Posted by Abbey Thangiah • Aug 16, 2022
I was blessed to be raised in a Christian family. Initially, I was irritated and annoyed. As a pastor’s son, being in my family felt like I was in an aquarium. People would come in and out of my house as they pleased. My mum also would be obliged to cook for them. Many would be quick to judge if we made minor offences, sometimes even as mundane as watching cartoons. In the late 80’s and early 90’s (pre internet era), many pastors would receive this circular stating that watching Spiderman, Care Bears, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and other cartoons were not allowed in the Christian faith. Despite attending confirmation classes, I still felt that my duty as a Christian is not to be a naughty kid (I was) and not give my parents a bad name.
In secondary school, I had the privilege to join ACS Sitiawan. We had a school CF (Christian Fellowship) and the Wesley MYF (Methodist Youth Fellowship). My scope of Christianity expanded from the corners of my church alone. In university, all cultural and denominational barriers broke in the Inter Varsity University Fellowships but that is a story for another day. Back in secondary school, people accepted me for me. I wasn’t perfect but I had friends who looked beyond my identity as a pastor’s son and accepted me as a unique human being. I always looked forward to the time my CF would meet. I also was exposed to the Scripture Union and their amazing roles in promoting inter-school camps and activities.
I remember when I was 14, I attended one of the Methodist Youth Fellowship camps during the school holidays. During one of the MYF camps, one of the pastors spoke about being a born again Christian and rededicating my life back to God. I have heard of this many times before but this time I didn’t feel good inside me. I felt it was weird why a pastor’s son would want to rededicate his life when I haven’t done anything wrong (I mean, I wasn’t blameless) but I still felt that I wanted to do it anyway. During the altar call on the final day of the camp, I went forward and made the decision to be a Christian myself without any external pressure.
I have not looked back since. God has saved my life from a few car and motorbike accidents. He has also been with me through the toughest points in my life, especially through the pandemic. I look forward to a great time serving Him here on earth till I meet Him in heaven one day.