiwan.

Even though she did not know much about Christianity, what she heard and saw at that church did not seem right to her. Moreover, she was unexpectedly pressured into receiving baptism at one of their events. So she was worried and started to bring up issues to me since I was a Christian. It was quite a surprise to me that she would make an international phone call just to ask me questions about the Bible and God.

I was newly baptized at that time and had only learned a little about God, so I suggested that she visit the True Jesus Church near our parents’ house. She went with her unquenchable spirit of seeking the truth and was moved to tears the moment the service started. She knew right away that it was the church God wanted her to go to.

After seeking the truth at True Jesus Church for about a year and a half, she received the Holy Spirit and decided to receive baptism in November 2001. On that day, with her eyes closed for a prayer prior to her baptism, she felt God’s warm and glorious light shine upon her. Others who were present at the baptism also saw the great light.

AN UNEXPECTED DELAY

In April of 2003, my sister was getting married at Dallas Church. She and my parents planned to meet me in Boston and spend some time together before we all flew to Texas for the wedding.

I received a phone call from my sister as I was getting ready to pick them up at the airport. She said they were waiting for their connecting flight in Detroit, but she was about to be deported because of a visa problem. She did not know what to do.

I was in shock when we hung up. I quickly called a friend who worked at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Boston, hoping to get instant help. But all I got was “Do what the officials tell you.” Then my sister called again to let me know that my parents were allowed to enter the US, but since the police were ready to take her away, she couldn’t stay on the phone any longer.

It was three hours after their connecting flight to Boston. After that phone call, I didn’t know what my parents would do since they could not speak much English, did not know how to use a pay phone, and had never changed flights by themselves before. I could only assume that they would get onto the next flight to Boston. My husband and I had no other choice but to wait at the airport, checking one flight after another. Finally, they showed up at the gate with six suitcases. We were so relieved and gave thanks to God!

My father was a very organized person who liked to plan things ahead. This trip had taken him months to arrange. At that time, he just wanted to return home; on the other hand, he felt guilty for not being able to accomplish his task. He owed the groom’s family an apology. Since we had already booked our flights and hotel rooms in Texas, we decided to go without the bride.

As for my sister, she got a “free ticket” to travel the world, and did not return to Taiwan until two days later. Now we all laugh when we think of it, but at the time it was not amusing.

After my sister got back to Taiwan, she immediately applied for a fiancée visa. According to the lawyer, it would be approved in two months. However, almost a year passed, and she still had not received it. It was a very difficult time for my sister while she waited for her visa and people repeatedly asked her “Why are you still here?”

Thank God for giving my sister strength and hope, so that she was able to patiently wait, fast and pray, and totally rely on Him during that period of time. A pastor told her that this delay might be because she had unfinished work in Taiwan.

MY PARENTS’ BELIEF

Indeed, the delay miraculously opened the door of salvation for my parents. In the past my parents had refused to go to church because they did not want to “betray” their ancestors and replace their decades-long belief with something foreign to them. But during that year while my sister was waiting for her visa, my parents’ hearts were no longer hardened.

One day in March, my father asked her, “How can we help you?” “Pray for me,” she replied. Immediately, my father agreed and promised, “We will pray for you every day. Ten minutes in the morning and ten minutes in the evening. ” My parents even started attending church services with her in April 2004 (though with doubtful hearts in the beginning).

A pastor went to visit my parents on April 22, while North Taichung Church was holding an evangelical service. After his explanation and encouragement, my parents’ concern about their ancestors’ memorial tablets was solved. My father decided to get rid of the pagan altar and idols in the house. My parents wanted to get baptized. Seeing their great faith, the pastor agreed to baptize them on April 24. 

The baptism of my parents, which I had always hoped to witness, arrived so suddenly that it did not even give me enough time to book a flight to Taiwan. I could only thank God on the other side of the world.

After my parents started to pray for my sister, she met a travel agent who was very experienced in visa applications. He meticulously instructed my sister on how to fill out her visa application and advised her on other important details.

The visa was quickly approved in June. On July 4, 2004, our friends and families once again gathered in Dallas Church to witness my sister’s wedding. 

My prayer for my parents to receive the Holy Spirit was also answered—they both received it soon after the wedding. Even though they no longer had my sister around, God’s Spirit would guide them as they journeyed on. Thank God for His mercy!

MY FATHER’S ILLNESS

My father had had hepatitis B since he was a child and began receiving treatment after being diagnosed with a liver tumor in 2005. At the end of September 2006, he fainted as he was about to walk down the stairs. Thank God that my older brother, who was rarely home early from work, was there when the accident happened.

An ambulance brought my father to the emergency room. The doctors discovered that excessive bleeding from his liver caused him to faint. That night, the doctor issued a Do Not Resuscitate Form for my mother to sign. Even though my father was in critical condition, thank God for His mercy that he was discharged in a few days.

During that time, my father was planning a two-month-long trip to the United States to visit me and my sister. Because of his internal bleeding, relatives and friends advised him to cancel his trip.

