My Testimony For Crusade FOC Camp...

Hi guys,


Just posting up this little article that was dued to be shared last night during a Freshman Orientation Camp with NTU Campus Crusade(NTU CCC). It's just basically a small portion of my life, and showing you a little bit on what God has led me to see throughout the past few years of my life. Hope you guys will be encouraged by it. The main point for it is this: learn to love, learn to love self-sacrificially, beyond that point of convenience to that of a genuine desire to build the other person up in his life, as God directs you to. So yeah that for me is the greatest and most important thing thus far, and yeah so I leave everyone with this verse before you start reading this sharing. Think about these things as you read, "tongues of men and of angels", "gift of prophecy", "fathom all mysteries and all knowledge", "give all I possess to the poor", and "surrender my body to the flames". Realise this, that these things are by no means small things, and they are good things as well, however the Apostle Paul mentioned that if the attitude or motivation of the heart does not come from that of sincerity and genuinity in love as guided and taught by God - EVERYTHING, all these things counts for nothing.


"1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing."
- 1 Corinthians 13:1-3





My Testimony For Crusade FOC Camp...

Starting Prayer:
O LORD, I thank you for this opportunity to be able to share some parts of my life testimony with these brothers and sisters here. Oh LORD I pray and ask that You will continue to guide and guard the hearts of each one of these brothers and sisters, that they may grow in Godly wisdom as they listen to the words which you place in my mouth. Guide our hearts today O LORD by the counsel of Your Holy Spirit, and may be ever be obedient to that which we hear and understand from You. In Jesus name i pray, Amen.



*Who am I?
I'm Jonathan Siew, or Jon Siew in short. I'm a EEE year 2 student. I joined Campus Crusade for Christ(CCC) in year 1. I came from a Christian family, and am a 2nd generation Christian. However, I made my personal decision to follow after Christ, and live a life for the glory and honor of God, at the age of 14, when I first cried out to Him during a time of much emotional torment. Back then the prayer went somewhat like this, "LORD help me, help me to cope with all these difficulties. I choose to follow You and to learn to trust in You." What did this prayer really meant I barely knew then, but now 8 years from that day I know and understand better.



*My journey thus far?
-Experienced much uncertainties in life
-Experienced what it means to be a failure in the eyes of the world and fellow man, but yet to be treasured as a precious child in the eyes of God.
-Experienced what it means to suffer and to be viewed as weak in the eyes of the world, yet given the strength during those times to perservere, by the grace of God.

As i do not have much time in this sharing, I will only cover 2 main point of change in my life, and some of its implications. From there I will give you perhaps some advice and reminders of living a life of love - that love which is given to us by God.

I have a condition known as Degenerative Disc Disease(DDD). It is a condition resulting from an impact injury, that caused my lowest spinal disc to rupture.When this happens, the cushioning for the spine is damaged and the nerves affected. This causes pain, weakness and instability in my movements. It has been with me for the past 6 years, been worsening, and is still with me at present. It has been much of a torment in my life, and a difficulty that I had to struggle with all this time. I will give an example of how it is a difficulty.

Quite recently in my army days, 2 to 3 years ago, I had did my best in training days and was awarded this award for excellence. So from the BMT to went to OCS on a high grading, desiring to continue to try my best, and continue to learn of what leadership the army had to teach, and just enjoy the whole experience. But the injury just worsened and I was forced to pull out. Despite trying hard and diligently going for treatments like physiotherapy and checkups, in hope for an improvement so that i could attend a "recourse", it never came. So I was rather disappointed in how things went, and discouraged in the whole process, along with the other factors surrounding me which did not help to ease the burdens.

The other thing is the very simple fact that I am quite a natural athlete, and I did very well in sports in my younger days, commiting much of my time and efforts into honing this talent and skill given to me, in a hope for for hitting new milestones and targets. So you could perhaps imagine how I felt when previously being quick on my feet, and strong in my limbs as a sportman, then being reduced to a state that I could not get out of bed, and when I finally did, I could barely lift up my legs, and had to walk with a limp(due to the pain) for several years. And at present 6 years from that day I still suffer increasingly from the pain, that has not ceased since that day of its beginning.

