Faith - Eternal Life Assembly

When Faith Was Blurry – a 2,800 degree prayer

Philip Sng — Sat, 25 Oct 2025 03:55:00 +0000

The Early Years

At three years old, Naomi’s parents took her for an eye check-up and discovered that she was severely myopic as a toddler, with 1,500 degrees of short-sightedness in each eye!

Her parents then realised why she often avoided bright, moving images, and she would always walk away from these light sources. She also showed no interest in watching television.

From that time on, after the eye check-up, Naomi wore thick, heavy glasses that became a defining part of her early life.

Naomi’s childhood was different from other children’s. She dreaded the yearly eye check-ups, with the painful eye drops and intimidating bright lights.

At ten, when her classmates enjoyed swimming lessons, she could not join them because she was too young to wear contact lenses at the time.

During physical education lessons in school, she would avoid ball games and often ran far away from any ball, constantly fearing that the ball would shatter her thick glasses.

Academically, Naomi’s parents lowered their expectations, hoping she could pass every subject without further straining her eyes, including passing over the opportunity to study Higher Chinese.

At twelve years old, Naomi’s eye retina had become overly stretched, and she underwent freeze-treatment surgery to prevent tear and detachment, spending a month after her Primary School Leaving Examination (PSLE) to recover from surgery.

Around that time, she learned about lens implant, a reversible procedure that could drastically improve vision. However, the high cost of the implant, at S$20,000, was far beyond her family’s means, and the idea was shelved indefinitely.

In Naomi’s growing-up years, she accepted that possessing blurred, imperfect vision was her reality.

She thanked God daily that she could still see and function, despite this eyesight limitation.

A Prayer

During a routine eye check-up in October 2022, Naomi’s doctor gave her the sobering news that her retina is weakening and she may lose her vision over time.

That day, Naomi was gripped with fear after receiving this sad piece of news. She chose to persevere in her faith in God and shared the doctor’s diagnosis with a few close friends. One of them, Si Qin, sent her this message:

“Just leave it to God. Pray for Him to restore and renew your retina, that He will give you a new pair of eyes when you wake up.”

Naomi thankfully responded with “Amen,” but silently wondered in her heart, “Is that even possible?”

The Decline

In the early part of 2024, Naomi’s vision began to worsen rapidly. She did not tell anyone. The prospect of losing her sight began to change everything for her.

Having experienced miraculous healings from God in the past, she believed God would heal her eyes. She prayed fervently, in her room, at the church altar, asking God to restore her sight so she could continue serving effectively in church ministry.

Instead of improving, her vision continued to deteriorate.

In June 2025, Naomi travelled alone to the United States for the first time. She could barely read the information signs at customs check counters and prayed her way through the process, leaning on God’s grace.

Two months later, she travelled to China on another work trip. Again, she could not see the information on customs check counters, but God provided a staff escort who accompanied her from the airport to the hotel.

During a meeting with a client in a brightly lit room, she was almost blinded by her eye floaters and blurred vision. Naomi was overwhelmed, physically and emotionally.

By September 2025, her eyes could no longer function normally. With much apprehension, she went to see her optometrist. After a lengthy thirty-minute check, she looked at Naomi tearfully and said,

“Your eye myopia is now 2,800 degrees. I can’t help you anymore. You need to consult your doctor immediately.”

Naomi broke down and cried.

Her optometrist said to her, “We will pray. Let’s believe in God’s miracle.”

Naomi’s doctor appointment was six days away. It was the longest six days of her life.

The fear of losing her vision completely terrified her, and every night, she was kept awake. She prayed fervently and sought out her close friends and churchmates to pray for her.

She prepared herself mentally and emotionally for the eventual outcome of the doctor’s visit.

The Turnaround

With bad news from her optometrist, Naomi was uncertain about what to expect from the doctor’s visit.

On the day of her medical appointment, her doctor said, “Miss Ng, you have mature eye cataracts and will require surgery as soon as possible to implant new lenses.”

Naomi was stunned. “Cataracts at thirty-eight years old?”

The doctor continued, “After surgery, you will be able to see clearly again—without glasses or contact lenses.”

She was unsure if she had heard the doctor correctly. “Did he say that she wasn’t going blind but she would be able to see clearly again?”

Naomi left the clinic overwhelmed with gratitude and joy. God has heard and answered her prayers, not in her timing, but in His.

God’s delay is not his denial. While she thought He was silent, He was preparing a healing experience beyond what she could fathom, not just to restore her eyesight, but to provide for the costs of the procedure completely.

What was considered out of reach when she was a child, is now covered under Medisave and company insurance.

When Naomi shared the good news with her close friend Si Qin, she reminded her of what she told her in 2022: “God will give you a new pair of eyes.”

Indeed, He did.

The Second Miracle

As part of pre-surgery checks, Naomi needed to undergo a retina scan, which revealed two blood clots. Due to early detection, these clots were treated in time. Indeed, God is all-knowing, abounding in His mercy and grace towards her.

Due to Naomi’s extremely high eye myopia and irregular retinal shape, her cataract surgery carried a higher risk.

Her doctor assured her, “Trust in His sovereignty. We live by faith, not by sight. Worrying is not of God—it’s a sin. Let’s pray.” These God-moments continually assured her of God’s abiding presence.

Naomi’s surgery was a success.

A New Vision

Today, every morning when Naomi opens her eyes, she can see her world vividly – sharper colours, clearer details. She no longer needed to depend on spectacle glasses or contact lenses. It is an experience that she has never savoured before.

