As Christians, we know the blessings of a life lived under the care and direction of God and that Christianity is not a religion but a relationship with our loving Creator and Heavenly Father.
There are many testimonies of these blessings. Sometimes, they are astounding stories of miraculous healing and dramatic life changes. More often, however, God works quietly in people’s lives, building us up and giving a purpose to those who were once lonely and without hope. There is no less power in such quiet faith. The testimony of Abigail Teoh is one such example.
Abigail is a woman with a simple heart, and she shares her story with sincerity, openness, and humility. From a life seemingly destined with inadequacy, God raised her up to be a leader in community and society.
Born in 1980 in Nibong Tebal, Penang – the same year as her brother – Abigail’s childhood was lonely and unhappy due to cerebral palsy. The cerebral palsy affected her whole left side, including her eye, arm, and leg. However, because her cerebral palsy was milder and thus less noticeable than in many such cases, her family did not understand her struggles. On top of this, because her family was poor and often had to make ends meet, they were very hard on her.
‘Up to today, I do not know whether I already had cerebral palsy when I was still in my mother’s womb or whether I had acquired it shortly after my birth. My mum noticed when I was 2 or 3 years old that I walked differently from the other children. Around that time, my parents realised that I had symptoms of cerebral palsy, but my family was poor and I did not get any treatment,’ she shared.
When Abigail was 6 years old, she was enrolled in a regular kindergarten. She expressed, ‘I really struggled. I couldn’t focus and had difficulty even writing my name. ‘ The situation worsened as she reached school-going age when she also attended regular school. On top of her pains with cerebral palsy, because her classmates felt that there was something odd about her, Abigail ended up being misunderstood by them. Her teachers punished her because they thought she was slow or lazy, and even her parents scolded her, calling her dumb and lazy.
Because of her experience, Abigail started to build walls around herself. ‘I didn’t know how to communicate with my siblings or parents about what I was going through. I only knew that I felt weak on my left-hand side and I learned things very slowly. Often my parents would quarrel. It affected my thinking, character, and feeling for a very long time. I felt miserable and that I was failing my family. I wanted to do well to please my parents but had my own hardship to face daily. I often think negative thoughts, fearing the things and people surrounding me. I did not mix with people and had poor emotions all the time.’
‘Even during my childhood, I knew from books about religion. Somehow, even at that age, I felt peace and was particularly happy when I read stories about Jesus. I wanted to know Jesus every time I read about Him. There were many stories about His compassion and love and how He healed others. I wanted Him in my life, but I didn’t know where to look for Him or where to find a church. My parents would visit the temple, and I was always bored during such trips. I never had any interest in their religion,’ Abigail related.
When Abigail was thirteen, she had her first attack of epilepsy. She was brought to a doctor who did a CT scan on her. This was the first time anyone realised that Abigail was not just struggling with slow learning. However, because her family could not afford to send her for treatment, life went on as usual. Abigail took some prescribed medicine for her epilepsy, but it did not help. From 13 years old, she continued to take the medication for 26 years with no real progress.
After Form 5, Abigail tried her best to find a job. As she could not find a place at a tertiary education institution, her parents pestered her to go out and get a job. ‘So I went to try to find a job on my own. My parents would misunderstand and think I was lazy otherwise. Within 3 years, I went through seven different companies. I couldn’t find a stable job. In all this time as I was growing up, I often had suicidal thoughts.’
One day as she went shopping to take her mind off things, she found her steps somehow being led to a training center, Rumah Kesayangan, run by a Christian NGO. The training center, located in Bukit Mertajam Penang, introduced her to a church and the welfare department. For the first time, Abigail got to attend and be part of a church. It was the beginning of new hope.
‘The staff of Rumah Kesayangan helped to introduce me to register as an Orang Kurang Upaya (OKU or Less Abled People) with the welfare department. The welfare department introduced me to another training center under Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat (JKM). I was given a chance to take a course in a vocational training center, and I chose a computer course.’
In 2000, when Abigail was 20 years old, she was transferred by JKM to Pusat Latihan Perindustrian dan Pemulihan Bangi. Abigail continued her training for another year and a half. Here she also met an ex-student of the center who would later marry her. Though the marriage had problems, Abigail would have another happy moment just before her wedding. She joined a pre-wedding contest where she told her story through writing and won a pre-wedding photo shoot worth RM20k.
From the Pusat Latihan, Abigail later went to Beautiful Gate, a foundation for the disabled, also run by Christians. Through Beautiful Gate’s recommendation, she got a job at Spraying Systems (M) Sdn Bhd and moved to Jalan Gasing. She would continue in this job for almost 20 years until today, another breakthrough. Abigail stayed for three years in Jalan Gasing with a Christian family who had OKU children of their own and followed them to church. When the family she stayed with moved to Ipoh, Abigail moved to Bandar Sunway and began a new phase of her life.
After Beautiful Gate, Abigail became an active part of United Voice, the first society in Malaysia that is led by persons with learning disabilities. She was elected as a committee member for many years, serving there until just before the pandemic, and got opportunities to participate in trips, conferences, camps, seminars, sports, tournaments, interviews, and many other activities. At the same time, she also gained the privilege to meet up with many professors, politicians, businessmen, and many other prominent people through these activities. Living in Bandar Sunway, Abigail has attended the Damansara Utama Methodist Church (DUMC) for many years. Furthermore, she is also part of a cell group in that church.
Looking back through the last 20 years, Abigail expressed her gratitude to God. She had been alone through much of her childhood, growing up with low self-esteem due to her experiences caused by her cerebral palsy and being marginalised. God directed her path to several loving communities where she could belong and be a part of.
‘I grew up in a family struggling with poverty,’ Abigail reminisced. ‘As a family, we had only one motorcycle. Thus, my parents did not have an opportunity to take me on trips. We could only go anywhere if it was crucial. Although I lived in mainland Penang, we hardly went over to visit the island. Only after I developed epilepsy, did I get to go over to the island because of medical checkups. I did not know of any other life.
‘Now, for the first time, I could be part of something larger. After I joined United Voice and got my current job, I obtained my first opportunity to see the wider world. From 2002 to 2019, just before COVID, I have been to many cities and islands, both in Malaysia and outside of Malaysia. I traveled to Bali, Thailand, Taiwan, and Korea as well.’
‘I also got the privilege to speak at a United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) conference in Shanghai in 2008, then the Asia Pacific conference on disability in 2009, and Inclusion International World Congress in 2010. All my flight tickets and hotel accommodation were paid for by the organisation, the event organiser, and my company. I did not need to spend a single cent. I got to visit so many islands and cities and be part of events with people who accepted me. And I could give something back to others as well,’ she expressed.
‘Ever since I came to Selangor, and even until today, I experienced Matthew 13:12 where the Lord said “For whosoever hath, to him shall be given, and he shall have more abundance: but whosoever hath not, from him shall be taken away even that he hath”,’ Abigail shared.
‘I have a proper job, I have the opportunity to travel inside and outside Malaysia, I am never short of pocket money, I even have extra money to bless the poor and borrow to the needy. My relationship with my family members improved and now I receive love from my family, especially my mother and sister. I am a much happier person now. Even during COVID-19, God’s protection was on me every day and the pandemic never affected me even though I have to go to the office daily.’
Abigail’s story is uncomplicated. It is about a renewed and transformed life, given power through the message of hope and simple faith. And it is all the more impactful for being relatable and real.
All photos of Abigail Teoh kindly provided and given permission for usage by Abigail.
|Share The Good News|
Leave a Reply