UPCLOSE
The morning started off like any other. For Charissa Kok, meeting the needs of others turned her day from ordinary to extraordinary.
While queuing at a coffee joint one morning, and next in line to place my order, the cashier, an elderly aunty frantically exclaimed, “We’re closed and not taking orders anymore! My colleague is sick!” I bent over and saw the barista sitting with her head faced down. Since she appeared to be resting, I didn’t think much of it and went to a nearby stall for coffee. While I was in the other queue, I could hear some office workers curtly exclaiming, “Well, if your colleague is sick, tell her to get an MC!” After getting my coffee from the other stall, I observed that there was still a crowd lingering and demanding for their coffee from the first stall. They didn’t accept that the barista was sick.
I’m not the type of person that would step into such a tense situation. However, when I saw how helpless the elderly auntie was, I stepped in to alleviate the stressful situation. Once the crowd thinned, the auntie pointed to her colleague and asked me, “What should I do now?” The barista, Miss Yu (a foreign worker) was breaking out in a cold sweat and having difficulty breathing. Miss Yu grabbed my hand and told me that her heart was racing and that she felt like she was dying. Although the auntie told me that Miss Yu’s husband was on his way, I decided to be safe and called for an ambulance. While we were waiting for the ambulance to come, I used my broken Mandarin to comfort Miss Yu and shared the love of Jesus with her. By God’s grace, she received and accepted Jesus into her life before the paramedics took her away. A few hours later, I received a text message from Miss Yu letting me
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know that she had suffered from a drug allergy but was now resting and recovering. Two weeks later, I visited Miss Yu to see how she was doing and share more about God and blessing her with Chinese bible. Through our short fellowship, I realised that she stays just beside Trinity@Paya Lebar. How divine! Though she has been unable to attend Celebration Services due to work, I continue to pray that God will give her opportunities to grow in her relationship with Him. Looking back, I could have missed out this by going through my normal of routine of drinking coffee and having my own quiet moments. I never expected that a simple care act would result in a salvation! Through this experience, God reminded me to take hold of every opportunity to share the love of Christ with those around me.