Recognizing the Hidden Calling

　　I came to know God during my kindergarten and secondary school years and had made a few vague commitments to Christ, but it wasn’t until after working in a Christian secondary school and attending the Hong Kong Franklin Graham Festival that I truly believed in Christ. In the early years of my faith, I grew up in the Campus Disciple Training Group and wasn’t baptized to be a member of the church until 2014. Then through the church’s mission trips, I was inspired by the dedication of pastors and missionaries in the mission field, their fearlessness in hardships, and their commitment to the gospel mission. This set my heart on fire and motivated me to serve God wholeheartedly. Since then, I began to participate in various church ministries and seized opportunities to serve in the Christian secondary school where I taught.

Shifting Life’s Trajectory

　　The time from 2018 to 2019 marked a turning point in my search for a true life’s calling. I had always thought that serving in a school was my lifelong vocation. However, the increasing workload left me with less and less time and energy to interact with students, care for young people’s lives, and share my Christian faith. I began to feel spiritually empty and unsatisfied, questioning whether I was truly doing what God called me to do. After switching to another school, where I had no opportunity to participate in gospel work, I further found myself losing my focus and purpose. Thankfully, the guidance from a Christian supervisor helped me realize that my joy stemmed from walking with young people and witnessing their faith grow. This sparked the idea of changing my life’s trajectory.

　　In 2019, I attended a Christian conference by One Circle. When the speaker issued a call to explore full-time ministry, my heart suddenly was enlightened: “Yes! Although I am not yet sure of my specific ministry direction and role, I am truly willing to serve God full-time wholeheartedly!” I resolved to respond, leaving my 13-year teaching career to become a full-time secretary at my mother church, trying out full-time ministry.

Exploring the Call to Pastoral Ministry

　　In 2020, I began studying a part-time master’s degree program in theology. As God broadened my spiritual horizons, I saw the various difficulties churches facing in Hong Kong. This deeply troubled me, and I wished myself to be used by God to stand in the gap and revive the Christian community. Thus, the idea of receiving full-time theological training and preparing to be a church minister gradually emerged.

　　However, as someone who get used to a steady life and lacks confidence, I hesitated for a while and was reluctant to move forward. Then in 2022, in the final year of my part-time studies, I undertook Christian career guidance training. My mentor, after reading my report, quoted God’s call to Jeremiah (Jer 1:4-8) to me and said: “I believe God wants to use you!” This struck a chord in me, but I still felt unworthy and unfit, merely keeping the message in my heart.

Looking Back at Life’s Trajectory and Responding to the Lord’s Call

　　In 2023, I joined different seminaries’ dedication camps, and through such experiences God revealed to me the myth that I needed to break. I had always thought God’s calling comes through dramatic spiritual experiences, but I realized that such were not always the cases. More often, the calling is hidden in His shaping of a person’s life. The more closely I reviewed my life’s trajectory, the clearer it became that God was preparing me step by step to respond to His call: to serve His church. Also through the guidance of a life coach, I identified my deep desire: to open myself to God’s use, to focus on nurturing the lives of the flock, and to renew church communities. As I laid the costs of embarking on a path of full-time equipping and service in prayer, the anxiety in my heart gradually subsided, replaced by a willingness to obey, and a lightness and openness after “letting go.”

　　Later, God gave me the confidence to move forward twice with Isaiah 43:1-4 in a day: “But now thus says the LORD, he who created you … ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.’” At that very moment, the phrase “I am the Lord’s” touched my soul. I fully surrendered to God and acknowledged that the sovereignty of my life belongs to Him who will surely lead my path ahead. God also showed me the vocational transformation of Philip in the book of Acts, from managing church meals to becoming an evangelist, taking on the mission of preaching the gospel of Jesus. I believe God was using these scriptures to encourage me to boldly step out, accept training, and prepare me to respond to the Lord’s commission. After receiving confirmation and support from my mother church, I enrolled in the full-time Master of Divinity program at the Hong Kong Baptist Theological Seminary and began preparing myself for God’s use.