Like
everyone, I was told that life was about going to school, having a good job,
earning money, having a family, etc. Since everyone has to die one day, it did
not seem meaningful to invest my time and energy into pursuing these things. I am not against going to school or
having a family, but I did not see the purpose of investing in things that I
eventually will lose the day I leave this earth. I've always questioned, why do I live? I told myself, I
shouldn't pursue material things because it's a dead circle. Like slaves to
money and material things, many people work hard, earn their paycheck, and
spend it on materials they lust. The cycle continues; their lives are driven by
lust. I also told myself, I should
not spend my life pursuing power and fame, for they also will disappear
someday. Instead, I planned to have some good friends and a nice family, and I
want to spend my life on enjoying relationships.
I
was born in China, and I had been living there for eighteen years. In the summer of 2003, I found out
abruptly that I was immigrating to the United States, without my mother. Immigrating to the US was very hard for
me. I had to become accustomed to
American culture and language as fast as possible. In addition, I felt like I lost my purpose in living, and
fell into desperation. After
separating from my mother, I realized that life is fragile. In losing my family members and all my
friends, I experienced the feeling of helplessness and loneliness; without a
purpose for living, my life seemed like a short tragedy. It was the most difficult time of my
life; separating from my family, studying and working hard for my living and
suffering from loneliness.
The
darkness was over when God brought light into my life. One day, a young man knocked at my door
and asked me to cast a ballot. I
told him I could not vote because I was not a citizen yet. He handed me a flyer, and then he left. I looked at the flyer and noticed that
the particular organization was hiring more people to hand out flyers, so I
decided to take a shot at it.
Fortunately, I got the job, and was able to work with the young man who
had knocked on my door. Even
during the first week that we worked together, we had good conversations. Eventually, he asked me if I was
interested in going to his church, and I decided to go. God had his miraculous plan for
me. When I attended worship and
bible study more frequently, I started to really experience the truthfulness of
Christianity. In the fellowship, I
felt the love among the people; they had joy, peace and hope. That was the life
I had been looking for, and I found it. On 4/12/04, I was baptized, I finally
found something I could rely on and be joyful with, God's love.
Life
is hard and meaningless if you don't have a purpose or have the wrong purpose
for living, but I won't be desperate any more because I know the happy ending
of my life that God promises. I
was released from all the misery and pains of my life when I accepted Jesus Christ
as my savior. God is good, and he
loves you. He has prepared a free precious gift for everyone on earth, but many
people reject it. Christians have experienced the goodness of God, so they are
crazy about sharing the gospel. It's like you telling your friend there is a
very nice restaurant you've tried last week, except God's love is much greater
than a nice restaurant. It's the
same intent when Christians share with you the goodness of God. I hope my experience could touch your
heart and your mind so that you could take some time to think about your
purpose in living. You can come to
our church when you are available, and I hope you could take some time to
explore the truthfulness of Christianity.
More importantly, I hope you can experience the truthful loving God and
discover your purpose in life on you own.
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