A TESTIMONY OF MY CALLING TO BE A SERVANT OF THE GOSPEL

From the Board of Elders

Today, we gather together to witness and to praise and thank God for the ordination of Dn. Lim Seh Beng as the minister in the Lord’s service. We rejoice together (cf. Philippians 4:4). We pray for God’s grace, mercy and blessings to be upon him as he serves God in His kingdom. We pray that God continue to provide and sustain him. God be his strength, courage and comfort. “Have not I commanded thee? Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the LORD thy God is with thee whithersoever thou goest.” Joshua 1:9.

In Christ, Eld. Choe Tong Seng

Dn. Lim Seh Beng: A testimony of my calling to be a servant of the Gospel

This is a testimony of how I, a sinner saved by grace is called by God to serve in His vineyard.  

As a child, the notion of God or “gods” to me was a confusing puzzle. As a young child, I often wondered about the existence of God. When I was about 15 years old, an older schoolmate invited a group of us to attend their Tuesday fellowship meeting. One day, after the fellowship, an older student by the name of Christopher talked to me and asked me if I had heard about the Gospel. He took the time to share with me the passage from John 3:16

“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” John 3:16

Christopher shared with me from the Bible about sin, condemnation, and salvation grace of God. He also explained to me that the Lord Jesus is the way the truth and the life (John 14:6). After that, we prayed the sinner’s prayer together. I remember the date - it was the 7th of June 1973. 

In the early years, I did not grow much in spiritual knowledge. I went through ups and downs in my spiritual life, sometimes resulting in disobedience and chastisement, but God, who is faithful has kept me thus far. It was a life of struggles with sin and trials, but God’s word kept me and guided me.

The stirrings of the heart – a call of God? 

“For the LORD is good; his mercy is everlasting …”  Psalm 100:5

I was busy most of my adulthood with making a living and raising a family. On some occasions I would ponder about serving the Lord, but I quickly dismissed it as a figment of my imagination. Over the years, worldliness had crept into my life, my spiritual life deteriorated. Life was mostly about working hard and enjoying the pleasures of life. As time wore on, I became very worldly in conduct, getting involved in the busy-ness of life, in eating, drinking, and making merry. I backslided, my spiritual life suffered, and I was due for a rude awakening. It was sometime around October 2001, I was involved in a serious automobile accident. Thankfully, God preserved my life, but I knew it was a chastisement from the Lord. I prayed that night “Lord, you have preserved my life for a reason, and if it is to serve you, I will prepare myself for now … whatever time it takes, while I await the call to duty.” 

Immediately, I made a turn in my life. I started taking up FEBC classes through distance learning. These lessons were very profitable, and I continued these online lessons for several years. I also began to have regular family worship and bible study. It was a crucial turning point in life for the family and myself.

The irresistible grace and the call of God

In the course of the years, our children grew up and left for their education. I remember the day on the 13^th July 2014, whilst attending my son’s graduation parade, I prayed and thanked God for the children’s graduation and for blessing us with health and a good life. Suddenly, a dark thought occurred to me – things may be rosy now, but what if trials and testings came my way? But God’s word comforted me.

Job 2:10 “... What? shall we receive good at the hand of God, and shall we not receive evil? …

Shortly after, a relative asked me, if I plan to retire and serve the Lord full-time. Strangely, several weeks before, while I was having lunch with a colleague, we had a similar conversation. So, on that afternoon, I prayed that the Lord will make clear to me if He chooses to call me to serve Him. Nothing had prepared me for what was about to happen. God’s call to me came shockingly and startlingly that I could not ignore or dismiss.

 

26^th July 2014 – the call of God through His word

Sometime around July 2014, I was experiencing dizziness and fatigue at my workplace. Within a few days, my condition deteriorated and on the 26^th July 2014, a Saturday morning, I felt so weak that I knew I needed medical attention. We tried calling a few hospitals in the vicinity. It was a Hari Raya weekend, and the specialist clinics were closed for the weekend. We did not know then that time was crucial, but God was merciful and gracious. Finally, we managed to get a contact for a specialist through a sister in the church. Upon arrival, I was warded immediately, and only after I had regained consciousness in ICU that the surgeon explained to me that I had survived a life-threatening situation. Unknown to me, I had been bleeding internally, and by the time the surgeon had stabilized my condition, I had suffered severe blood loss, and had required several transfusions.  I prayed in my heart “Thank you Lord, for preserving my life.” When I was in ICU, I recall the words of the Bible from Matthew 16 and Luke 12:

“But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul shall be required of thee: then whose shall those things be, which thou hast provided?”  Luke 12:20, 21

The call of God truly comes through the remembrance of His words. In the silence, I contemplated:

“For what is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?”  Matthew 16:26

In the ICU room, surrounded by the sounds of the critically ill, I felt amazingly calm. I was reminded of how precious it is to have the Lord Jesus as my Saviour. The assurance of safety in the Lord Jesus for all eternity is indeed priceless. Also, I was reminded that there are many others in the world who have yet to know this precious Gospel, and I need to share the Word of Life with them as well.

I was given a rude awakening as to my attitude to life – while I profess readiness to serve God, my life, and my job was mostly about earthly needs and worldly pleasures and not heavenly treasures. Thank God for His mercy in preserving my life, and for the call to the ministry.

Shortly after that, the Lord granted me a swift recovery. I enrolled in Far Eastern Bible College in 2015, and upon the completion of my studies in 2018, I returned to serve in Calvary Jaya. I thank God for the Board of Elders who proposed to our advisory pastor sometime in early October 2021 about preparing me for the ordination. The thought of it humbled me and weighed heavily upon me. I have been in prayer about this call and privilege to serve the Lord as His minister. On the 22^nd of May 2022, the chairman raised a prayer request at the session meeting for the success of the ordination process. Since then, I have been busy in preparation and prayer for wisdom for the ordination process.

I thank God for the ordination council comprising Rev. Quek Suan Yew, Rev. Lee Kim Shong, and Rev. Clement Chew, who have given me valuable guidance in the course of my preparation. Please pray for me, for strength and wisdom as I continue to serve the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.   

May the Lord Jesus Christ be glorified. Amen.

In Christ,
Dn. Lim Seh Beng