“I grew up in a typical immigrant family in Sugarland. My dad was doctor in Houston and very busy so there wasn’t much father son interaction. But despite that, I had a very strong sense of right and wrong and knew I had act in a proper way to be a good person. But as one of the few Asians in Sugarland at the time. It was more important for me to fit in. And to be sure that I wasn’t left out in the group, I would do things that I would know wasn’t right (such as bullying a neighborhood boy that also wanted to fit in). I had the burden of getting approval from others not knowing there was someone who accepted me and loved me regardless of how I acted. I was insecure in who I was.

My journey as a follower of Christ started in the summer back in 4th grade. An elderly neighbor told my mom about a Vacation Bible School, so she signed me up and I attended it. As I wanted to get approval, I memorized the verses and “showed everyone” I was good at this and got compliments from the teacher. At the time, I didn’t know much about God, but after learning and hearing about who Jesus is, that He loves me and he forgave my sins, the holy spirit was pounding in my heart that I am a sinner and I need Jesus in my life. So, on the last day, the Pastor had the altar call, and I decided to trust Jesus as my savior. I was the first one in my family to become a follower of Jesus.

After that decision, God used me to spread that experience and good news to my parents and friends. I shouldn’t keep this secret to myself. And by God’s grace, my family came to follow Christ and some of friends came to follow him (who doesn’t want to spend eternity with your friends). But the one thing that changed in my life early on in my youth was a perspective that I was now secure to know that God loved me for who I was regardless of how I performed and would never leave me. And that kind of acceptance and understanding was a firm foundation for me when I faced difficulties in life (I ended up being bullied myself and now understood how it felt on the receiving end). But as an adult, by studying more the word of God through Bible Study, talking to pastors, my understanding about who He is and how much he loves me left me in awe of his love for us. But my focus is no longer about me and how much God loves me but how the love of God makes me want to share the goodness of God to others. Besides the family that God has graciously provided, I desire even more to share God’s love in action to the people God brings into our lives whether it is our neighbors we are reaching out or my coworkers at work.”