In this testimony which the church heard on Aug 28 and 29, Kong Yun Rui shares her journey to finding God and breaking her bad habits in City Harvest Church.
Yunrui (right) with her husband Samuel, her mother-in-law and baby Elena
“My parents were divorced when I was 6. I rarely saw them except during the weekends. This is because my younger sister and I were raised by our grandmother, and we lived with our uncle’s family. After my parents’ divorce, I became withdrawn and broken. I often battled with feelings of rejection and never felt good enough for anyone or anything. My studies deteriorated. I was always very angry and sometimes I would become violent. On several occasions, I hurt my schoolmates. My form teacher thought I was hopeless and beyond help.
FINDING GOD IN CITY HARVEST
“In 1996, a family friend invited me to City Harvest Church. Those were the early days of Church Without Walls. Here, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Saviour.
“I took the church bus every Saturday. It was the highlight of my week because in this place, I felt loved. I was unconditionally accepted. The patience and kindness of the Children’s Church teachers really helped me in my growing-up years. Teacher Joanna Sin, Pastor Glordia Goh and many others never stopped believing in me. I looked forward to their weekly home visitations where they taught me and my sister Bible lessons. They took interest in our lives by listening to us, encouraging us, and praying with us. The memory verses we had to memorise helped to ground us in God’s Word.
“I had a bad habit of gambling. One day, Pastor Eileen taught us that gambling is wrong. Even though I was only a kid, I felt the conviction of the Holy Spirit and made the decision to stop. From that day on, I never gambled again.
“The weekly tuition I received in the church helped me to become a more confident learner. My dream was to one day help others in need, like how I was helped. So I studied hard and my grades improved. I was awarded bursaries annually. I was also made the assistant head prefect in school.
MY CELL GROUP SUPPORTED ME
“When I was 14, my father got into deep debt due to gambling. We had loan sharks coming to our doorstep every other day. They would leave writings on the wall, along the corridor, threatening us to pay up. It was terrifying and left me mentally and physically exhausted. I was constantly worried about my dad and afraid to be alone. During those times, my cell group would always pray with me, and support me and my sisters, both emotionally and financially. I learnt to trust God in spite of the hardships. I thank God that eventually all the debts were paid off, and my dad started earning a stable income.
Yunrui (centre, in white) with her cell group
“Jesus really changed my life. Now, I desire to shine for Him and make a difference in the life of others. Nine years ago, I graduated with honours in Linguistics and Multilingual Studies from Nanyang Technological University. After that, I completed my Master’s degree with the University of Hong Kong. Today, I am a lead educational therapist helping children with learning difficulties at the Dyslexia Association of Singapore. I also conduct workshops for adult educators and parents.
“God has blessed me with a wonderful family. I am happily married to Samuel, who is working in church. We are blessed with a beautiful little girl, Elena. After all these years, I am still serving as a cell group leader. I also serve in HarvestKidz, helping children with learning difficulties, specifically with the Reading Programme. All this would not have been possible if not for God and those who served in Church Without Walls. They saw a need in me and they met it; they saw hurt and they healed it. Thank you for making a big difference in my life.”
