Chng Eu Lee, with his wife Lydia Wong share how they experienced God’s love when he was receiving treatment for nose cancer.
Seeking treatment and battling side effects
Eu Lee:
In November 2023, I encountered some ringing in my ear and my doctor encouraged me to consult an ENT specialist. After going through multiple checks, I was diagnosed with stage two nose cancer, also known as Nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Fortunately, because the condition was identified early enough, I did not need to go through chemotherapy. However, the 35 rounds of radiation treatment (over two months) came with some challenges.
From the third week of treatment onwards, side effects started to set in, and it started to become more difficult for me. The major side effects that bothered me were mostly related to food: the loss of taste, loss of appetite, and nausea. I had also been told not to lose weight during the duration of treatment, as the medical staff would have to re-make the radiation mask that was used to hold my head down during sessions. I also experienced pain in my throat and mouth.
Even though all these side effects were made known to me at the beginning, I didn’t expect them to be bad enough to affect my mood, to the degree that I even found myself dragging my feet to the hospital every day.
Lydia:
It was a tough journey for us. While he had to manage his pain, I had to juggle between working, taking care of the children who are still schooling, and supporting him in his visits for radiation treatment.
God’s love in action
Eu Lee:
When we first shared our situation with the Cell group, our Cell leaders Joyce and Eugene came over to pray for us. There was the assurance that we were not alone, and the Cell was there for us. Each time the Cell group gathered, Joyce would create a space for others to come up and pray for us, to release a word of knowledge or word of encouragement, and we were very touched. Even the quieter ones would step up in faith to pray, and we were very encouraged by how supportive everyone was. Pastor Caleb, Hannah, and Pastor Aileen also came alongside us to cover us in prayer.
Lydia:
My husband does not have his family here in Singapore, but the church and all our friends who offered to
pray for us, become like family to us – that means so much to us. In fact, when Eu Lee was having his treatment, our Cell group even took the initiative to help take care of our children and bring them to Cell meetings when we could not make it. The physical help was something that really touched us. Amid their busy schedules, our friends made themselves available to be there, to serve and to talk. I felt that through this time, I experienced how selfless love is. This is really what coming together as a community means, just as God is close even when we are going through difficult times.
Eu Lee:
I saw love, compassion, and generosity in action. Some people in our Cell group would cook and deliver food to us! It was so touching because they remembered and shared what they had with us.
From time to time, Pastor Caleb would also call to ask if I was in the hospital, offering to meet me for lunch and to give me a lift home. Seemingly spontaneous and unplanned, but God was the one who orchestrated those moments! They always came at a time when I was feeling down and needed encouragement. The assurance that the church and our friends were behind us was really the source of strength for us. It was the fuel for us to carry on.
Through their giving, I see a God who really cares, loves, and is committed to me flourishing as a person spiritually, physically, and mentally. And everyone brought a glimpse of that to the journey we were on.
Being open with the children
Eu Lee:
Throughout my treatment, we wanted to be open with our children about what was happening because we wanted them to see how God was working in our lives. It was a discipleship moment - so we took the chance to explain the situation to them so they could witness first-hand how God is walking with us and blessing us in the ups and downs of life. We really hope it will be something they remember for a long time.
Lydia:
What spurred the kids on was the hope that God is with us. We constantly gather as a family to pray together, especially in the night. When they realised that Daddy needed to rest early and he was not his chirpy self, they knew that he was going through a difficult time, and we had to pray for him. It was a season where they grew more mature and gained a better understanding of what God was doing in our lives. They could see that the reason we could brace up and move on was because we had God in our lives. The value of prayer and the importance of community became real to them –that was what we wanted them to see. We want them to experience a faith that is authentic, a faith that speaks to our conditions right now and recognises how God is moving in the midst of everything.
The pathway to hope
Eu Lee:
I received lots of prayer and scriptures during my treatment period, and I also spent a lot of quiet times with the Lord. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 4:16-17, “Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory…”
I felt that I had to go through certain things to know God better in a different way, and to gain a different perspective as I came to understand suffering and pain. It is as Paul says in Romans 5:3-4, that the pathway to hope is suffering. Suffering produces endurance, and endurance develops character, and character develops hope. I felt that going through this gave us the assurance that God is with us. And through the prayers and love of the community, I was assured that He will not forsake me or abandon me. He is with me, and He protects me, even in the valley.
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