By Leona Chen-Wong

“God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.”

— Reinhold Niebuhr, Lutheran theologian (1892–1971)

Being a new mother this January made me learn three powerful lessons. The acceptance of self-potential, the acceptance of self-limitations, and the wisdom and courage to accept my given season. 

The first lesson is learning self-acceptance of how I am a woman created and designed to be able to give birth. This acceptance allowed me to tap into the potential I had never known was possible. In fact, I was so proud to be able to experience the process of labor without any pain medication. It was hard for me to recall the memory of pain the moment my son was placed on my chest. I experienced what it means in John 16:21 “A woman giving birth to a child has pain because her time has come, but when her baby is born she forgets the anguish because of her joy that a child is born into the world.”

The second lesson I had to learn was the opposite of the above. While child-bearing is recognizing the potential strength of a woman, child-rearing during this postpartum season is for me to recognize my limitation and the need for support. 

Finally, the discernment of my season: On the day of my labor, I got accepted into a 9-week discipleship program. While I was being induced and waiting for dilation, I told my husband to help me respond to the email with a “yes.” Little did I expect, the moment my boy was born, an email replied with “the orientation of the 9-week program starts in two days in person.” 

With barely any information and while still in stitches with a newborn, I went to this church to learn about this 9-week training & discipleship program. When I got there, I realized most candidates were as clueless as me, yet they went further in faith to fly in from different countries and states for this program. That’s when I found out that out of close to a thousand applicants, only 50 were selected, and out of that 50 only 30-something responded. I was feeling both honored and torn at this opportunity. The program was daily, both morning and night classes, in addition to weekly serving at the church and weekly evangelism. It just so happens that I am on my 3-month maternity leave which would allow me to have this window of opportunity to get trained. What timing and opportunity! 

On the very first day, my husband drove me and the newborn there. Daddy and baby waited in the car while I was in class. When I got back to the car after the first session, the sight of my husband and the boy, chilly and waiting for me, struck an unspeakable emotion in me. I was torn between family and personal & ministry development, and I broke down at the crossroads. Nine weeks is a very long and intensive program. Nine weeks is also very important for me to be present with my baby. As much as I coveted the opportunity, I recognized the season with my son was far more important and regretful for me to miss. I withdrew my acceptance into the program and I was very relieved when I made this choice. 

Leona Chen-Wong is a third-culture Canadian-born Chinese raised in Hong Kong. Her third-cultural background gives her the resilience and understanding of being an ambassador for the kingdom of God. Her Kingdom ambassador work is often found in the polar spaces of tension: the western and eastern cultures, the persecuted and privileged, fundamental and charismatic, traditional and innovative spaces, and the young and old generations. Leona believes in the importance of diversity within unity, which can play out differently in different settings.  In the midst of her 10+ years of experience working in local church settings, she has always been passionate about doing missions together as a family both intergenerationally and multiculturally. Leona is currently serving in a local church in California with her husband, Andrew Wong, and they just welcomed their firstborn, Theophilus, in Jan 2023!