A Gazillion Infinity Blessings:
A Texas Boy Builds a Ministry Block by Block
/ Through Life’s Stormy Seas
/ A Job with Your Name on It
/ God’s Love, Our Source of Joy
A Gazillion Infinity Blessings:
A Texas Boy Builds a Ministry Block by Block
by Cindy Dake
For a 13-year-old boy in Texas, colorful LEGO blocks are more than a playtime obsession. They are part of his mission: to put LEGO sets into the hands of children who have never owned their own LEGO
bricks and to use those perfectlyfitting pieces to tell kids about God’s perfect love for them. Even though he’s 13 years old, he’s already been doing this for six years—about half his life!
A Ministry Dream Begins
Since he was five years old, Little Dennis (as he is known to his family and friends) has wanted to be a missionary. He just thought he’d have to grow up to be one. But God was building a one-of-a-kind plan for Little Dennis and his family.
His dad, Big Dennis, is officially Dennis Tuttle, III, and his son carries the name into the next generation as Dennis Tuttle, IV. Big Dennis and his wife, Brittany, were very aware of Little Dennis’s interest in being a missionary, so it wasn’t unusual when the family discussion shifted in that direction after church one Sunday afternoon. The family was gathered around a pizza when seven-year-old Little Dennis came up with the idea of combining his favorite pastime (LEGO blocks*) with his top goal in life (to be a missionary).
“What if….” he wondered aloud. “What if I could be a LEGO missionary?”
Big Dennis remembers, “My wife and I looked at each other, both thinking, ‘Why should Little Dennis have to wait until he’s an adult to be a missionary?’” And right there, the idea of Building Blocks 4 Kids began to come together.
Little Dennis’s parents gathered their children, Little Dennis’s best friends,
and those friends’ parents, and Building Blocks 4 Kids (BB4K) was underway—and it promised to be fun for everyone! They planned to bring boxes full of brand new LEGO sets and stacks of hot pizzas, add in some music and ministry, and invite all the kids and their parents who lived in an apartment complex to join in an afternoon they would never forget!
Let the Building Begin
Big Dennis knew the importance of not just rolling their big red trailer into an apartment community, having a few hours of fun with the families, telling them about Jesus’ love, and rolling back out, leaving new believers behind and stranded with no way to grow in their journey with the Lord.
It was vital to BB4K’s mission that a ministry presence continue to nurture the decisions that would begin at their free LEGO workshops. Big Dennis reached out to an established ministry, Mission Arlington, in their city of Arlington, Texas. This ministry has more than 360 active Bible studies and congregations meeting weekly in apartment complexes and other locations. When the two Tuttle men met with Tillie Burgin, the executive director of Mission Arlington since it began in 1986, she assured them that there were plenty of kids in their apartment ministries
who would love to have their own LEGO sets and hear about Jesus. A partnership was built right there. Like two LEGO blocks that fit together, BB4K and Mission Arlington fit together perfectly.
Little Dennis remembers, “After we walked out of Ms. Tillie’s office, Dad said, ‘Hey, you just had your first ministry meeting.’ And I looked at him, and said, ‘I just had my first meeting !’”
Big Dennis and other adults planned the logistics: designing a logo, getting a bright red trailer to haul folding tables and chairs, awnings to set up for shade for outdoor events, microphones, a sound system—and lots of LEGO sets.
When it was time to write a vision statement for the ministry, Big Dennis engaged Little Dennis to make sure the statement didn’t sound like it was written by adults. Little Dennis’s vision was simple, yet profound: to bless kids with LEGO sets and tell them about Jesus.
But Big Dennis pressed him for a little more detail: “Well, how many kids do you want to bless? Give me a number.” Little Dennis replied, “Oh, like a gazillion infinity!” And with that, BB4K’s vision statement became an extension of a little boy’s kid-sized faith that not only moves
mountains, but builds them, too:
“To bless a gazillion infinity amount of children around the world with LEGO sets and the love of Jesus.”
