In 2016, Belle Foong listened quietly as the doctor explained how she would die. 

“It would likely be while I’m sleeping. There would not be enough oxygen in my body, I would suffer a stroke and everything would shut down,” she said. 

At 29 years old, the Malaysian realtor had been diagnosed with advanced chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which affects the lungs.

She was given just five years to live.

The news would have shaken many, but Belle felt no fear.

“God had delivered me from so much in my past. I knew He was in this,” she said frankly.

The dark world of the occult

God had saved her once before, and she knew He could do it again.

In her 20s, after going through a painful divorce, Belle had joined an occultic community.

Drawn to the sincerity of the community’s members and their care for her, Belle immersed herself in their world. 

The community’s strength was in fortune-telling and seances. Prayers would be held at specific hours and participants spoke in other-worldly tongues. 

For two years, Belle actively took part in cleansing rituals and practised deep meditation with black magic.

She also began a relationship with a community member that soon took a dark turn. 

“My partner abused me both emotionally and physically,” she said sombrely. “I was manipulated into withdrawing from my family and friends. He kept tabs on every part of my life and I saw no way of escape.”

The last straw was when he asked her to put her earnings into his bank account. “I really loved money at the time, so that woke me up,” she said.

With her relationship falling apart and questions on faith still ringing in her ears, Belle decided to seek answers elsewhere. 

Saved by her Good Shepherd

However, she struggled to find a reason to live after leaving the community in 2013.

A lack of purpose and restless thoughts tormented her, to the point that she decided to end her life. 

Climbing onto the rooftop ledge of a seven-storey building, she prepared to jump. 

Suddenly, she heard a voice: “Is this My purpose for you?”

Belle recalled: “I climbed down and started sobbing uncontrollably. That night, I began seeking God. What kind of God speaks to people like this?”

After seeking God for about a year, her aunt and uncle asked if she would like to receive Jesus. Though she did not fully understand what that meant, she decided to say yes. 

As she repeated the Sinner’s Prayer, however, she felt herself being pulled away from reality.

“I saw Satan’s face and a voice saying, ‘You belong to me. Don’t move an inch.’ Fear washed over me, but then I realised Someone was holding my hand,” Belle shared. 

In her vision, she was led to a bright, big field with wisteria and water flowing around her feet. 

“I sensed God’s holy presence for the first time. That day, I met my Good Shepherd,” she said. 

Five years to live

As Belle grew in the knowledge of God and the Word, she found a renewed purpose in life.

She planted herself in a local church and began serving. On several occasions, she experienced God’s deliverance from her past spiritual bondage.

Things were going well until early 2016. She began coughing a lot, and soon blood clots appeared in her sputum.

A visit to a local clinic led to her being sent immediately to the hospital. 

After being diagnosed with advanced COPD, Belle visited the hospital frequently for check-ups and monitoring tests.

“Oxygen levels to my brain were 11% below average and a part of my heart was swollen due to airflow blockage. They gave me five years to live. I had no idea how serious it was,” Belle said. 

A conversation in space

Belle was advised to stop all strenuous activity. She stopped running but continued serving in her church’s worship team. Her church prayed for and with her constantly.

A few months later, she attended a prayer conference and had a vision. In it, she was sitting beside the Lord in outer space, looking down at Earth.

Some parts of the planet were bright, and others dark. 

“I felt God ask, ‘Do you want to bring My light to (unreached) places, or go home to be with Me?’ 

“I replied, ‘My life is Yours. If I live, I live. But if I die, I die. If staying means more souls saved, I will stay.’

“My heart’s desire was for my life to bring Him glory,” Belle said.

With a grateful heart, Belle honours two sisters in Christ, Elsa Jane (left) and Li Ann (right) who have journeyed with her through prayer and practical ways in every season.

At her next scan, her doctor examined at her results in silence. 

He called in four other doctors, who huddled in front of the screen in intense discussion. 

They then turned to her and said: “You have a completely new heart and pair of lungs. What have you done?”

Belle knew then that God still had work on earth for her to do.

Saved to save others

On December 19, 2017, six months after the miracle, doctors gave Belle an all-clear. It is a gift she does not take for granted.

In 2019, she began a relationship with Shawn, whom she met in church. The couple got married in 2022.

“I never thought of getting married again, and we faced hurdles as Shawn is several years younger than me. But God told me that I am a redeemed daughter with a restored calling,” she said. 

In 2022, Belle married Shawn, whom she met while serving on the worship team. Together, they have been raising Belle’s 15-year-old daughter, Blythe, from her previous marriage.

In 2018, Belle obtained her professional real estate licence and in 2022, she applied to law school. She hopes to graduate next year.

“I also never thought I could ever have two education qualifications! Everything I lost, God redeemed within 10 years,” she added.

Her desire now is faithful obedience to the One who saved her life – twice. And she has not forgotten the conversation she had with God in her vision of space.

She now shares Christ with security guards, neighbours and even strangers on trains. She also actively invites friends and acquaintances to church and cell group.

Whenever she feels the Holy Spirit prompting her to share her testimony or speak about the Gospel, she does so boldly and without fear. Trains and elevators are often where these divine encounters happen, she revealed.

Surrounded by church members, Belle and Shawn rejoice as three friends and their daughter, Blythe, get baptised.

The reward of her obedience is seeing others come to Christ, she added.

“On one occasion, we had the joy of witnessing three friends getting baptised on the same day. We had journeyed with each of them for eight years, five years and a few months respectively. I still cry thinking about that day,” Belle said with a smile. 

“Every soul saved is a person who will have the opportunity to experience the abundant life in Jesus Christ that I am living now. It’s so worth it.”

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