A testimony from Jacob, a death row prisoner in Sibu Prison
“A lamp that shines upon the gloom in the prison”
The following testimony is written by Jacob Tiang, a death row prisoner convicted of murder. Through the grace of God, his elder sister Lena who gets to visit him at Sibu Prison, has been able to lead him back to the Lord. The images depicted here are his original writing and drawings.
11 February 2020
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
The following gospel story has encouraged me to share my testimony and a little about my life. Jesus exhorted in Matthew 9:12–13 that the healthy do not need a doctor but the sick. He had come not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.
My name is Jacob Aaron Tiang Lee Yee. I am 50 years old. I have been convicted of murder in the tragic family suicide pact that happened in Pulau Li Hua, Sibu in 2013.
I was baptised at St Mary’s Church, Sibu when I was sixteen years old (1986) and subsequently received the sacrament of confirmation the following year. I did not attain a high education as I did not appreciate the importance of education and having failed my SPM exams miserably, I never bothered to pursue any further studies.
I have to admit shamefully that I was just a Christian in name only. I didn’t even know what it meant to be baptised. To tell you the truth, I didn’t know much about what was being taught in the Baptism Class at SMK Sacred Heart. I was forced to attend the class by my English teacher, Bro Hillary from Scotland, as I had been a naughty and rebellious student. But now, looking back, I realise that it is because of the unlimited love of the living God and by his mercy that I became a Christian through the sacraments even though I did not know what it meant to be baptised and to be confirmed. There was no change in me after baptism and confirmation. I was still as bad and naughty and rebellious as before and did not realise that my bad attitude was making me sinful and distant from God’s presence.
But praise the Lord, the living God whose love has no limits, no boundaries. He has been so patient with me during the past 28 years when I was living as an exile. So many bad things happened to me and I ended up in prison.
In prison, I spend most of my time reading the Bible. In the beginning, I read the Bible to kill my time as I was very bored. But surprisingly, I began to be very interested in it and began reading it with greater insight.
God never abandoned me. Indeed, he sent a shepherd to me, my elder sister Lena. She never gave up on me even though I have been convicted as a murderer. The Bible I am reading is a gift from her and she gave me plenty of religious books and enlightened me on God’s salvation.
Then I realised that everything that had happened was in God’s hands. Everything depends, not on what we humans want or do, but only on God’s mercy. In Exodus 33:19, God said to Moses “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.” St Paul in Galatians 1:15 said “But God in his grace chose me before I was born, and called me to serve him.” In Deuteronomy 30:19, God declared “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Choose life so that you and your descendants may live”. In Ecclesiastes 3:1, God said that for everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven.
Prayer:
Heavenly Father, I praise you for your ultimate love to me even though I am a sinful man.
Your love is mightier and higher than even the highest mountain. Because of your love, you have chosen what the world considers foolish to shame the wise, and the weak to shame the strong, You have chosen the common and insignificant people to put down the mighty so that no mortals can boast before you.
I praise you Lord for you have been with me the past 28 years. You never gave up on me even though I was ashamed before you. Because of your merciful love, you sent Fr Ravi to hear my confession and through the Sacrament of reconciliation, you forgave my sins and through the Eucharist, by the body and blood of Jesus, I am redeemed and reunited with you.
Loving Father, continue to bless me with wisdom and knowledge to understand your Word so that I can deliver your Word to save this corrupt world we live in.
Fill me with your Holy Spirit so that with its guidance, my path will be light.
Amen.
Jacob Aaron Tiang Lee Yee
