Stanley (right) and Jackeline with Andrew Cheah at the Combined Service on 4 October.

Jackeline James David (JJD) and Stanley Kiew (SK) are two enthusiastic Seminari Theologi Malaysia (STM) students who are exploring full-time ministry. They did their placement at the Cathedral from March to October this year. Carol Murugiah caught up with them recently to hear of their experiences and to find out more about their future plans.

What course are you pursuing at STM and how long have you to go before you finish?
SK: This is my first year at STM and I’m taking a Bachelor of Divinity degree course, which I’m due to complete in 2018.

JJD: I’m taking the same course and it’s my first year too.

Where were you born and raised?
JJD: I’m from Banting in Selangor.

SK: I come from Kota Samarahan, Sarawak, which is about 30 minutes from Kuching.

How did you come to accept Christ?
SK: I became a Christian in 2007, when I was in secondary school.

JJD: I was raised by Christian parents who faithfully sent me to Sunday School. When I was 10 years old, my father was ill and he almost died. I remember saying a very short prayer at the time, “Jesus, don’t take him away. I want to be with my father.” The next day, I went to the hospital and to my surprise, he was in a normal ward. I climbed on to the bed and lay down on his chest. I heard God speaking to me in an audible voice, “I AM NOT TAKING YOUR FATHER AWAY.” I became a Christian at that moment. Even though I had been praying all this while, I didn’t know He was really hearing me. The reply He gave me that day made me realise He truly exists and I wanted Him in my life.

What led you to explore full-time ministry?
JJD: When I was 11, I made a personal commitment to become a priest in the future. I prayed to God, saying, “Please don’t forget my wish, God, even if I forget or insist that I want something else. Don’t let me go.” True enough I changed my mind soon after. I had wanted to become an astronaut and forgot this wish and prayer. When I was 14, I had a bad personal experience that made me leave the church, but not God. When I was 16, I told God: “God, we need to do something for the other girls who went through the same experience I did. Let me study Psychology so I can help them with Your power.” But God played the scene when I was 11 like a video in my mind, and from that moment I embarked on this 4-year journey to really decide if full-time ministry was truly for me.

SK: I gave myself to full-time ministry because I have a strong interest to serve other people. Many of my people in Sarawak, especially in the rural areas, do not know who Jesus is. Furthermore, there is a lack of members from the younger generation who serve full time in our Diocese. Therefore, I was motivated to prepare myself for full-time ministry so that I could share Christ to my people.

What did you learn during your placement at the Cathedral?
SK: We were exposed to a lot at the Cathedral. I participated in four different services – English Service (7am), Iban Service (8am), Bahasa Malaysia Service (10.30am) and SMACC 2 (5pm). I also joined the University Christian Fellowship (UCF), BM Bible Overview class, SMAGOW 2015, Lent Study, evangelism training, one-to-one sessions withAndy Ng, training with Andrew Cheah, Cheshire Home visits, hospital and house visitations!

JJD: Apart from the services, I also joined the Bible Study classes, training sessions, the kids’ ministry, youth fellowship and confirmation classes.

What were your memorable moments at the Cathedral?
JJD: I enjoyed the training sessions with Andrew. They meant a lot, along with the confirmation classes conducted by Marianne Liaw. Those 5 girls in the class were lovely!

SK: For me, it was the Combined Service on the 4 October. Firstly because it was my last day at the Cathedral and we were given a chance to sit at the front. It was also great to experience 4 different languages being used during the service. It was good to see the congregation of different services come together like that.

What are your plans for the future?
SK: I hope that I can share the gospel more, especially with the modules and material that I have received and learned throughout my internship at the Cathedral.

JJD: I want to be involved in Parish ministry and social work, especially working with
abused victims (both male and female) by helping them receive healing in Christ.