Block Upon Block
BB4K’s first “free LEGO workshop” was Saturday, May 26, 2018, and around 25 kids attended the event at the Hidden Valley Apartments in Arlington. That was just the beginning, as in the first year alone, the ministry hosted 22 workshops where more than 750 kids were handed their very own set of LEGO blocks. At every event, Little Dennis and his young friends taught the kids, one on one, how to follow the LEGO instruction booklet, which is entirely illustrated so language barriers were never a problem. Big Dennis played his guitar and led everyone—kids and their parents—in songs and motions. Then Little Dennis joined his dad on stage and explained the big message behind the little bricks:
“It’s amazing when you build a building block set and follow the instructions, your creation turns out the way it was designed to be and looks awesome just like the picture on the box. Growing up can be just like building a building block set. You can try to build your life without instructions, but it’s very difficult. You can get frustrated,
lost, or even mixed up. So, what are the instructions for life? The Bible is God’s written Word, and it shows His love for us and gives us instructions on how to live our life the way God designed it to be.”
Even at age 7, Little Dennis was on stage explaining that God’s Word promises a hope and a future for each person when they give their life to God and follow His instructions in the Bible. Was he ever nervous, especially speaking before a crowd at such a young age?
“I wasn’t too nervous,” he said. “I think the only thing that made me nervous was if I had to help an adult do a LEGO block set. How could I correct an adult when they’ve built it wrong?”
By the end of the first season, more than 146 kids and adults had prayed to receive Jesus as Savior.
The Tuttles’ growing family at that time included Little Dennis, then 7, Jack, 5, Lilly Pearl, 3, and Adelynn, 1. Daughter Olivia would come along in 2020. All the Tuttle kids have grown up serving in BB4K. And as Little Dennis, his siblings, and friends have grown up in BB4K, likewise, the spiritual results have stacked up, too. Since 2018, the ministry has hosted more than 150 LEGO workshops, and more than 1,500 people have become followers of Jesus.
But Arlington was just the beginning. To reach a “gazillion infinity” kids around the world, they had to reach past their hometown.
Little Dennis Tuttle, age 7, passes out LEGO sets at one of the ministry's first workshops
Going Global
With LEGO blocks available in 130 countries, it’s practically a globally available toy. Children don’t have to be able to read to follow LEGO instructions because there are no words—just pictures, arrows, and diagrams. That makes LEGO blocks the perfect “vehicle” for taking a kids’ ministry to places far from Texas. And that’s what BB4K is doing.
Little Dennis’s hope to reach kids with Jesus’ love (and LEGO sets) is happening in Gulu, Uganda, right now. The ministry is partnering with World Embrace, an in-country ministry that is building the Gulu Community Park to bless the families in the region who have suffered so much in the last 30 years due to political unrest and instability. BB4K has raised the funds for a building within the park which when completed will be open seven days a week where families can come and build with LEGO blocks and learn
about God’s love and His plan for their lives.
Meanwhile, BB4K is reaching kids in Poland as ministry partners there use the BB4K model to reach families with children. This group was meeting prior to the pandemic and picked back up with workshops after the pandemic.
Back in Texas, in June 2022, BB4K loaded up their big red trailer with not only LEGO sets but food, clothing, and toys and drove down to Uvalde, Texas, where two weeks before, a school shooter took the lives of 19 students and two teachers. In what was the most challenging BB4K opportunity to date, Big Dennis and Little Dennis saw how the LEGO playtime gave these families a respite from the hard, heart-breaking experiences that had engulfed the small community, while the message of God’s love brought hope and healing for parents and their children.
Little Dennis, age 13
Dad, if God gives you a job to do and you don’t do it, He’ll give the job to someone else and you’re going to miss the best days of your life. “ “
Worth It All
At just 13 years old, Little Dennis has more ministry experience than most people twice his age. It has made his childhood entirely different than most kids, and he’s learned some pretty big lessons that are not lost on this young boy.
For example, after a year of doing BB4K events, Big Dennis asked his son to think about the ministry’s future and why he wanted to be a LEGO missionary. Little Dennis’s answer was wise beyond his years: “Dad, if God gives you a job to do and you don’t do it, He’ll give the job to someone else and you’re going to miss the best days of your life.”
