May’s Testimony - May 的见证
I have known May Hang Lee since 1982 when her family members (her husband, her and four children) and my family members (my wife, my mother, four children and I) went to the same Chinese Baptist Church for Sunday worships and frequent fellowship meetings under Minister Reverand John Lo and his wife. I can vouch that May is a very devoted Christian and together with her husband (now with the Lord) she had assisted many Chinese new migrants through her generosity.
自1982年以来，我认识May Hang Lee，当时她的家人（她的丈夫，她和四个孩子）和我的家人（我的妻子，我的母亲，四个孩子和我）去了同一个中国浸信会参加星期天的礼拜和经常团契。 Reverand John Lo和他的妻子会面下的会议。我可以保证，May是一个非常忠诚的基督徒，并与她的丈夫（现在与主一起），她通过她的慷慨帮助了许多中国新移民。
The following is the testimony of the Lord’s grace and blessings showered upon May and her family. The testimony was delivered in Cantonese and she then supplied me with the English version below.
以下是主赐给May和她的家人的恩典和祝福的见证。证词以粤语发表，然后她提供了以下英文版本。
The occasion - May’s 80th birthday. The celebration - dinner at Lucky Star Chinese Restaurant, 125 Great South Road, Papatoetoe, Auckland. 鸿星酒楼。 The date - Monday 13th May 2019.
这个场合 - May的80岁生日。庆祝活动 - 奥克兰Papatoetoe大南路125号Lucky Star中餐厅的晚宴。（鸿星酒楼）。日期 - 2019年5月13日星期一。
Her Testimony reads as follows:
“I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.
I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9: 1-2
詩 篇 9:1-2
9 （ 大 卫 的 诗 ， 交 与 伶 长 。 调 用 慕 拉 便 。 ） 我 要 一 心 称 谢 耶 和 华 ； 我 要 传 扬 你 一 切 奇 妙 的 作 为 。2 我 要 因 你 欢 喜 快 乐 ； 至 高 者 啊 ， 我 要 歌 颂 你 的 名 ！
On Easter Sunday, 1956, I was baptised into the bosom of the Lord Jesus in a river in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. [Note: 17 years old then]
在1956年的复活节星期天，我在马来西亚吉隆坡的一条河里受洗进入主耶稣的怀抱。 [注：那时我是一个17岁的女孩]
I grew up in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. During World War II, the Japanese invaded Malaysia. One night, my parents escaped from the bombing by going into a dugout. In that disgusting environment, I was born. Since no midwife was available, my father helped my mother to deliver me into this world.
我在马来西亚吉隆坡长大。在第二次世界大战期间，日本人入侵了马来西亚。一天晚上，我的父母走进了一个地下的防空洞，逃离轰炸。在那恶心的环境中，我出生了。由于没有助产士，我的父亲帮助我的母亲带我进入这个世界。
However, my father was not at all happy. He was disappointed when he saw that I was a girl, again. He and his wife had expected a son (to carry on the family surname) as they already had three girls before me. So, my father wanted to sell me in exchange for some food as our family was very poor. One of our relatives, however, said to him, “Who could bear to give away one’s own child? No matter how poor you are, you should go through with the bringing up of your own children. Since she was born on New Year’s Eve of the year of the Rabbit, her birth date together with the time of birth is very good. When the full moon comes, she will bring you good luck.” Because of this elderly relative’s words, I remained in the family.
但是，我父亲一点都不高兴。当他再次看到我是一个女孩时，他很失望。他和他的妻子曾经期待一个儿子（继承姓氏），因为他们已经有三个女孩。所以，爸爸想卖掉我，以换取一些食物，因为我们的家庭非常贫穷。然而，我们的一位亲戚对他说：“谁能忍受放弃自己的孩子？无论你多么贫穷，你都应该养育自己的孩子。由于她出生在兔年的新年前夕，她的出生日期与出生时间一起都是非常好。当满月来临时，她会带给你们好运。“ 因为这位年长的亲戚的话，我就留在我的家里了。
My father’s job was the weaving of rattan basket cages for pigs to be sold locally. He was the only rattan draftsman in the neighbourhood.
