JANET CHONG'S STORY
Hi everyone! I would like to start off by thanking each one of you for being here and celebrate this very special day with me and Kelly. This is such an exciting time for both of us and we are so happy that we can share this event with all of you.
I was raised in a Buddhist family although I wouldn’t consider my parents being really religious as I don’t remember going to a temple on a regular basis. We’ve always had a shrine set up in our home and we would pay our respect in the mornings. I’ve never learned much about it and never felt spiritually connected
I was first introduced to Christianity when I attended a church service in Argentina when I was 14 years old. Knowing that my parents would totally object to the idea, I did not tell them. One day they found out, got really upset and did not allow me to go again. So growing up with those memories back in my mind where no Christianity was allowed in my family, I never took the initiative to find out more about Christianity, even as an adult.
Ironically I married a Catholic and from a very religious family but as religious as they are, they never insisted on me converting to Christianity. The only thing was that we would attend church as a family when my in-laws were in town visiting, which I always dreaded and tried to look for excuses not to go. Throughout the years, Vince would try to convince me to go to mass but eventually he gave up.
This past summer, we were invited to Vince’s doctor’s church because her son was being ordained as a deacon. Surprisingly, I agreed to go without any resistance or making a big fuss. For the first time, I was actually drawn by the whole Sunday Catholic mass.
and that weekend was the start of a life changing event. I left church intrigued. When I got home I quickly went online and started googling everything about God. My curiosity and search for God has been constant ever since that day. I would spend hours in front of my computer reading and learning about God. One Google search led to another search, and after 43 years I finally opened myself up to God and asked the Lord to come into my life.
It has been a few months now, and just when i thought everything was going well I started having this spiritual struggle in me. I had signed up to be baptized and that step-up in commitment raised some doubts. Am I ready? Am I doing the right thing? I started to question my faith. I felt unsure, lost, confused, a little frustrated and discouraged. I started having doubts and I asked myself that maybe I was not ready to be a Christian or that maybe Christianity was not for me after all.
I told pastor KC that i might want to postpone the baptism till next year. We had our talk and he suggested that I take the baptism class first before making my decision.
So the night after my baptism class with pastor KC, I went home still feeling unsure if i should get baptized or not? I fell asleep quite early that night and woke up at very early the next morning. While still in bed, I remembered this verse that i read a while ago. It was
Matthew 7:7, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
Inspired by that verse, I prayed and poured my heart out to God and I said:
“God, I’ve asked you to come into my life, I want to have a close relationship with you, I’ve been seeking you, reading your Word and waiting for your presence but i’m not feeling it. Why am I feeling this struggle in me right now? Because of my spiritual emptiness, I tried to fill this void by asking you to come into my life but why am I having doubts about being baptized? It would mean so much to me if you could speak to me and give me a sign that you here with me right now listening”.
Believe it or not, God answered my prayers at that exact moment! He spoke to me by way of a fire alarm blaring it at 5:00AM in the morning for the whole neighborhood to hear. I was startled and got goose bumps all over my body and I knew at that moment that it was God answering me. Vince woke up and was like what’s going on? and I told him oh that was me praying and he just answered my prayers.
It was such an amazing, incredible and at the same time a little creepy experience that I had that early morning. I got so excited and didn’t care what time it was I texted my friend to tell her what I had just experienced.
The next day i told pastor KC that i’m getting baptized, there’s no need to wait any longer. I told him God answered my prayers and VERY LOUDLY!!! After overcoming that baptism uneasiness, the emptiness in my heart is now being filled with peace, faith and love of God.
I learned that Our God is deep, complex and mysterious and it will take a lifetime of learning to know more about Him but never doubt God’s existence and his love for us. Keep asking, seeking and knocking and you will see that God will answer your prayers in so many different and awesome ways, just like how he did with me. I am so grateful for the acceptance and guidance from everyone here at EFC Irvine. Our women's fellowship group and all my friends who have supported me in my quest for spiritual growth.
I would like to end this testimony with a verse from Hebrews 11:6
“ And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and he rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
THANK YOU!
Janet Chong
I was raised in a Buddhist family although I wouldn’t consider my parents being really religious as I don’t remember going to a temple on a regular basis. We’ve always had a shrine set up in our home and we would pay our respect in the mornings. I’ve never learned much about it and never felt spiritually connected
I was first introduced to Christianity when I attended a church service in Argentina when I was 14 years old. Knowing that my parents would totally object to the idea, I did not tell them. One day they found out, got really upset and did not allow me to go again. So growing up with those memories back in my mind where no Christianity was allowed in my family, I never took the initiative to find out more about Christianity, even as an adult.