Little Dennis also sees the value in working together as a family, with friends, and for the sake of the gospel. “It has all been worth it. It’s been 100 percent worth every moment that we have put into this. It’s been so fun to be able to do this and watch it expand to Africa and
Poland. We’re only six years in, and I never thought it would be this big already. I never want to stop doing this, and I can’t wait to see what we do next with BB4K!”
Little Dennis, his family, and his best friends are using those brightly colored pieces of plastic to build more than just a miniature house, a car, or a spaceship. They are using them to build the kingdom of God, one new LEGO friend at a time.
* Developed in 1932, LEGO is the abbreviation of two Danish words—“leg godt”—which means “play well.” Made of ABS plastic, they are nearly indestructible and are made to be passed down from one generation to the next. They are designed to always fit together perfectly.
Cindy Lewis Dake writes from Arlington, Texas, where she leads a Bible study and women’s ministry at First Baptist Church Arlington.
Through Life’s Stormy Seas
by Bill Tam
Storms that Wreaked Havoc
My parents fled to Hong Kong during the civil war between the Kuomintang and the Communist Party. My father made a living as an author, having the financial burden of the family on his shoulders. At that time, the manuscript fee was Hong Kong $5 per 1,000 words, and half the fee went back to the newspaper editor. So, our family was poor! Because of the Second World War, my mother had only gone to the second grade in school. After Japan invaded Hong Kong, she had to stay home to take care of the old and the young.
I was born in 1950, the eldest of four sons. When I was about six years old, my mother became pregnant with her third child, and because of poverty, my father told her to have an abortion. After drinking the abortion herbs, she started to bleed heavily. I came home from school, saw an ambulance parked in front of the door and mom’s blood covering the bed. I was terrified! The paramedics carried my mother away, and my grandmother told me that she had been taken to the hospital for emergency treatment and that she might not survive. Abortion was illegal in Hong Kong at that time, so my mother lied, saying that she had fallen hard. My father was not around. He had left my mother alone in the hospital to fight for her life.
Like a miracle, my mother’s bleeding stopped, and the fetus was still safe. My third brother was eventually born, and he was healthy in all aspects. Growing up, he was the most well-behaved child among us brothers. His school grades were always the best. He later became the first Christian in our family and also the son who cared the most for our father.
When I was about eight or nine years old, my father started a small business selling cosmetics. As a very young boy, I had helped my father deliver manuscripts to the newspaper. Now, I took care of sales orders, delivery, bill collection, etc., traveling between Hong Kong and Kowloon. I was like a little adult—a child without a regular childhood.
Once our family’s situation improved, my father fell in love with his company secretary, and our family was not at peace anymore. At night, we children often heard our parents arguing and objects being thrown around. It was always frightening. One day, my mother and I were walking in the neighborhood and saw my father and the “mistress” at the intersection. Mother dashed forward, pointed at the secretary, and cursed. In the chaos, the two of them pushed and pulled, with my father protecting the woman! The whole scene attracted crowds of
passers-by. I was very embarrassed! This dramatic event is one I will never forget.
Another day, my grandmother came to me and said, “Your mother is leaving! Go, beg her to stay!” I immediately rushed into my mother’s room with my three younger brothers. We saw her crying and putting her clothes in a suitcase. Dad was trying to force her to leave by not giving her enough living expenses. The four of us knelt on the floor, crying, and begging our mother not to leave us. The fourth brother, still a toddler at that time, did not understand what was happening, so he only cried with everyone in confusion. As for me, sixty years later, this scene is still vividly etched in my memory. I was twelve years old.
Mom finally decided to stay with us children, but Dad moved away. After that, he gave a small amount to us for living expenses. With Dad gone, the house was quiet although, occasionally, he came home for dinner to check our academic achievements. His mood was never good. Except for the third brother, all of us had terrible academic scores, so we were beaten one by one. We didn’t welcome him home in the
first place, and now we hated him even more.
