Growing up, I never knew who God was. But when I finally found Jesus, I realized that my perspectives on God were different from my parents’. I had no choice but to adhere to my parents’ perspectives and rules. Every time I reminded myself that God loves me and He is merciful, people around me would tell me that I was not enough and that I would still end up in hell because of the sins I had committed.

I grew up without my mother, so my grandmother had to fill in the role as my mother. When she passed away, my life went downhill. My family had little time for me, and I lived a rebellious lifestyle. With little guidance, I got into bad company. At the age of sixteen, I was drinking almost every day, and smoking up to one and a half packets of cigarettes daily. I even got hooked on drugs for a period of time.

One day in December last year, a Christian friend called to inform me that her two daughters, aged eight and eleven years old, had been declared missing.

Two years ago, I lost my job when my teaching contract was not renewed. In addition, I was affected by the poor evaluation given by the principal. It was only the positive peer evaluations from my colleagues and encouraging appraisals from my students that had kept me motivated.

A few months ago, I went for a mammogram screening and received a notice that an abnormality needed to be further investigated.