“I know God did a miracle in my life,” Miaomiao Li (Catelyn) said.
Before COVID-19, Catelyn was living and studying for her PhD in Norway while her husband, Quingfei Pan, was living here in Memphis and working at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Concerned about the virus in Norway and preparing to quarantine long-term, Catelyn made an impulse decision to buy a one-way plane ticket to Memphis to be with Quingfei.
“I was still working in my office when I decided it would be best for me to leave Norway to be with my husband during these uncertain times,” Catelyn explained. “I missed him and was afraid the quarantine would last a long time and would keep us apart. Thankfully, my boss approved my move, so I came to Memphis on Monday, March 2.”
While transitioning to life in Memphis, Catelyn and Quingfei invited some of his coworkers over for a game night. One of which was Qian Dong.
“I liked Catelyn from the first day I met at her,” Qian said. “As she talked, her honesty and gentleness put me at ease. At the end of the night, we connected through an app, so we could keep in touch.”
At this time, Qian had been praying for the Lord to bring someone into her life to share the Gospel with. So, a few weeks later when Catelyn contacted her about a post she had made on social media praising God, Qian knew it was all God working behind scenes.
“Miraculously, as I prayed, I could see God working in Catelyn’s heart, and eventually He brought us together in a wonderful friendship,” Qian said. “When she messaged me, I was so excited to invite her to visit our Life Group’s Zoom meeting the following Sunday. I told her all the reasons I love our Life Group and hoped she would enjoy it just as much.”
After attending several Life Group Zoom meetings, Catelyn began to ask questions about the Gospel. Then, during a Zoom on June 7, Catelyn made a profession of faith and asked Jesus to be her Savior and Lord! Those on the call said it was clear the Holy Spirit was actively drawing Catelyn to faith in Christ. Following the call, Qian, Wei, and others threw Catelyn an impromptu “Birthday Party” to celebrate her new birth in Christ, and one week later, Catelyn happily professed her faith in Jesus Christ through believer’s baptism on Sunday, June 14 during the 8:30 a.m. Worship Service!
“I know now that God brought me to Memphis for this very reason–to know Him, have a personal relationship with Him, and to share Him with others,” Catelyn concluded.
Read parts one and two of this story on bellevue.org/blog.
Be sure to check out next week’s Weekly Worship Guide to read the final story of this chain reaction.