To say the least, my childhood was painful. Children of broken families often fall prematurely into the vortex of adult strife. When my father moved away, he stopped talking to my mother. When there was a family matter that must be communicated, he called me to the office and asked me to bring a message to my mother. My mother did the same, instructing me what to say when I met with my father. When my father was in a good mood, he would show his love and take me to a restaurant. I was happy because I could enjoy delicious food that I did not get at home. But often, I would feel ashamed and guilty. Because of what he had done to our family, I felt I should hate him, not eat his food and talk with him. I was very confused and had contradictory feelings.
In my teens, I began to rebel, not wanting to be at home with my sad mother every day. I often stayed in my classmates’ homes and did not fulfill my responsibilities of being the eldest brother.
Eventually, when her demands for marriage and money were not met,
my dad’s mistress left him. Still, our father did not come home but stayed in another apartment. The third brother was five or six years younger than I and was very wellbehaved and obedient. When he transferred to another school, he and his classmates went to a church near the school. He attended Bible study classes and believed in Jesus Christ. Later, he moved in with my dad in his apartment and developed a good relationship with him. At that time, my father was in his fifties and had heart disease and some anxiety problems. This third brother took our father to church, and later in life, our father believed in Jesus and was saved by His grace.
Storms of My Own Making
After graduating from high school, I went to the United States to study at the University of Wisconsin, graduating in three and a half years with a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering. I then transferred to Columbia University, where I earned a master’s degree in bioengineering and a doctorate in chemical engineering. At this point, I was very self-confident, believing totally in myself.
I was grateful to be living in the
United States and learning American values and culture. Although hippies were popular at the time, the overall ethos remained conservative. When I visited my American friend’s home, I was moved at how harmonious and respectful his family was to each other. They also cared about society, which made me feel ashamed. I would often go to the library to read the biography of Dr. Sun Yat-sen whom I admired, and who was a Christian. My college roommate was also a Christian. He helped dispel my prejudice about Christianity. Sometimes I agreed to attend a Bible study with him, but only for the purpose of getting a free dinner. I never gave attention to what was being taught.
When I was studying at Columbia University, one of the courses I took was “Artificial Organs.” The professor used engineering principles to analyze the various organs of the human body and talked about how to design artificial organs. I saw the inadequacy of human technology because human minds are so prone to making mistakes, often endangering the patient’s life. Towards the end of the semester, the professor made a comment I will never forget. He said: “You see, the organs designed
by medical doctors and PhDs have many problems. The original designer of our organs must be truly amazing!” Whether the professor was a Christian or not, I did not know. At that time, I didn’t know anything about Christianity, but intellectually I felt that there might be a Creator. Emotionally, however, I wanted Him not to interfere with my life and let me go my own way.
Before I got my PhD, I had written eight scientific papers and a book on bioengineering. I also had a girlfriend who was smart and capable. She had excellent grades and was studying at Barnard College. We got married in 1976. After both of us finished our degrees, we moved to New Jersey. I worked for Becton Dickinson & Co., Hospital Products Division, as a senior research scientist. She worked for IBM Sales as a systems engineer. We had a rich material life—cars, big house, no shortage of anything.
In 1977, my father believed in the Lord Jesus and returned home to reunite with my mother. It seemed that everything was going well on both sides of the ocean. My career was thriving, and I was valued by the company. Our company was the world
leader of hospital products, and I was invited to join the R&D Department researching new products. The vice president appreciated my boldness, not commonly seen in Asians, and wanted to pave a road for me to the top. I was even eligible to use the company plane for business trips, a privilege I never dreamed of. I was just 27 years old.
When everything was going nicely and smoothly, the biggest storm of my life hit. My wife told me she had fallen in love with her colleague. Soon after, she filed for divorce and ended our three-year marriage. It hit me hard. What had happened to my mother was now happening to me! What had I done wrong? Why was life so messy? I was very angry!
More Storms to Come
Around that time, the second and third brothers called one after another, saying that my father had lung cancer and only a few months to live. We decided to bring him to an American hospital for radiation treatment. I took a month off from work to take care of my dad.
