Pauline Pang never foresaw herself working with children, but the Lord transformed her heart, equipped her with skills, and prepared the way for her to serve children. Now, she is a Scripture Teacher and Trainer for Children of the World, under the Campus Crusade for Christ in Australia.
Although she was born to a Christian family in Melaka, she did not fathom the gospel of Jesus Christ—the reality of who Jesus is and what He has done for her— until her university days. Following her conviction then, she decided to give her whole life to Christ (2 Cor 5:15). “I thought there is nothing else I will rather do than to give my life to Christ and share His good news,” said Pauline.
2 Cor 5:15
15 And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again.
Obtaining her university degree in University of NSW, she worked in the finance industry for four years before God clearly called her to enter Bible College to serve Him full-time. At that time, she was enjoying the autonomy of earning her own income and spending it on herself. In addition, her parents did not approve her quitting her job, hence making her decision to stop working a very difficult one to make!
Nevertheless, The Lord won the battle of persuading Pauline and her parents. Not only that, He also provided financially for Pauline to study full-time through the support from her church, government financial assistance, and own savings. Like the great pioneer missionary to China, Pauline lived and breathed in Dr James Hudson Taylor words, “God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supplies.”
Without any inclination towards children, the Lord exposed Pauline to children during her Bible college day. At that time, she was given the opportunity to minister to children through her Bible college outreach in local churches and public schools in New South Wales, Australia.
“Seeing the response of the children to the message of Jesus, and how eager and enthusiastic they are gave me a real buzz to work with kids. Not to mention, the fun I can have with them!” said Pauline who became increasingly passionate with her work. Her heart was slowly transformed to reflect our Father’s heart that has a special place for children.
How do we know God loves children? Pauline shared that Jesus rebuked his disciples for hindering children from being brought to Him. Jesus said, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” He continued saying if anyone want to enter the Kingdom of God, one must possess the characteristics of a child such as being trusting, humble, and dependent (Mark 10:13-16), shared Pauline.
Other passages in the Bible, she shared, also talks about taking a humble position of a child to be the greatest in God’s kingdom. Jesus added by saying, “Whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me” (Matt 18:1-5).”
Besides igniting her passion, the Lord also provided Pauline with many excellent teachers who taught God’s Word to children, to teach and train her. Due to the children’s limited life experiences and vocabulary, she worked hard to use familiar illustrations and to break down hard concepts, so that the children could understand and apply in their lives. Besides being a teacher herself, she also trains teachers of the children ministry and parents to explain God’s Word in a relevant manner.
Nevertheless, Pauline emphasized that parents play an indispensable role to teach the Word and model godly behaviours to their children (Deut 6:4-9), which latter way is the best teaching tool. To put it simply, parents should also take responsibility for their children’s spiritual growth, instead of only relying on the church.
Increasingly, youths and children are leaving the church today, Pauline shared, because they find the church is not meeting their needs and the church’s teaching may be irrelevant with their worldview; not to mention, not having a strong peer-network in church. In this instance, parents play a major role in building a strong foundation for their children at home especially during their formative years.
And truly, teaching children today can be more challenging for educators than the days before because children today generally have less respect for authority and display troubled behaviour due to problems at home. Furthermore, children face the challenge of learning contradicting information in their bible education and secular education, i.e. theory of creationism versus theory of evolution.
Despite these challenges in mind, Pauline is clear of her role as an educator, which is to teach and explain the Bible to children in a clear and relevant way, certainly not brain-washing them. Ultimately, as educators of the Scripture, she said that educators can only be responsible to faithfully pray and teach God’s Word within the limited time they have with the children. It is God’s role to grow and sustain their faith for ‘the Lord knows those who are His (2 Tim 2:19).’
Enjoying her job immensely, Pauline found the calling of her life with all three things in place, including her place to be, competency, and also passion. Her purpose in life is clear and her fruits, everlasting in the Kingdom of God.
Note: Pauline Pang was born in Melaka until her parents migrated to Australia when she was 15 years old. An Australian citizen now, she goes back to Malaysia to visit family and friends often.
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