The Grace of Redemption

On the Path of the Dawn

The Testimony of Kelvin Tan Kay Aik

Welcome to another episode of The Grace of Redemption.  In today’s episode, we will hear the testimony of Kelvin Tan Kay Aik, whose journey from a life of enslavement to drugs to a life of freedom and joy points to God’s amazing power to change lives.

[Music]

“Son, why must you be mixed up with this?  Don’t you know that it will destroy your life?  Do you want to spend the rest of your life in prison?”

When Kelvin’s mother discovered that he was taking drugs again, she was devastated, but her tearful and heart-reding pleas barely moved him, for he was already deep in the abyss of drugs.  To him, drugs were more important than his mother’s words.  Drugs were his life, his everything, and he could not live without it…

Kelvin was only 15 when he became ensnared by drugs.  He had no interest in his studies, and often skipped school.  After he was kicked out of school, he just loafed around.  His father was busy working to feed his family of eight, and his housewife mother was unschooled.  Without proper guidance, Kelvin soon got into bad company.  Encouraged by his friends, he took his first puff of heroin out of curiosity.  Little did he know that it would lead to a life completely controlled by drugs.  He would be in and out of jail for more than 30 years.

Kelvin was first arrested in 1978, and jailed for three and one-half years before he was placed on parole for nine months due to a lack of enough evidence of his drug trafficking.  “I was sent to work in a Gospel-based drug rehabilitation center during the day.  That was when I heard about the Gospel, but it was meaningless to me.”

He missed the opportunity to come to Christ, and chose to harden his heart and remain stubborn.  He refused to receive a new beginning for his life.

Kelvin was jailed again in 2000.  His previous prison experiences had not reformed this hardcore drug addict.  His family members were very disappointed:  “You have been in and out of prison so many times, yet you won’t change your ways.  You are such a burden to the family.  Why don’t you just spend the rest of your life in jail?”  None of his family visited him while he was in prison.  His ailing father even warned him, “I am disowning you because you have only given our family trouble.  If you refuse to mend your ways, you are not to come home when you are released.”

Kelvin had nowhere to go when he got out of jail because of his estranged relationships with his family.  He had to choose between sleeping on the streets or bunking with his friends.  At that moment, he could only think of Breakthrough, but after spending only one month at the center, where he had the opportunity to know Jesus Christ and receive spiritual discipline, he left; he said he could not stand the boredom.  Thereafter, he returned repeatedly to drugs and trafficking, which finally brought him to a dead end.

In 2003, during an Island-wide anti-drug operation, Kelvin was caught taking drugs in a Geylang hotel.  He never expected to be arrested, and had on him 700 grams of heroin, which had a purity of 36 grams.  In Singapore, anyone caught with 15 grams of drugs or more must receive a mandatory death penalty.  Faced with certain death, the feeling is not one of horror, but rather numbness of the heart.  Kelvin was tired of his helplessness in kicking his drug habit.  The rejection from his family made him feel desolate and lonely, and life was no longer worth living.

The lost son with an exhausted spirit and a drained heart had come to the end of his road.  God saw all this, and saved Kelvin instead of abandoning him.

“My sister, who’s a Christian, brought a pastor to visit me.  I had heard the Gospel before, but I was unmoved.  This time, when the pastor asked if I would be willing to believe in Jesus Christ, I nodded.  After he led me in saying the Sinner’s Prayer, he softly sang the hymn ‘Because He Lives’:  Because he lives/I can face tomorrow/Because he lives/All fear is gone/Because I know/He holds the future/And life is worth the living/Just because he lives.  The lyrics shook me initially, but they soon began to flow soothingly, like a stream over my soul.  I felt deep peace and strength in the gentle embrace of my Heavenly Father, and I was moved to tears.  I was no longer afraid, even though I was awaiting my death sentence.”

“If the death sentence was passed, I would not blame God or anyone, for I had brought this upon myself since I chose this path of drugs and decadence.  My last wish is that my family will have fond memories of me….As for the debt I owe my parents…it is impossible for me to repay.”

He then gave instructions for his own funeral service and selected the hymns to be sung.

“Since I believed in Jesus, I experienced his presence gradually in my life, although I was living in the shadow of death.  He comforted me through my dreams sometimes.”  Each time Kelvin woke up, he recalled his dreams, but could not understand what they meant.  It was not until the end of his trial that he was able to put together the pieces, and see the whole jigsaw puzzle clearly.

God wanted to remind Kelvin to trust in him alone, to remember his works, and to cry to the Lord in his weakness, for God’s grace was always sufficient.  God comforted Kelvin, and what was impossible for man was possible for the Lord!  He was to experience a miraculous transformation of his life.

During the trial, the judge ruled that the prosecution did not have sufficient proof that Kelvin was trafficking in drugs, even though 700 grams was found on him, because he was a hardcore drug addict.  Instead, he was found guilty of drug possession, and sentenced to 17 years in prison, which was to run concurrently with an earlier sentence.  In effect, Kelvin’s jail sentence was reduced to 11 years and four months.  Kelvin cried with joy on hearing that he had escaped the death sentence.  At that moment, he truly experienced the wonder of living.

Serious drug offenders were never granted parole, but God again made the impossible possible.  Kelvin was granted parole in 2014, owing to his good conduct in jail, and was allowed to spend the last six months of his sentence at Breakthrough before re-entering society.  “I learned through its life discipline program that life transformation requires continuous building of the foundation; otherwise, one will buckle at the slightest knock.  Life building also has to be done step by step, and there is no short cut.”

Before Kelvin followed Jesus, he was muddling through life without peace and joy.  After he became a Christian, he grabbed every opportunity to serve the Lord.  Once he learned to play the guitar, began providing accompaniment during prison worship services.  After his release, he followed the pastors and preachers to various churches in Singapore to sing and share his testimony.  He wanted to use his personal experiences to help other prisoners who were still trapped in sin.

Breakthrough is also a place for spiritual discipline.  When time permits, Kelvin will return to this home for its monthly “Breakthrough Overcomers” fellowship.  There, he meets up with his Breakthrough brothers who have returned to society.  They share their experiences, and support and encourage each other to continue trusting the Lord and not go back to their old ways.

Kelvin sings to God with joy and thanksgiving from deep within his heart, for he has been through the valley of death.  Not only has he received new life from God, he has also been blessed with a wonderful wife.

“I met my wife during one of the visits to my friend’s church.  Although I was interested in getting to know her, I hesitated because she might not understand ex-offenders like us.  One day, she told me half in jest, ‘I will go out with you when I’m moved by your singing.’  As it happened, her heart was indeed touched!”  The love of God won her over through Kelvin’s singing.  After one year of courtship, they got married in 2018.

Kelvin worked as a cab driver after he got married.  This was another blessing from the Lord, and he was thankful, no matter what work conditions were like.  “Although I made lots of money in the past through drug trafficking, I was always living in fear of being arrested.  There was no peace in my heart.  Life today is simple and peaceful, and full of joy.  Such an experience is invaluable, and can never be bought by drugs or money.”

To have his own family at the ripe age of 58 is a blessing from God, as well as a challenge.  Kelvin knows only too well that Jesus is the true vine, and he is just a branch.  Apart from the Lord, he can do nothing.  He has experienced God’s salvation from the valley of the shadow of death, and his leading to the way of light.  No matter how life turns out in the future, whether it is bright and sunny or filled with thorns and thistles, he still believes God will be with him, guiding him and his wife step by step, and blessing them with grace upon grace.

Thank you for listening to today’s testimony.  We invite you to join again next time on The Grace of Redemption as we hear another story of how God has worked in amazing ways to restore the life of another person.