This was the closest time I had with
my dad as I spent 24 hours a day with him. Since he repented and put his faith in the Lord Jesus, our mother was relieved, and she accompanied my dad to the US. We reunited as a family and spent long hours talking about the past. Dad was open, recounting his early life experiences and his conversion to Christianity. My brothers and I got to know more about him. For a whole month, we watched my father receive treatment and face everything calmly. After the radiotherapy, the doctor announced that his condition was stable, and he could return to Hong Kong to recuperate. Unexpectedly, two months after returning to Hong Kong, on September 12, 1979, my father was taken to heaven by God.
At that time, I was faced with a big decision. My father’s company was old and had many problems, and there was no one to take it over after he died. My mother needed the company for her livelihood. So, I resolutely put aside my American career, sold everything, and moved back to Hong Kong at the end of 1979. Returning to Hong Kong was to revisit the place where I grew up. I returned with mixed emotions. In the US, I had high academic and
career achievements, and I worked with highly educated people. Hong Kong was a world of difference. The business environment was hypocritical. People I met were rude, and they bargained endlessly for small profits. Coupled with my mother’s refusal to move out of the old home place, I had to sleep in my childhood room again. It felt as if I had been relegated to my original state. Unpleasant memories followed, as if I had fallen into a time tunnel and traveled back to my childhood. Bordering on depression, the only thoughts that kept me going were: “I must support my mother. I must get up tomorrow. I must work hard!”
Showing filial piety to your parents comes with a blessing—a promise from God. I did not know God then, but His Word was true. Because I stayed with my mother, I met my current wife. She was a simple person, hardworking, and from a poor family. Before she came to our company, she worked in a garment factory during the day and went to evening school. After finishing elementary school, her father made her work to earn money to help support a family of eight. Meeting her was like meeting
another version of my mother. She didn’t have much education, but she was hard-working and had a good heart. At this time, I was no longer proud, nor did I value my degree and talents. My first marriage taught me to value a person’s internal beauty and character. I was attracted to this gal’s inner beauty, and she was also very beautiful. After dating, we married in 1981.
At Sea with Christ at the Helm
In December 1982, I returned to the United States with my wife. At this time, the company was on track, and our products were gaining market share. My fourth brother had graduated from college, and I let him inherit our father’s business. We chose to settle in San Francisco, but I could not find a job. My old colleagues in New York asked me to work there, but I didn’t want to put this stress on our marriage. While jobless in San Francisco, our first child was born. With the pressure of starting a family and struggling to start my career from zero again, I started to have depression. I was angry with my fate and despaired about life. I knew that I could not sink any lower, so I sought counseling
from a psychologist who, fortunately, advised me to go to church and find a support system.
In early 1985, my third brother, who was a mathematics professor in Maryland, came to visit and brought me a Bible. He explained the teachings of Christ and the hope Christ could bring. I had always thought I was smart and that only the weak needed religion. But when I read the book of Proverbs, I realized that I was the foolish person. The Holy Spirit opened my heart to understand that the God of the Bible is the One True God who created all things in heaven and earth. He showed me that I could not be wise on my own but must seek wisdom from God. In 1985, my wife and I decided to profess our faith in Jesus at the same time and were baptized together on Easter.
To us, believing in Christ was very simple. It meant that we were giving up our own mastery and turning the sovereignty of our lives to God. When I studied “artificial organs” at Columbia University, I believed in God rationally, but I loved the world. I wanted to control my own fate, thinking that I would be able to do
great things with my own wisdom. There’s a story in the Bible of the disciples fighting the strong winds and waves with their professional sailing experience. Yet they could not reach the shore until Jesus came to them at sea and commanded the wind and waves to calm down. They suddenly realized and accepted Jesus’ divine status and sovereignty. In the same way, Jesus opened my eyes to see who He really is. God saved my third brother and through him, brought my father and me to Jesus—to salvation and new life. It was my father who wanted to prevent my third brother being born. But with great mercy, God saved my third brother from abortion and eventually let him lead my father to salvation. And he also gave me the Bible that led me to Jesus. What amazing grace!
