In Remembrance of Mom—Ida Lam
I praise God for the opportunity to share mom’s life closely in the last few months of her life – to witness first hand her trust in our Lord. Mom often told me that receiving Jesus as Savior had brought her the most joy and peace. Praise the Lord, in 2003 she converted from a Buddhist, whose source of pride was her good deeds, to a humble Christian who longs to server and glorify God. Her trust in the Lord came to a trial
earlier this year when she came down with gallbladder cancer despite of the
fact that she lived a disciplined “proper” life, ate a careful diet and
exercised daily. Many, including her questioned WHY? It was a difficult blow to
her; however, she never doubted that our heavenly Father loved her and would
give her nothing but the best. She knew her life was completely in God’s hands
and she lived each day by faith and drew strength from the Lord. She prayed,
read the Bible, and often sang hymns to praise God. Sometimes she cried, but
she reassured me those were not tears of sadness but rather tears of gratitude
when she counted God’s innumerable blessings in her life. God’s Word comforted
and encouraged her, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of
death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they
comfort me.” (Psalm 23:4).
Had it not been obedience and
encouragement from the Bible, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting
away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day.” (2 Corinthians 4:16), she
would not have agreed to undergo chemotherapy which would make her hair fall
off (for those who knew mom, she never had a “bad hair day”). Yet God is
faithful – despite her hair thinning out quite a bit after 3 months of
chemotherapy, she still looked gracious with sufficient hair. One and a half
weeks prior to her return to heaven, I was sad to see the shedding of so much
of her hair, yet mom comforted me and reminded me of our Lord’s promise:
"And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered." (Matthew
10:30). She told me not to worry – God is taking care of her.
Although we miss her presence, we are
comforted by God’s promise of eternal life with Him. The Bible says, "I am
the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he
dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe
this?" (John 11:25-26). Mom believed! And God revealed to her a glimpse of
heaven: About one week prior to her passing, mom had a huge smile on her face,
one that I have not seen since she fell ill. She told me with such deep joy
that God answered her prayer by showing her an extremely colorful and beautiful
world; it was lovelier than the fanciest place she had ever visited.
That angelic smile told us she
experienced true peace, an inexplicable peace that could only be brought by
God. Even though she was dying, through Christ, she has conquered death! Yes,
she has departed from this earth physically, but she is forever with our Lord.
She hopes that one day all her non-Christian family/friends will also receive
the gift of eternal life through Jesus, because she wants to see all of us in
heaven!
By Patricia Lam 8/2008 |