Like the thief on the cross, Toon called on the name of Jesus and she received immediate healing from her 3.5 years of pain. Toon was born with a gift of beauty, and she used it to earn fame, prestige, and money in the modelling industry. At the height of her career, she was earning quite a lot of money at her young age. But things did not turn out right when she got sick with a mysterious disease that brought pain all over her body. Her family spent all the money they earned getting treatments for her. They took her to the hospital for examination and treatment. She was given medicines but still, the pain would not go away. They took her to spirit doctors, who diagnosed that she was possessed by demons. They tried their regiments of treatment, but they could not cure her. Perhaps, she was possessed by very powerful demons. Finally, her parents turned her to Buddhism for help. She was ordained into a nun at a famous Buddhist temple. Her hair was shaved, and she continued to learn the path of Buddha. Normally, the demons should have left her once she started religious rites. But the pain persisted. Running out of options, her parents brought her back home to let her face her destiny.
Buddhists believe in karma— “the sum of a person’s actions in this and previous states of existence viewed as deciding their fate in future existences.” She must have done something bad in her previous life. There is nothing she can do to change that fate. She had to accept it and live with the “consequence” of her previous actions or sins. The law of karma is like the law of “cause-and-effect.” It goes beyond one’s lifetime. So, if one committed an action, either good or bad in one’s past lives one must reap the consequences in one’s next lives. There is nothing one can do to avoid it but to serve its “sentence” in full. Buddhists can do good to accumulate merits to ensure good karma. Good karma means good consequences in the next life cycles. For this reason, the Buddhists would try to do good deeds. This forms the basic tenet of Buddhism. In general, it makes Buddhists good and moral people. But there is no forgiveness in Buddhism. Because there is no god, there is no one beside oneself to turn to for help. Toon has no one to turn to for help.
Then, one day, she consulted one of her friends named Khek, who is a member of the Vientiane International Seventh-day Adventist Church. Khek told her to pray to Jesus for help. In desperation for healing, she prayed a simple prayer to Jesus for healing that night. She went to bed and woke up in the morning without any pain. She felt perfectly fine for the first time in 3.5 years! “This cannot be true. It is too good to be true,” she said to herself. She immediately called Khek and wanted to know more about Jesus. Khek suggested that if she would like to be completely healed, she should accept Jesus into her life. After consulting her parents, she received their permission to join the Seventh-day Adventist Church. With their consent, she invited the Vientiane Church pastor to come and perform a house cleansing act where the pastor will remove and destroy the house shrine. This action signified the total “change of ownership.” Removing the family house shrine means that the whole family has turned their back on their ancestral worship and has given their lives to Jesus.
Please remember Toon and her family in your prayers. They need to be protected by God’s Holy Spirit. Satan does not give up so easily. In Laos, the battle between God and Satan can be played out in very realistic scenarios. Many people, who have suffered from Satan’s actions, are seeking God’s help daily. If we, as God’s faithful servants, would actively seek to save those people there will be many who will be added to God’s Kingdom. Just call on Jesus’ Name and be saved. What wonderful news. That is why it is called “Good News.” “For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13, KJV).
Some of us may wonder why Buddhists have house shrines. Buddhism and spiritism are intertwined so much that the two are almost indistinguishable. Spirit shrines can be seen in Buddhist temples, houses, and other landscapes such as sacred caves, mountains, trees, and rocks. It is inseparable in a Buddhist’s life. Satan personifies himself as a guardian spirit to those who worship him through these shrines. That is why when a person gives his/her life to Jesus, we must remove and destroy the shrine and all its charm objects. This ritual is to allow the newborn Christians to publicly declare their allegiance to Jesus and cut all ties with their former “guardian spirits.”
Khamsay Phetchareun, Lecturer| Supervisor- Trainer| Acting LAR Director| Communication Director|Asia-Pacific International University