After believing in Jesus, I pursued Truth with all my heart, determined to hand over my life to the Lord, and no longer rely on my own wisdom to pursue fame and fortune in the world. God also healed me from depression. I was able to set up my own company to engage in international trade. After we had children, my wife devoted herself to raising our children, went to community college to finish secondary school education, then transferred to a fouryear university to earn a bachelor’s degree. I accompanied her to school, helped with raising the children, and did household chores. Amazingly, my wife went into accounting and
passed the CPA exam in one sitting. She later entered the workforce and advanced up the corporate ladder, all while we were both enthusiastically involved in church ministries. In 2004, I met Pastor Thomas Wang who invited me to help set up the Traditional Family Coalition, an organization established in 2005 to strengthen and protect the family as defined by the Bible. It is amazing that God would use me in this way. I have been involved in debates, interviews, speeches, political campaigns, and court trials. These were sometimes stormy—sometimes face-to-face with opponents—but I have always felt secure under God’s protection.
What a wonder the life of a believer is! Before, I was like a sailboat adrift in the wind and waves. Now, I have Jesus as the center of my life, and the foundation is built on the rock of Christ. My heart is at peace and my family situation reflects warmth and stability.
Psalm 37:23 is true in my life! “The Lord makes firm the steps of the one who delights in him.” Praise God!
Bill Tam is currently the executive director of the Traditional Family Coalition.
A Job with Your Name on It
by Matthew Do
Igraduated from South Hills High School, West Covina, California, in 1977, full of energy and enthusiastic about life, and ready to conquer it. But I soon found out that life wasn’t as easy as strolling on a beach; it was more like riding on a great wave of the sea and drowning in it. However, God’s Hands were on my shoulders, lifting me up and guiding me. By God’s grace, as an Americanized Vietnamese orphan, I was blessed to be able to do things my natural ability didn’t allow. And people around me recognized that God’s favor was on me.
After high school, I worked many odd jobs to support myself—dishwasher, custodian, newspaper deliverer— while studying at Electronic Practical Technical School in Anaheim, California. I graduated with an electronic technician diploma in mid1980 but couldn’t find a job suitable for my training, even though my grades were excellent and electronic technical jobs were in demand. Most graduates from this school got jobs while I didn’t. Those around me started laughing and mocking me, saying that I should have kept my custodial job. They threw all
kinds of negative comments at me: “You were destined to do custodial jobs! A technical job is beyond your reach.” The saddest and most disappointing comments came from my fellow churchgoers who didn’t offer me comfort or uplifting words. As a result, I started to have doubts about my ability; I felt unworthy and defeated.
Alone in my room, with my spirit in the bottom pit of life, I began to question God about His promise: “Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go” (Joshua 1:9). Then I began praying: “Dear Lord, thank You for redeeming me from my sins on the cross. I praise your mighty name for You are the living God. As You know, I currently need a job that I was trained for. I need to help my mom and my youngest brother’s family in Vietnam. They will have a hard time surviving without my help. Does your promise to Joshua apply to me too? Lord, I seek You. Would You put a smile on my face…?”
While I was still on my knees, I heard a voice in my head saying, “There is a job with your name on it.” I got up and looked outside my room for the source of the voice, but there was no one around. The next morning, I felt refreshed; my burdens and stress were gone. When my landlord saw me, she said, “Matthew, you look so fresh and serene today. Did you find a job?” I replied, “No, I didn’t, but
I’m letting someone else worry about it.” Perplexity was written all over her face. I just smiled and went to work at my custodial job.
That evening while cleaning my room, I found a folded page from a local newspaper stuck between the headboard of my bed and the wall. My eyes caught an advertised item that had been circled—“Computer Technology, Inc., Orange, California.” Not realizing that I had previously responded to this advertisement, the next morning I called the number listed. When I heard the greeting from the other end, I introduced myself and stated the purpose of my call. The lady instantly responded: “Oh, Matthew, I tried to return your call, but the number you left on my answering machine was wrong, and my boss misplaced your resume. I am so glad you called.” After mutually apologizing to each other, she scheduled an interview for me with the owner of the company and the technical team.
