Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Brian Tan's baptism

When my son Brian turned to his 13th birthday last September 2014, I asked him if he is ready to be baptized. His answer was, " Yes, I believe in Jesus Christ and He has saved me many times in my life mommy, I am not going anywhere." Of course as a Christian parent , I am overjoyed with his answer.

I asked him to write a testimony letter that discern the genuineness of his faith and readiness for baptism, on his own will not mine. After reading it, I can't help to shed some tears.
God has blessed us with a son whom we love very much, we are grateful for all blessings the good and the bad in our life. With God's help and love, my husband and I accept the bad things that happened to us that create strength of character and strength of faith.

Here below is the letter Brian wrote, hope this letter will bring a blessing to some of you who are going through  hard times as it is to us :




 
Just In case Brian's hand writing is hard to read, I will type Brian's letter as well :
Hello, my name is Brian, and today I have accepted Christ as my savior. But why did I want to be baptized. Well, the answer to that is quite simple. I want to believe that Christ died for my sins, and he rose again. The story behind my answer changed my perspective toward Him, and He is the reason why I am here today.

When I was little, I didn't know much about God. I remember going to church and attending Sunday school. But I didn't understand the meaning behind it. Then when I was four, I stopped going to school and went to the hospital almost everyday. Later on, I found out that I had brain cancer. Everything I remember then was going through a lot of pain, needles, and throwing up daily.

One treatment that I didn't forget was when I had to wear a stiff mask and to be strapped onto a machine. The doctors and nurses tried to calm me down by saying I was going into a rocket. It was really a radiation machine that I had to go through. During radiation my mom asked me if I wanted to be put to sleep every time I did radiation, or to believe that Jesus was there with me holding my hand. I chose to hold Jesus hand and I was able to go through radiation for 31 days without sedation. And the whole time I believe that Jesus was there with me.

Here I am today, surviving cancer for 8 years. Going through 8 surgeries in total. It was very tough , but God was there to give me comfort. I am thankful to my parents, my friends and my church.

One verse that always give me hope is : Isaiah 41:10
It says, " So do not fear for I am with you, do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

No human on earth has the power to heal us completely. They can only give us hope. But when it comes to God, His power is endless. He can take away our pain. I have accepted Christ into my heart, and I will follow Him everyday of my life.
Brian

Brian was finally baptized on December 21' 2014 at IEC. San Jose ( GII - Gereja Injili Indonesia di San Jose ) by Rev. Stephen Hosea and Rev. Timotius Tjing by his side.