我父亲的工作是编织藤篮笼子，以便在当地出售猪。他是附近唯一的藤条制图员。
Courtesy of https://chingchailah.blogspot.com/2018/03/antique-treasures-and-seafood-products.html
One night, some Japanese officials came and banged on our front door, ordering us to open up for them. No one dared to do so. Finally, my father took the risk and opened the door. We did not understand their Japanese language but finally realized through hand signs that they wanted to buy our pig cages to carry some pigs away. They gave us rice and milk in exchange, and their regular visits made our life so much easier. My father then thought that my date and time of birth had made his business thrive, so I became his favorite daughter.
一天晚上，一些日本官员来到我们的前门，并命令我们为他们开放。没有人敢这样做。最后，我父亲冒了风险，打开了门。我们不懂他们的日语，但终于通过手势表明他们想买我们的猪笼来带走一些猪。他们给了我们大米和牛奶作为交换，他们的定期访问使我们的生活变得更加容易。我的父亲然后认为我的出生日期和时间带了他的生意兴旺，所以我成了他最喜欢的女儿。
My grandfather had bought a boy for my father so as to continue the family line. Though he was a bit older than me, I was still dearly loved by my parents. We went to school together. My second eldest sister was the most intelligent and worked diligently. She always came first in her examinations. In contrast, my adopted brother failed in almost all subjects and my father often said that he was useless. Yet, he was brilliant in sports and came in third in
我的祖父为我父亲买了一个男孩，以便继续这个家庭的性明。虽然他比我大一点，但我的父母仍然非常喜爱。我们一起去学校。我的第二个大姐是最聪明的，勤奋工作。她总是在考试中排在第一位。相比之下，我收养的兄弟几乎在所有科目中都失败了，而我的父亲经常说他没用。然而，他在体育方面表现出色，并在整个学校的运动日排在第三位。
Although my second eldest sister was intelligent, her health was very poor. She got a scholarship to further her studies at the university but she died when she was only twenty-four. Life is so fleeting. On her deathbed, the fear of death humbled my sister. She asked me, “Would it be too late to believe in Jesus now?” “No,” I replied, “the Lord Jesus will accept you.” So she repented and believed in Jesus. I prayed that Jesus would receive her soul and let her rest in His bosom. Thank God!
虽然我的第二个大姐很聪明，但她的健康状况很差。她获得了奖学金，以进一步在大学学习，但她只有二十四岁就去世了。生命如此短暂。在她临终前，对死亡的恐惧使我的姐姐谦卑。她问我：“现在相信耶稣是否为时已晚？” “不，” 我回答说，“主耶稣会接受你。” 所以她后悔并相信耶稣。我祈祷耶稣会接受她的灵魂，让她在他怀里安息。感谢上帝！
The first time I heard the gospel was in 1954. There was a Southern Baptist Convention Evangelical Centre inside a book shop a few streets down the road from where I lived. It was set up by the American Southern Baptist Mission. There were a senior pastor and two other younger pastors. They started Sunday school and youth fellowships. A girl who was my neighbor invited me to go with her. There I heard the message of salvation and got to know Jesus.
我第一次听到福音是在1954年。在我住的地方的一条街道的书店里面有一个南浸信会大会福音派中心。它由美国南方浸信会成立。有一位资深牧师和另外两位年轻的牧师。他们开始了周日学校和青年团契.我邻居的一个女孩邀请我和她一起去。在那里，我听到了救恩的信息，并认识了耶稣。
In the fellowship, I memorized Bible verses and learned to be a secretary and then later the chairman of the group. I was very diligent and memorized thirteen verses every quarter of the year and received prizes for it.
在团契中，我记住了圣经经文，并学会了成为一名秘书，后来成为该组织的主席。我非常勤奋并且每年每季度都记住了13节经文并获得了奖品。
My father did not like me to believe in Jesus so he scolded me, beat me up and did not allow me to go to attend worship service at church. He did not permit me to believe in a “foreign religion”. By this time my mother had also believed in Christ but she was too gentle and weak. The thorns of trouble and sorrow choked her from growing into a mature Christian. Every time when friends wanted to bring her to church, my father would scold them away without any mercy. He even used his fists to hit my mother and she never resisted. But I would protect her by standing in between them and the only then would my father relent.
