Mary Cheung (1975 Miss Hong Kong, one of the recipients of “Ten Outstanding Young Persons selection of Hong Kong”, presently a professional trainer in social etiquette) testified on May 19 at the Crosspoint Church of Silicon Valley, sharing the moments in life when she experienced the presence of God, and the extraordinary walk with God.
Mary Cheung was an orphan, and was living on the streets before the age of 8. She confessed that God is indeed a carer for orphans and widows. When she was 9, she was sent to Po Leung Kuk (a charity organization in Hong Kong), and there she spent 13 years where she was fed and supported to learn and grow, until she became champion in the 1975 Miss Hong Kong Beauty Pageant. The Mary Cheung that we see now has to juggle between office and government, teaching about business and professional image building, as well as international social etiquette. Besides, she does career counselling for many young people attending universities in China and abroad.
For someone who has lost a family at a tender age like Mary, she not only succeeds in her profession, but also manages a happy family, and learns from her experiences as a mother about how much her own mother has sacrificed for her, thereby learning to forgive and accept.
Many children in Po Leung Kuk had similar backgrounds as Mary, and thus for the most part, she did not feel especially sad about being an orphan who had been given up. However, during Mother’s Day, Father’s Day, Mid Autumn Festival, or the New Years, she would fall prey to self pity and resentment towards her mother.
Once she became a mother, she gradually realized that a mother’s heart is always with her children. When her son went to kindergarten, she would cry in the car, because she would miss the days when she spent with him teaching him how to walk. She would worry that, now that he had to go to kindergarten all by himself, he might get bullied by others. Every time she picked him up, and realized that he had a good day, she would feel happy. When her son went out to play, she would sit at home and wait for his return.
Once, when her daughter was meeting someone at Lan Kwai Fong for drinks, Mary hung around the area, waiting to pick her daughter up and drive her home. At first, her daughter asked her to wait for 30 minutes, and then it became 45 minutes. When she asked her daughter when she would be out, the answer would always be: “in 30 minutes”. Before she knew it, 2 hours had passed. She then realized that as a mother, it is impossible to fall asleep until you know that your children are safely home. Does that mean that her own mother had lost much sleep, night after night, when she was not there with her all these years?
Since then, she started praying to God: ”God, I do not know whether my mother is alive or not, but please tell her that I don’t resent her anymore, and please let her not worry about me now. I am well. Please release her burden. Also, please tell her that she now has a grandson and a granddaughter…”.
Finally, 10 years ago, her mother’s other daughter contacted Mary. Mary, after fervent prayers, went to meet her mother. In the beginning of the reunion, she had many mixed feelings: the person in front of her was close yet unfamiliar. When she shared with her mother that “eternal life comes from believing in Jesus”, and was ready to share the gospel with her, her mother told her that she was already baptized since 4 years ago. At that point, they hugged each other and cried, both awed by and grateful for the miraculous work God had done.
Mary stated that the time spent with our loved ones is indeed limited, and thus, now that they could be together after all these years of emptiness, the resentment melted away. Her mother did not ask her why she did not look for her all these years, and she did not ask her mother why she gave her up in the first place.
During an Evangelism gathering, when Mary shared the story of her and her mother, she noticed that a sister in the audience was sobbing as she listened. Mary learnt afterwards that this person had trouble forgiving her own mother at one time, but when she was ready to do so, her mother was no longer here in this world.
Mary thus advised the audience to trust that whoever is in God is a new man. Do not feel like you cannot forgive. You should love while you still have the ability to love, and forgive while you still have the ability to forgive.
Mary also spoke about the loss of her husband. Her previously healthy husband passed away suddenly because of heart disease, which made her realize that everything happens at its own timing. It is important to state your love when you are still alive, and to earnestly live a life that benefits others.
She also talked about how God had healed her fear of darkness, and comforted and rescued her in times of darkness and abyss. At one time, activities such as visiting the pyramids in Egypt, entering a tunnel, receiving a facial treatment in a VIP room, or being within enclosed dark spaces made her feel extremely uncomfortable, even to the point of feeling like she was going to die.
She went to Israel once, and a miraculous experience healed her. When the group was about to enter into an ancient Roman water canal, God sent a pastor who prayed with her: “Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me”. She had heard of this scripture multiple times, but had not truly understood how to trust God. This time, she trusted and relied on God’s words and power to overcome her own fears, and with the utterance of hymns and prayers, finished her 45-minute journey through the canal.
Mary’s life was full of adversities and pains, but she did not blame her life, and on the contrary, testified that “God gives us a road that is so much better than what we have hoped for; every experience that is difficult or unhappy can eventually be turned into God’s blessing or gift”. She invited the audience to accept God, and to experience God’s love in their lives.
If you wish to listen to Mary Cheung’s testimony, please visit: http://www.crosspointchurchsv.org.
[Editor's note: Carol Lee translated this article.]