He told my mother that this trip might be his last chance to visit us in the US, and he believed that the Lord Jesus would take care of him and grant his wish. Even though we were worried, after knowing his great faith in the Lord, we laid down our worries and looked forward to seeing him.

With God’s blessings, my parents arrived safely in Boston and later went to stay with their newborn granddaughter in Dallas for a month. Every day they lived in great peace, satisfaction, and joy. We had a great time together. Out of the grace of God, the precious two months were given not only to our father, but also to the family.

In January 2007, not long after my father returned to Taiwan, he underwent another liver embolization for his tumor. Afterward he become lethargic and lost a lot of weight. The doctor told my mother that he had one to two months to live. 

At this critical time my brother, a physics teacher and the only non-believer in the family, started to pray. Because of his background in science, he placed his faith in evidence and his own ability. He had never seen God and, moreover, did not need God. However, he knew that none of his scientific theories or training could do his father any good. Even though he still had doubts, he always joined us as we prayed. During the time that I was in Taiwan, we spent time with our father in singing hymns, reading the Bible, and praying together.

I really thank God for giving me strength during that time so that every day I managed to have a peaceful heart to devote myself to long prayers. I asked God for a miracle; but I also prayed that if it was His will for my father to go, that He would give us wisdom to understand His good will and comfort us with His own hand. 

MY BROTHER’S BELIEF

My father’s condition did not improve, but was stable. Early in the morning of March 4, 2007, I went to my father’s room to pray with him before I left for the airport. As usual, he gave me some Japanese currency so that I could buy snacks as I waited for my connecting flight in Japan. I had struggles in my heart to leave him because I was afraid that we would be saying our final goodbyes. But I suppressed my sadness and, just as what I usually would do, accepted his kindness with many thanks and a smile.

On the way to the airport and before I boarded, my brother and I talked about God again. Surprisingly I found that he was willing to listen and to share his thoughts.

That night he decided not to doubt any longer but to believe. He pleaded with God to heal our father’s illness. When he was praying by himself in his room, the Holy Spirit moved him and he started to speak in tongue. He finally experienced God and could not but believe in His existence. He was very excited and his worries immediately disappeared.

However, over the next two days, evil spirits tried to disturb him. He would beat himself during prayers. Sometimes, his prayer sounded very harsh, like he was berating someone, and according to his students his face turned black with bruises. It seemed like the Holy Spirit was casting out the evil spirits, but they were unwilling to leave. After going through several spiritual battles, everything returned to normal on the third day. An elder from church visited my brother and laid hands on him. He confirmed that my brother had received the precious Holy Spirit. 

I was so joyful upon hearing the news, but at the same time I was worried that the evil spirits would attack my brother again because he was not yet baptized. My parents were newly baptized, so they were still spiritually weak. I regretted that I did not stay with them longer. All I could do was to plead to God to fight the spiritual battle for them.

Thanks to God’s arrangement, shortly after my departure my sister was able to return to Taiwan with her four-month-old daughter. Many pastors, elders, and deacons also took time out of their busy schedules to visit and pray with my family. Their visitation comforted my anxious heart and I learned the preciousness of having spiritual friends at a difficult time.

MY FATHER’S REST

Soon after I returned to the US, my father’s health began to deteriorate. We were afraid that my mother could not take care of him by herself any more, so we sent him to the hospital. Not long after his admission, he went into a coma.

Around 5 p.m. on March 30, 2007, while I was in a hurry to get ready to return to Taiwan, my brother called and said that our father was not doing well and that I should bid farewell to him over the phone. I was speechless, unwilling to believe what I heard. But with my brother’s gentle encouragement, I calmed myself and told my father to go with our Lord Jesus Christ, and I would meet him later in the heavenly home. 

Two hours later, my father rested from his worldly labor, illness, and pain and slept in peace. My father was always tender-hearted and our Lord Jesus knew him well. Whenever he saw sad or unfortunate events on TV, he would switch the channel because he could not bear to see people suffer. Therefore, it was his will that he did not want emergency treatment. He preferred peaceful rest over endless pain, surgery, and tubes all over his body.

Thank God that my father did not feel much pain, unlike other patients who had the same illness. It was the most wonderful arrangement from the Lord that He took him away to Paradise before the illness caused him great suffering.

My brother did not lose his faith even though God did not heal our father. On the contrary, he was grateful that God took away my father’s pain, my mother’s heavy burden, and his own sin. On April 28, 2007, he received the precious baptism, foot washing, and Holy Communion.

Throughout the past few years, God has arranged brothers and sisters from all over the world to accompany us in our journey of faith. They sympathized with our weaknesses and gave us timely care, help, and prayers of intercession so that my entire household could be baptized into the name of the Lord. May the Lord remember their love!

Even though we live in different parts of the world and rarely see each other, through the Lord Jesus Christ, we will definitely be reunited in our heavenly home.

May blessings and edification be with you, whom we have shared the gospel with. And may all the glory and praises be unto the true God, our Father in heaven. Amen!