我的父亲不喜欢我相信耶稣，所以他骂我，打我，不允许我去教堂参拜。他不允许我相信“外国宗教”。这时候，我的母亲也相信了基督，但她太温柔软弱了。麻烦和悲伤的荆棘使她不能成长为一个成熟的基督徒。每当朋友想把她带到教堂时，父亲就会毫不留情地责骂他们。他甚至用拳头打我母亲，她从不反抗。但我会站在他们之间来保护她，然后父亲才会停手。
In 1959, in an essay competition organized by the Morning newspaper in West Malaysia, I was honored that “My Testimony” was awarded the first prize and I received a $1,000 award. A doctor was moved by my testimony and offered to support me to study in the Bible College. The testimony of my calling was also accepted by Bible College. However, my father was strongly against it and even reproached my pastor when he came to visit so he had to go away. I was frustrated but God opened another door for me.
1959年，在马来西亚晨报组织的一次征文比赛中，我很荣幸“我的见证”获得了一等奖，我获得了1000美元的奖励。我的证词使医生感动，并愿意支持我到圣经学院学习。我的呼召的证词也被圣经学院接受。然而，我的父亲强烈反对它，甚至在他来访时辱骂我的牧师，所以他不得不离开。我很沮丧，但上帝为我打开了另一扇门。
My pastor planned to further his studies in the Bible College in Hong Kong and another pastor came to replace him. This new pastor was from New Zealand. When we got to know each other well and developed a trusting relationship, he introduced me to a brother attending the Auckland Chinese Baptist Church. We began writing to each other and eventually, we became lovers. With faith, I migrated from Malaysia to New Zealand.
我的牧师计划在香港圣经学院继续深造，另一位牧师来取代他。这位新牧师来自新西兰。当我们彼此了解并建立起信任的关系时，他向我介绍了一位出席奥克兰华人浸信会的兄弟。我们开始互相写作，最终，我们成了情人。凭着信念，我从马来西亚迁移到新西兰。
NOTE: Just reflect on this theme: “Taking a Leap in Faith”. How many of us have taken such a leap in faith? In my own life, I have taken such leaps in faith at least five times - Age 22, to London on a Government Scholarship with a newly wedded wife left in Singapore; Age 29, from a steady Government job to private practice on my own; Age 39, from the comforts of a successful practice in the Far East to the wilderness of Auckland; Age 42, from the comfort of a steady job back into stormy private practice in Auckland; Age 59, from Auckland to Thailand and eventually back to Auckland by 2005 (age 65). Back to May now, after such a reflection:
It was like Abraham who was called by God, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land that I will show you.” Though we were separated by thousands of miles, God ‘the pioneer and perfecter of faith’ led us to come together in our marriage. After we got married, we faced all kinds of challenges together and created a beautiful and warm family. We have four adult children, all having graduated, each with good education and now having good careers. My husband and I also tried very hard to help lots of refugees as they faced problems and we shared the gospel with them.
就像亚伯拉罕被上帝召唤一样，“从你的国家，你的人民和你父亲的家中走到我要告诉你的土地上。”虽然我们被千里之外所隔离，但上帝“信仰的先驱和完美”使我们在婚姻中走到了一起。结婚后，我们共同面对各种挑战，创造了一个美丽温馨的家庭。我们有四个成年子女，都已毕业，每个都受过良好的教育，现在有良好的职业生涯。我丈夫和我也非常努力地帮助了许多难民，因为他们遇到了问题，我们与他们分享了福音。
Psalm 91: 14-16 said, 14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him;
I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name.
15 He will call on me, and I will answer him;
I will be with him in trouble,
I will deliver him and honor him.
16 With a long life, I will satisfy him
and show him my salvation.”
The Lord guides my whole life. I came to New Zealand with nothing and my parents and relatives were living far away. Yet, by God’s grace, He provided us with working opportunities and abilities so we have come to a stage where we lack nothing. We give thanks and praises to our Lord!
主引导我的一生。来到新西兰的时后，我什么都没有，我的父母和亲戚都住在很远的地方。然而，通过上帝的恩典，他为我们提供了工作机会和能力，所以我们已经到了一个我们一无所有的阶段。我们感谢和赞美我们的主！
Praise the Lord！Again and Again！
English