The company repaired and provided field service for minicomputers made by Data General, Inc. It had only seven employees, including me. They offered me six months’ training in computer repairing and field servicing, with an hourly pay rate 25% less than the market rate, plus medical insurance and travel expenses, but no vacation or sick leave. After that, I would be on 70% commission of whatever my company
charged clients for my service. I accepted the offer, and mentally noted that I had nothing to lose and would gain experience which would help me in seeking another job. On the company’s side, they had nothing to lose in hiring me, for there were no other candidates standing in line to take the position.
After burning a few of their computer parts, I made progress in learning my job well so that at the end of the fourth month of training, the owner put me on commission. At first, I was nervous and uncertain, but they seemed sure that I would make it. The company treated the staff to pizza for lunch to encourage me and gave me two white cotton uniforms with the company logo on the sleeve and two pairs of pants as gifts. I bought my own dress shoes. I was officially a Computer Service Engineer (CSE)!
Before I went to a client’s site, our front desk always had the name, model, year, and make of the defective computer that needed servicing. With this information, I could prepare suitable equipment and parts for the job. By using the equipment and diagnostic program, I could detect the defective part of a computer. If the clients had their own replacement part, I would install
it for them. Otherwise, our company would offer them a rental part with a charge per day for five days. After that, they could use it without charge until further settlement. The broken part would be fixed at our shop. I got 30% commission for the equipment rental.
Besides a few negative incidents, I was doing very well in my job. My average month’s commission was equivalent to that of an entry level electrical engineer. I felt I was wellpaid with flexible hours and covered medical and dental benefits. I was able to rent my own apartment, bought a new car, and still had some savings for a rainy day. The bookkeeper of the company told me that since I started working there, the profit of the company had increased significantly. Thus, God put a smile on my face as I had asked Him, and blessed the company I was working for. I praised and glorified Him. I no longer felt inferior among my peers. Now, those who previously despised me felt ashamed of themselves and said, “God has blessed you abundantly.” This remark made me the happiest man on earth because people recognized God’s love and grace on me, and I quietly glorified Him.
A few of those who had despised
me before now asked me to help them get a job at my company. It was a great opportunity for them to have a second income, flexible hours, and well-rewarded jobs. I referred them to my boss who offered them a flexible training schedule for a few months without pay with the stipulation that if they made progress, he would continue to train them with pay. Through my conversations with them, I learned that they understood the electronic circuitries and binary code very well, but they couldn’t comprehend the computer diagnostic program and the architecture of the computer. The computer diagnostic program was written in binary code, called machine language, accompanied with the acronyms called assembly language—a short explanation of the function of the binary code. Each alphabetic character was composed with multiple digits, one and zero, called bit. The CSE had to understand the diagnostic program to modify the code to test and repair an electronic circuit on the boards, but my referrals couldn’t do it.
The architecture of the computer consisted of a power supply, CPU, memory, peripheral, communication, and control boards. Each of the individual parts was built differently
with a different purpose and function. Particularly, the memory board was made up of thousands of magnetic cores and electronic circuits. The cores had the shapes of donuts and were as small as the tip of your little finger with three wires going through the hole. The cores were very fragile, unrepairable, and very expensive. A gentle drop could break them. Today, a computer (cellphone) can be held in your fingers and is a thousand times more powerful than the minicomputer back in1980.
Seeing how difficult the job was, my referrals came to have a different opinion about me. One of them said that though I didn’t have notable talent, he admired me for handling this job, as well as for the way I conducted my life. He could sense that Divine Hands were truly on my shoulders. He said, “Your life is a miracle!” Hearing this confession from others gave me a feeling of being so very blessed and protected. I wanted to jump and shout, “Yes, my life is a miracle! Hallelujah, God has made the fool to become wise, the weak to become strong!” Then, I recalled the night when I knelt and prayed, and the voice that said, “There is a job with your name on it.” It had become a reality. Among my peers and friends, only I got this
unique job. I realized that when God blessed, He gave beyond one’s ability to achieve, when one least expected it, and that no one could deny.
For more than 40 years now, I have realized that without God’s Hands on my shoulders, I could not have been able to understand such a complicated computer system. All the skill and knowledge I had were God-given to teach me the reality of life. What really counted was not what I gained or lost, whether fame and riches, success or failure. What really counted was what I received from God. He gave me a special talent at that time in my life to rebuild my faith in Him—not for me to take pride in, or to boast in myself.
