The thought was always in my mind: One day I will make a lot of money, have a good life, and care for my parents.

Worshipping Idols as Family Tradition

After WWII, my parents fled from Mainland China and found refuge in beautiful Hong Kong. With five children, our family of seven lived in a very small house, and my parents worked tirelessly and diligently to make ends meet. I, the third eldest child, was very touched by my parents' love, always thinking of ways I could share their burden. What I could do was help take care of my younger brother and sister, study hard, and focus on cultivating my character. Thus, I became known as the “good kid” or “mature kid” in my family, as well as in my community. The thought was always in my mind: One day I will make a lot of money, have a good life, and care for my parents.

Even though Hong Kong was under British rule at that time, my parents maintained the tradition of our people and worshipped idols. Like most Chinese people, they didn’t really know why they worshipped idols; they simply followed the tradition—if the other Chinese did it, so should we! As a good son to my parents, I naturally followed suit and worshipped idols with them.

Joining Christian Fellowship

After I graduated with excellent grades from secondary school, my parents worked very hard to send my second elder brother and me to the States to study. For pragmatic reasons, I chose to study civil engineering, wanting an occupation that would make earning money easy, so I could take care of my family. I was 19 years old.

My brother went to the States before I did, and we both studied at the University of Illinois. It was a joyful time when I joined him there in 1975. We might have considered ourselves poor in Hong Kong, but the two of us got along well and lived harmoniously together. My brother always thought of me as compliant, yet when he invited me to go to church with him, I was surprisingly reluctant. I had grown up worshipping idols—though I did not believe gods existed. I was, in fact, an atheist.

Then, I thought, for a young person like me in the States, it was important to make some friends. It would be nice to make friends in church and talk them out of being deluded by superstitious beliefs in gods. But once I set foot in church, I was surprised by the many students from Taiwan and Hong Kong, and even some professors, who were passionate about their faith. They were humble—always offering a hand to newcomers. How could these people with so much knowledge and life experience be Christian as well? This led me to start seriously contemplating the meaning of true faith.

After a half year of studying the Bible, I repented and willingly accepted Jesus Christ as my Savior. I got baptized and later started leading Bible study classes, helping other students who were newcomers. It was during this time, at one of the church fellowships, that I met my future wife.

Starting a Business with My Family

Fast forward a few years. After I completed my master’s degree in 1981, I married the girl I loved, and we had two children. Following my parents’ example, I accepted my duty to my family, reminding myself that I should work hard to earn more money for my children. By 1990, we had made several moves from Illinois to Houston, to Washington, and ended up in Southern California. After many discussions, my wife and I decided to start a wholesale business of building materials. I felt comfortable in this profession since I had studied civil engineering.

After a few ups and downs, our business grew, and we were regarded as successful businessmen in our community and church, as our good reputation continued to spread in the Chinese community. I thought, “Well, if I have what it takes to run a business, I can’t let it go to waste!” I felt that a successful business could bring glory to God. So, I decided to expand into real estate development projects. Caught up in my business, I had no time to serve God in the church. I had previously taken part in Bible studies, prayer meetings, and Sunday services. But now, I felt that my time was wasted when I attended Sunday service. Even when my body was in church, my spirit was elsewhere.

I was familiar with the teachings of the Bible: “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world” (1 John 2:15–16). Yet, I could not escape the temptations of the world, nor did I wish to depart from them entirely.

Experiencing God’s Mercies

During those years, my business was mainly timber sales. Towards the end of winter 1999, the real estate business in southern California was at its peak. I knew from my past successful business experiences that timber prices would skyrocket in the spring of 2000, and money would be rolling in. As expected, timber prices doubled in the spring. I had the market all figured out!

Then, in came my crisis. (Though man may propose, God often disposes!) Just as I was gloating on the inside over my success, a client report alerted me to termite trails in my timber. I was extremely concerned but couldn’t trace the source of termites. How could this be? If I couldn’t nip this in the bud, termites would be all over my timber in less than a month. I could pile the timber on a plot of land 200,000 square feet and build a special net, covering this piece of land, to exterminate the termites.

But if any of my clients saw that, no one would dare to buy timber from me for at least half a year or maybe longer. That would definitely lead to my bankruptcy.

I was at my wits’ end and grew white hair overnight. In desperation, we prayed and prayed, asking for God’s mercy. At midnight on the third day, when I was drifting in and out of sleep, I seemed to hear God asking me: “Are you very troubled?”

I answered in a heartbeat: “I am! I am! I really need Your help now.”

“Do you really yearn to become very rich? Are riches that important? Have you thought that if you become as rich as you wish, you may lose your family, your son? Are you willing for that?”

“No, absolutely not! I am not willing.”

Then, a scripture verse came to my mind: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). Such a familiar verse! I recited it when I first believed in God. Yet, I had never properly pondered it. Why would God be willing to lose His Son? It was because of His love for me.

I prayed to God in tears, “Oh God, I have wronged You. For years, I have run after fame and money more that I ran towards You. Please forgive me. It’s not important whether my financial situation resolves or not. I just pray for a chance to repent again.”

Then something miraculous happened: My heart was filled with peace, and I fell asleep, deeply and soundly. “The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit” (Psalms 34:18).

The next morning, with still no way to fix the issue with the termites, I suddenly had a new idea: Why do you keep thinking the termites are in the old batch of timber? Take a look at the new batch of timber. So, I told this to my staff and they said, “That’s not possible. The new batch of timber is fine.” But I insisted on having them check. And, sure enough, we found the source of the termites there—in the new lumber! The supplier worked with me and dealt with the source of the termites. Later, the termites gradually disappeared from the rest of the timber. Afterwards, the supplier asked if I regularly treated my timber with solutions against termites and other pests. No, I never had. Only then did I realize that I didn’t have the basic knowledge of how to maintain timber! For 10 years, my timber had not been treated, and I had no issue. I praised God at once: “Oh, God! You are the one who helped me make money. It is not because of my ability, for without Your protection, I wouldn’t be here today!” God, in His wonderful ways, had protected me from bankruptcy.

Following God and Receiving His Calling

Now, I prayed to God in complete surrender: “Oh God! I have been lost all these years. Please let me come back to You. Once again, I repent before You. I will no longer make the call on the future of this business. Please take charge!”

Even with this prayer, my heart seemed willing, but my mind was weak. I bargained with God: “Forties is a good age for doing business. Plus, my business is so successful right now. What about if I stay in business for five, 10 more years? Then I will serve You full time.” But God’s calling was clear: “You need to serve Me, with all that you have, starting now.” I continued resisting: “Oh, God, a business of this scale, more than ten years of sweat and tears, a success like this, I really can’t let it go. And I have to consider my wife as well. If she is unwilling to let go, then I can’t either.”

After praying for some time, my wife sensed my anxiety. One day, she said to me: “Let’s leave business behind.” I asked: “What else could we do?” She said: “Let’s serve God together with all that we have.” I knew then that God’s time truly had come. So, my wife and I obeyed and followed God’s calling. We received theological training and later became full-time pastors.

Jesus once asked: “What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul? Or what can anyone give in exchange for their soul?” (Mark 8:36–37). I now understand that a renewed, redeemed life is more precious than anything. Fame or money are not eternal. So why did I think so highly of these brief, earthly achievements? Today, the Word of God is alive in me. Once again, I live my life for God, I surrender my all to Him and serve Him with all that I have.

*This story was first published in Chinese Today, Issue No. 755 (March 2025) and was translated into English by Kiara Ngai.