Testimony

I am Daniel Chew, and have been a Christian for the last 8½ years. I would just like to share my testimony to show forth the reality of God and His grace in my life.

I was born into a Christian family, with both of my parents attending a Presbyterian church. My mother had a godly Christian heritage whereas my father was a convert to Christianity. In my early days, I was taught some simple Christian truths by my parents. Being brought up as a Christian, as a child of the covenant, so to speak, I automatically assumed I was a Christian, and have even said the sinner's prayer then to confess my sins and turn to Christ. However, I was not really regenerated or born-again at that time and did not understand the prayer or what Christianity is all about and much less who God is.

During my early schooling days, I was picked on and bullied in school. Also, due to my upbringing and other factors, I was in many ways different from the others, and this became more and more pronounced as I grew up. This became grounds for being ostracized by my classmates, especially since I was also irritable, and these factors lead to me becoming rather anti-social then also. Things got worse when I was ensnared, addicted and influenced by some trading card game which had occultic influences in them which made me more rebellious. Being without God at that time, I was under the snare of the devil who made me rebellious against authority and I also suffered from depression then.

Thankfully, God is gracious to me. While I was still his enemy, God drew me to Himself through the means of the preaching by a pastor at a church camp. At that time, I was going to church only because my parents wanted me to go there. In June 1997, my parents forced me to go to a church camp, which I definitely didn't want to go. It was only because they were my parents so they managed to drag me to the camp against my wishes.

It was during that camp that God touched me through the Holy Spirit and changed me. It was not due to something that I have done, although I did surrender to the Lord then, neither was it any inclination in my part, but God took pity on me a rebellious sinner who hated Him and transformed me by His grace. I didn't choose Christ, but Christ chose me and regenerated my soul. I was brought then to repentance in Christ over my sins and committed my life to Him. Truly, all thanks be to God, who saved me over and against my own free will; for I know that given my free autonomous choice, I would never have chosen Christ in the first place.

After this time, God has slowly transformed me from the inside out. God has also slowly healed me of the hurts which I have sustained. I grew in passion and love for the Lord who saved me out of the darkness of my own sin and depravity and desired to serve Him and know Him more. Therefore, I begin to read His Word and to read up other Christian books also. I also begin to serve Him in my church as well, in gratitude for the One who gave His all for me.

[... continue with short autobiography]

It was after some time before I would be called up for the mandatory 2½ years of National Service (NS) demanded by the government on all Singaporeans. My faith was severely put to the test there. Never before have I heard so much vulgarities before, from men and commanders alike. Immorality was also praised there as a virtue and injustice was rampant. Being brought up in a sheltered environment, I was unprepared for such an onslaught and was tormented emotionally and spiritually. It doesn't help matter when you are practically almost the only Christian there and the rare Christian that I came across in my platoon was just thinking of surviving and sometimes even join in with the others in ridiculing me due to my non-conforming conduct as opposed to their sinful lifestyles. It was in the crucible of such an anti-christian environment that God uses to purify me and show me the depravity of the world. I came out of it totally washed out and barely surviving, clinging on by His grace alone.

After this episode of my life, God was pleased to grant me a safe haven as I entered university and studied there. I joined Campus Crusade for Christ in NUS (National University of Singapore) and I was really blessed there by the fellowship of believers. By God's grace, I leave behind the nightmares of the past and resolved to start anew. By Gods grace, he healed me and I continued to grow in Him even as I resumed my growth in Him. It was at that time in December 2003 that I first encountered what is commonly known as the doctrines of grace or the full Gospel of Christ. I was at that time saved by the proclamation of a partial Gospel and thus my growth in Christ was a bit stunted, to say the least. I struggled with those teachings as the unadulterated Gospel is an offense to the natural Man, proclaiming the total depravity of Man and His utter inability to come to Christ apart from the Holy Spirit, which is only given to the elect and not to all. The entire thought sounds repugnant to me at that time but I was compelled by the witness of the text of Scripture to accept it, though I struggled for a few months with it. (You can read it more in detail here) However, I accepted it soon because it is impossible to argue against God and His Word.

This acceptance of the pure, unadulterated Gospel heralded a breakthrough for me and transformed me into deeper growth in Christ, and a deeper knowledge of Him. However, storms of testing and trials because of the sake of His name soon came, as promised in His Word (2 Tim. 3:12).

Around April 2004 the Passion of the Christ movie by Mel Gibson came out. I was initially very supportive of this movie as I felt it shows us, in some small way, the sufferings that Christ endured for us on the cross of Calvary, to save us from the punishment we so rightly deserved for our sins. Numerous Evangelical churches and organizations were using this movie as an evangelism launch-pad and my former church was no exception. However, it was during this time that the church helped bring in and sell a booklet produced by American Roman Catholics that teaches wrong doctrines alongside right ones as an aide in conjunction with the screening of the Passion of the Christ movie. As with most other unsuspecting, trusting people in the congregation, my family obtained a few copies in order to give away to people which we are reaching out to. As I was bored then, I looked through the booklet and was shocked to find blatant heresies taught in it. Following this I stood up for the truth, albeit in a contentious manner then, and was utterly dismayed at the utter apathy that the church displayed against such a travesty of God's commands.

This episode started off what I call the Purpose Driven crisis in my life, which lasted from April 2004 to December 2005, named after the Purpose Driven Life as its icon. This was because my former church then decided to do the 40 Days of Purpose around March - April 2005 which symbolizes and epitomizes all that is wrong and the trials I would have to face during this period. It started off with the Passion issue which ended with a one-way apology being made by me for my unloving and wrong conduct and with unrepentance on the leadership's part for their blatant compromise. Shortly after that, those of us who were cell leaders, which I was then, were invited to a special screening and launching of the 40 Days of Purpose. After this, and after doing further research, I was convinced it was unbiblical. This research took me nearly one year which then spanned until near the end of this crisis period. During this period, I passed on the limited information I have gleaned from websites and my preliminary glances at the Purpose Driven Life book by Rick Warren to my then senior pastor. I'd also disseminated various information to all those that I knew. I didn't knew it then, but I was uncovering an entire web of deceit and compromise by those in the neo-evangelical movement, which I was long a part of. Such an uncompromising stance on the truth and its proclamation to others would naturally incur the wrath of many people who have been sold to this compromising, man-pleasing movement. It is thus that I was faced with severe testing as I was now ostracized in the very church that I have grown up and served so long in, which had already begun by April 2004, and felt the hurt and betrayal of leaders who had allowed wolves into the fold to ravage the flock and furthermore tried to silence the watchman, and also of supposed friends distancing themselves from me.

It was during the late part of this crisis whereby God touched me again through the Campus Crusade Uni Metamorphosis Camp. Through this entire Purpose Driven episode, I was deeply hurt and God comforted and healed my wounds during that camp. He has also helped me to forgive those who have hurt and betrayed me, even though they remain unrepentant in their sins. At the start of this new year of 2006, I have since then moved on and am currently attending another church. Truly, God has shown Himself mighty through my life. I pray that I will continue to be a witness for him, despite my limitations, and to show forth His glory through it.

Soli Deo Gloria (To God alone be all the glory),
Daniel Chew.

Want to know more about this wonderful, loving God I know? Click here.