Matthew Do (Đỗ
Khắc Mẫn) has a BS degree in electrical engineering from the University of Arizona. He worked 35 years as a software engineer, first for the Department of the Navy and later for the City of Seattle, Washington. In 2010 he earned a Master of Divinity degree from Fuller Seminary. In retirement, Matthew continues to write a weekly column for the Viet Seattle Times and uses his bilingual skills in translation work. He and his wife, AnhDu have two children. (For a fuller story of Matthew’s life, see Challenger vol. 62 no. 2.)
(Continued from back cover)
by one, and said, “Jesus loves you first, then He loves others.” Everyone began saying the same thing, and our table was so filled with joy that other people pulled up chairs to join our table. Then I woke up.
As I meditated on the dream, I realized that the joy we shared came from knowing that Jesus loves us. It’s a type of joy that cannot be known only by our intellect. It comes from within our heart. In my dream, when I told the intellectually-challenged girl that I was happy because Jesus loves me, she easily got it. She experienced it, and her joy was contagious, so much so that the other teenagers at the table got it too. That doesn’t mean that intellectual people cannot be joyful. Real joy comes when we open our heart to receive Jesus’ love, and then the experience of joy follows.
Knowing God’s Love Firsthand
Joy comes when we experience God’s love firsthand. When I was a youth,
I read J. I. Packer’s book Knowing God . As Dr. Packer described God’s greatness in relation to the vast universe, I felt so small. I wondered whether God knew me, a tiny young lady amid six million people in our city—and our city was so small that it was not even a dot on a world map! Did God really know me—even my name?
God knows us intimately and loves us because He created us.
“For You created my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; Your works are wonderful, I know that full well” (Psalm 139:13–14).
God Loves All People
One Saturday morning I brought my Bible and my prayer journal to Legacy Park, close to where I live. Sitting in view of the Trinity River, I meditated on God’s love for me. Looking across the river to the tall, green trees on the God’s Love, Our Source of Joy
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other side of the riverbank and the beautiful blue sky above, I thanked God for His love for me. In that moment, I felt God was allowing me to feel His love for all the people in the world. I was overwhelmed by His intense love for the world.
“For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16).
After that experience, I began to look at people differently. No matter a person’s intellect, color of their skin, their age, or their gender, God loves them dearly, so I can love them too. When we know that Jesus loves us and we experience it firsthand, then our joy will be contagious because it flows out of our innermost being. People will be attracted to our joy.
A Song
After I woke up from my dream, the chorus of the song, “At the Cross,” kept ringing in my heart. It goes like this:
At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, And the burden of my heart rolled away.
It was there by faith, I received my sight, And now I am happy all the day.
The song reminded me that it is because of the cross that we are “happy all the day.” Jesus Christ, God’s Son, came to earth as a man, died on the cross to pay the penalty for our sins, and rose again to give us new life in Him. The Bible tells us that we can enter into this new life by God’s grace through our faith in His Son.
“For by grace, you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9).
When we believe in Jesus with our whole heart, we experience His great love. Thus, we become His agents to spread His love and joy wherever we go.
“I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness” (Jeremiah 31:3).
CHALLENGER
ISSN 1084-2144
VOL. 63 NO. 3 JUL-SEP 2024
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Dr. Sabrina Li is a Christian educator, an author, and a church musician.
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God’s Love, Our Source of Joy
by Sabrina Li
A Dream
One morning I had a dream. I was in a place full of people walking back and forth, like at a fairground. Sitting with a small group of teenagers at a table inside a booth, I asked an intellectually-challenged girl sitting next to me, “Are you happy?” She did not know how to answer me. I then told her that I was happy because Jesus loves me. Repeating my words, she said that she was happy because Jesus loves her. At that point, all the teenagers at the table began to say the same thing and laugh joyfully.
Amid our heartfelt laughter, I said, “Jesus loves me first, then He loves you.” They all looked at me puzzled. Then I pointed at them, one
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