So you may ask me, was it difficult? I would reply yes it was, and it was really difficult indeed, especially at that point in time. This is because when the pain escalates, my mind is pretty much wiped clean of its thoughts, and I find that i have to focus so hard to get sometimes the simplest of things done, or just to come up with sensible sentences.

And you may ask me, was that journey lonely, and again I would reply yes it was. This for the very fact that there were almost none to guide me during those times despite my constant search for someone with Godly wisdom and is willing to be as a guiding light. This despite my hope for someone to remind me of the love of God and that comfort and strength that I can find in Him. So yes definitely it was very difficult, but was still cope-able beacuse of the love and grace of God as He comforted me through His word and by His Holy Spirit. And also very importantly my family who gave me the occasional word of encouragement.



*The lessons that I have learnt...
-and these I learnt by viewing my life through the eyes of scripture, as God gave me understanding and wisdom in the reading and living out of His word of truth.

So as I have told some friends who asked me before, how during those junctures of my life amidst almost each uncertainty I had seen 2 distinct paths. One of rejecting whatever I have heard from the days of my youth(those of the promises of God). The second being that of asking God to lead me, choosing to trust and depend on Him during those uncertain times. And so in most of them I chose to trust in God and to learn from Him as He taught me through His word and the guidance of the Holy Spirit. And so as those uncertainties rose in magnitude, so my hope and trust in God had to rise as well, as I daily renewed my strength in Him. And hence I am still here to share with you today.

-->Lesson 1: I learnt to trust and depend on God more and more with each new day.
" My flesh and my heart may fail,
but God is the strength of my heart
and my portion forever."
- Psalms 73:26


And I am also reminded through my own pain, the pain and suffering of the needy and the poor in society, some of whom are within my sphere of influence. I am reminded of how during my most needy times there was almost none there to stand by me to encourage me, to love me, to remind me of the love of God. But thanks be to God that my family did that on some occasions. So I made a choice on my part, that with whatever limited capacity I have, I would spend it to love the people God has placed in my life, to strengthen and build up each one of them up, to as much as God wills. I desire to give others that glimpse of the love and hope of God that people in need hunger so much for.(That hunger which was never really met in my own life.)

-->Lesson 2: God has taught me through this and various other experiences to treasure the people and the relationships He has placed in my life, to learn to love each and everyone of them as He directs.

" This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers. If anyone has material possessions and sees his brother in need but has no pity on him, how can the love of God be in him? Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth."
- 1 John 3:16-18

"No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us."
- 1 John 4:12

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
- James 1:27



*Take away points(for you guys)...
1) The importance to ask God for the teachability of heart(humility), from which He may instruct you most effectively. And from where you may be able to hear and understand clearly, hence able to obey.

--> The Parable of the sower(Matt 13:1-23), the heart being the good soil, and the word of God being the seed. The seed which can take a good position for growth should the soil be prepared for it.


2) May we learn to love others in a manner that we die to our selfish desires, and learn to meet the needs of others above that of ours. This is only possible as we learn to be led by the Spirit in His strength, anda s we are renewed in our minds by the truth in God's word.

Summing up:
Te: -achability of heart
L: -earning to be led by the Spirit
L: -earning to love others as God desires us to



*Closing Prayer:

"The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
he restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Even though I walk though the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil,
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."
- Psalms 23

-LORD, may we learn to acknowledge You as the one who directs our paths, and may we ever be obedient to You as You show us the manner of which we should live, that manner which is in Your love.

LORD I pray that we will truly learn to find rest in You, as we learn to trust in You and place our hopes and confidence in You in all of our lives.

LORD God I pray that as the Holy Spirit continues to work in each of our lives through the teachability of our hearts, the fruits of the Spirit will grow in increasing measures, that our lives may be as a holy and pleasing sacrifice unto thy name. And that through righteous lives we may be able to remind others of the goodness and love of our Almighty God. The fruits of the Spirit being that of: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.(Gal 5:22-23)

Heavenly Father, I commit each and every one of these Your precious children into your hands. In Jesus' precious name I pray, Amen.



In His love,
Jon