To her, life has become cheerful and bright. Although she still needs to use reading glasses and can see floaters in her vision, she is deeply grateful to God for healing her blurred vision and giving her a new set of eyes to see His creation in all its beauty.

Naomi can now truly say: “I once was blind, but now I see.”

God has given her not just physical sight, but a new vision and zest for life.

Reflections:

What is an impossible 2,800 degree fear that stands before you today?

Impossibility vs Provision: : “God’s delay is not His denial” What does this mean for you today?
Faith in doubt: Faith isn’t the absence of doubt, but trusting God right in the middle of it.
A New Vision for Life: Do you need new eyes to see today what God sees for your life today? Ask Him to show you.

The post When Faith Was Blurry – a 2,800 degree prayer first appeared on Eternal Life Assembly.

When Love Waited for the Right Time

Michelle Chiang — Sat, 26 Apr 2025 00:00:00 +0000

Love at first sight it was not.

Though Chris and Teresa were in the same circle of friends, they hardly interacted with each other, until an occasion when they spoke one-on-one.

Chris, single and seeking at that time, was attracted to Teresa. But when he asked her friends for her contact number, they declined his request.

Getting into another relationship was the last thing on my mind

“They were protecting me,” explained Teresa. At that time, she had just gone through a divorce. “I was still healing, still unsure. Getting into another relationship was the last thing on my mind,” she added.

Teresa’s first marriage had ended in heartbreak due to deep differences in beliefs and life direction. It was a decision wrapped in agony, self-doubt, and fear.

“I wondered if I had disappointed God, if I had failed,” she shared. “I couldn’t even tell my father. Divorce was a heavy word in my family.”

I experienced a love that reminded me of God’s – steadfast and redeeming.

However, God, in His mercy, softened hearts. When her family eventually learned of the situation, they responded not with condemnation, but with love.

“It was such a relief,” Teresa said through tears.

“They assured me that no matter what, they would stand by me and continue loving me. I experienced a love that reminded me of God’s – steadfast and redeeming.”

God’s redemptive love found me in my darkest moments

A year-long job assignment in Japan soon followed, a divine pause, as Teresa would come to see it. That season gave her the solitude and space to process, to grieve, and to heal.

“I had to confront the lies I believed about myself – that I was unworthy, that I was broken beyond repair,” she recounted.

“But as I meditated on God’s words and received the prayers and care of my friends in Eternal Life (EL) Assembly in Singapore, healing began. God’s redemptive love found me in my darkest moments,” she said.

Meanwhile, Chris – though his romantic interest had been gently rebuffed, remained a quiet, consistent presence.

At times, almost supernaturally, he would call just when Teresa needed someone.

“One time, she was in a supermarket struggling to communicate with the staff. I somehow sensed that she needed help, so I called her. As I could speak some Japanese, I interpreted for her,” Chris recalled fondly.

“I can’t explain why I seemed to have that telepathy with Teresa. Was it fate? Or was it a prompt from God? ” he mused.

When Teresa was back in Singapore, Chris continued pursuing her, but with little success because Teresa was often busy with church activities.

Chris was not attending church regularly then.

“I felt unworthy to be in God’s presence,” he admitted. “Although I longed to know Him more, I wasn’t sure if I was living fully according to His will and deserving of His love.”

Still, he was drawn to Teresa’s commitment to her faith. So one day, when Teresa invited him to attend a service at EL, he readily agreed.

That turned out to be a divine appointment. The warmth and faith of the Filipino congregation wrapped around him like family.

I felt welcome. I felt at home. Through the church, and through Teresa, I found my way back to God

“I felt welcome. I felt at home. Through the church, and through Teresa, I found my way back to God,” Chris said.

He had explored other churches, but in the end, EL became his spiritual home.

As their relationship progressed, Teresa, still cautious and healing, suggested a cooling-off period for each of them to seek God’s direction.

“I needed to know that my healing was complete, that I wasn’t rushing ahead of God.

“I remembered what Pastor Bob, Senior Pastor of EL, once told me: ‘Heal first, and when the time comes, the love of the Lord in your heart will melt away all the pain.’

And that’s exactly what happened – God had healed me. So I entrusted my journey ahead to Him.”

Heal first, and when the time comes, the love of the Lord in your heart will melt away all the pain.

As for Chris, Teresa was more than someone he loved; she was his turning point.

“She’s my guardian angel,” he said. “She reconnected me with Jesus and helped me grow in my faith.

I realised that God’s love is unconditional. Even though I had been distant, he did not forget me, but led me back to him.

I learnt to place my trust fully in God, seek Him first, and surrender every aspect of my life to Him.”

I realised that God’s love is unconditional. Even though I had been distant, he did not forget me, but led me back to him.

This God-centred love between Chris and Teresa is a firm foundation for their enduring relationship.

The couple married in 2017 and now have a 6-year-old daughter, Cassy.

Life is never a bed of roses. Yet no matter the circumstances, this couple place their faith and trust in God.

In response to God’s redemptive love, Chris and Teresa dedicated their lives and marriage to God and got baptised together in March 2025.

This story of Chris and Teresa is not just about second chances in love, but about the God who restores, rebuilds, and redeems.

Their story is a testament that even in our most broken moments, God is at work, weaving beauty from ashes.

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to Him, and He will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5-6

The post When Love Waited for the Right Time first appeared on Eternal Life Assembly.