Ironically I married a Catholic and from a very religious family but as religious as they are, they never insisted on me converting to Christianity. The only thing was that we would attend church as a family when my in-laws were in town visiting, which I always dreaded and tried to look for excuses not to go. Throughout the years, Vince would try to convince me to go to mass but eventually he gave up.
This past summer, we were invited to Vince’s doctor’s church because her son was being ordained as a deacon. Surprisingly, I agreed to go without any resistance or making a big fuss. For the first time, I was actually drawn by the whole Sunday Catholic mass.
and that weekend was the start of a life changing event. I left church intrigued. When I got home I quickly went online and started googling everything about God. My curiosity and search for God has been constant ever since that day. I would spend hours in front of my computer reading and learning about God. One Google search led to another search, and after 43 years I finally opened myself up to God and asked the Lord to come into my life.
It has been a few months now, and just when i thought everything was going well I started having this spiritual struggle in me. I had signed up to be baptized and that step-up in commitment raised some doubts. Am I ready? Am I doing the right thing? I started to question my faith. I felt unsure, lost, confused, a little frustrated and discouraged. I started having doubts and I asked myself that maybe I was not ready to be a Christian or that maybe Christianity was not for me after all.
I told pastor KC that i might want to postpone the baptism till next year. We had our talk and he suggested that I take the baptism class first before making my decision.
So the night after my baptism class with pastor KC, I went home still feeling unsure if i should get baptized or not? I fell asleep quite early that night and woke up at very early the next morning. While still in bed, I remembered this verse that i read a while ago. It was
Matthew 7:7, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”
Inspired by that verse, I prayed and poured my heart out to God and I said:
“God, I’ve asked you to come into my life, I want to have a close relationship with you, I’ve been seeking you, reading your Word and waiting for your presence but i’m not feeling it. Why am I feeling this struggle in me right now? Because of my spiritual emptiness, I tried to fill this void by asking you to come into my life but why am I having doubts about being baptized? It would mean so much to me if you could speak to me and give me a sign that you here with me right now listening”.
Believe it or not, God answered my prayers at that exact moment! He spoke to me by way of a fire alarm blaring it at 5:00AM in the morning for the whole neighborhood to hear. I was startled and got goose bumps all over my body and I knew at that moment that it was God answering me. Vince woke up and was like what’s going on? and I told him oh that was me praying and he just answered my prayers.
It was such an amazing, incredible and at the same time a little creepy experience that I had that early morning. I got so excited and didn’t care what time it was I texted my friend to tell her what I had just experienced.
The next day i told pastor KC that i’m getting baptized, there’s no need to wait any longer. I told him God answered my prayers and VERY LOUDLY!!! After overcoming that baptism uneasiness, the emptiness in my heart is now being filled with peace, faith and love of God.
I learned that Our God is deep, complex and mysterious and it will take a lifetime of learning to know more about Him but never doubt God’s existence and his love for us. Keep asking, seeking and knocking and you will see that God will answer your prayers in so many different and awesome ways, just like how he did with me. I am so grateful for the acceptance and guidance from everyone here at EFC Irvine. Our women's fellowship group and all my friends who have supported me in my quest for spiritual growth.
I would like to end this testimony with a verse from Hebrews 11:6
“ And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to Him must believe that He exists and he rewards those who earnestly seek Him.”
THANK YOU!
Janet Chong
KELLY CHONG'S STORY
Growing up, I was not raised in a religious family; my parents never took me to church and I would only go to Sunday mass when my grandparents were visiting us. I would go because I didn’t have a choice and never really understood what it was all about.
A lot of my friends at school are Christians. They would always ask each other when they were going to church or when their church retreat was going to be and I would feel excluded. Whenever they talked about religion or anything church related, I would tune them out and go find someone else to talk to because I had nothing to contribute.
It was during the summer of last year that I started going to church. A friend of mine invited me to church on Friday nights. At first I was a little apprehensive and hesitant because I knew nothing about Christianity and felt like I’d probably embarrass myself.
When I told my mom about being invited to church, I was quite surprised that she was not against it at all. She actually encouraged me to go and told me to have an open mind and learn as much as I can. Ever since that first time, I had gone to my friend’s church a few times. But honestly, I felt like I was going to church just to socialize and have a good time and when it comes to talking about the Bible, I would feel so lost. Although I did not fully understand what was going on, I never had the courage to ask questions. After going a couple of times, I got more interested and curious but not enough for me to take a step further and take the time to learn more about Christianity or build a relationship with God.
It wasn’t until the beginning of this summer that I started seeking God. This past summer, my parents had brought me to an ordination service for a deacon and I was going through some tough times and was feeling down and sad. That heavy feeling and emptiness in my heart was lingering and I couldn’t or didn’t know how to overcome it. One day out of nowhere, I got this spontaneous urge to pray to God.
I’m not going to lie, it was super weird because it was the first time anything like this happened to me. I told Him what I was going through and how I was feeling. I asked God to lift this dark weight from me, to give me strength and make me strong so I can live with peace, joy, and return to my carefree days again. It was my real first self initiated prayer ever, short and simple, but yet very powerful because it really helped me ease the sadness I was feeling and for the first time, I felt the presence of God.
I realized that with my prayers and my acceptance of God, I found peace and solace. I have since surrendered myself to God and have asked Him to come into my life. It also made me realize that no matter what struggles and tough times we are going through, God will always be with us, supporting, and guiding us every step of the way, if we are receptive to Him.
Things might not always turn out the way we would like it to but I do believe that with God, everything happens for a reason and that something better will come out of it and will make us wiser and stronger.
I’m so happy that my family and I have found EFCI - a church that is so friendly and welcoming and played a very big role in why I am getting baptized.
I know that learning and studying the Word of God is going to be a life long experience and I feel so blessed to be able to come every Friday and Sunday to worship and learn about God with such an amazing and loving group. I hope to grow closer to God and build an everlasting bond with Him. I cannot wait for the many memories that I will be sharing with everyone here at church, for the many Friday lighthouses, Sunday services, and last but certainly not least, the sermons from pastor KC in the future!
I would like to end this testimony with one of my favorite verses in the Bible:
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
A lot of my friends at school are Christians. They would always ask each other when they were going to church or when their church retreat was going to be and I would feel excluded. Whenever they talked about religion or anything church related, I would tune them out and go find someone else to talk to because I had nothing to contribute.
It was during the summer of last year that I started going to church. A friend of mine invited me to church on Friday nights. At first I was a little apprehensive and hesitant because I knew nothing about Christianity and felt like I’d probably embarrass myself.
When I told my mom about being invited to church, I was quite surprised that she was not against it at all. She actually encouraged me to go and told me to have an open mind and learn as much as I can. Ever since that first time, I had gone to my friend’s church a few times. But honestly, I felt like I was going to church just to socialize and have a good time and when it comes to talking about the Bible, I would feel so lost. Although I did not fully understand what was going on, I never had the courage to ask questions. After going a couple of times, I got more interested and curious but not enough for me to take a step further and take the time to learn more about Christianity or build a relationship with God.
It wasn’t until the beginning of this summer that I started seeking God. This past summer, my parents had brought me to an ordination service for a deacon and I was going through some tough times and was feeling down and sad. That heavy feeling and emptiness in my heart was lingering and I couldn’t or didn’t know how to overcome it. One day out of nowhere, I got this spontaneous urge to pray to God.
I’m not going to lie, it was super weird because it was the first time anything like this happened to me. I told Him what I was going through and how I was feeling. I asked God to lift this dark weight from me, to give me strength and make me strong so I can live with peace, joy, and return to my carefree days again. It was my real first self initiated prayer ever, short and simple, but yet very powerful because it really helped me ease the sadness I was feeling and for the first time, I felt the presence of God.
I realized that with my prayers and my acceptance of God, I found peace and solace. I have since surrendered myself to God and have asked Him to come into my life. It also made me realize that no matter what struggles and tough times we are going through, God will always be with us, supporting, and guiding us every step of the way, if we are receptive to Him.
Things might not always turn out the way we would like it to but I do believe that with God, everything happens for a reason and that something better will come out of it and will make us wiser and stronger.
I’m so happy that my family and I have found EFCI - a church that is so friendly and welcoming and played a very big role in why I am getting baptized.
I know that learning and studying the Word of God is going to be a life long experience and I feel so blessed to be able to come every Friday and Sunday to worship and learn about God with such an amazing and loving group. I hope to grow closer to God and build an everlasting bond with Him. I cannot wait for the many memories that I will be sharing with everyone here at church, for the many Friday lighthouses, Sunday services, and last but certainly not least, the sermons from pastor KC in the future!
I would like to end this testimony with one of my favorite verses in the Bible:
“Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” (Joshua 1:9)
