Zane Liew was 15 years old when she first had the thought.

“I had a strange feeling that I would become a Pastor’s wife and then, a Pastor myself! My first thought was, ‘Is being a Pastor even a real job?'”, she said.

Zane had just accepted Christ a few months earlier at a youth service. She had been invited to attend church during a Christmas party and carolling session at her aunt’s house.

Shortly after her conversion, the teenager began spending time in prayer and the Word.

“It was during my quiet time that the impression first came that I would marry a Pastor and also enter pastoral ministry. Over the months and years, that thought kept surfacing. I shoved it aside,” she said.

The strange feeling never left. Deep within her, she feared it was more than just her “crazy imagination”, but a divine call from God.

Choosing Jesus

Growing up, Zane and her family were staunch followers of another religion.

It was, therefore, a surprise when she accepted Christ. Her family bitterly opposed the decision.

“However, they could find no reason to object to my going to church and serving because my grades began to improve, as did my English proficiency,” she said.

During her aunt’s Christmas party, she also made a new friend – Ian, a caroller and Pastor’s son. They clicked immediately.

A young Zane (left) standing next to Aunt Chen, the aunty who hosted the Christmas party that led her to finding Christ.

Two years later, they began dating. Ian had no intention of entering pastoral ministry and was set on corporate life. Young Zane was relieved. “I thought that settled it, no life as a Pastor’s wife for me!” she said with a grin.

She secured a government scholarship to pursue pharmacy, while Ian studied mass communications. 

But the calling would come back.

Running away from her calling

After completing his internship, Ian, out of the blue, felt called into full-time ministry as a Pastor and went to Bible school.

The thought immediately rushed back to her mind, but she quickly dismissed it and focused on establishing her career.

When Ian eventually proposed in 2018, she resigned herself to becoming a Pastor’s wife, but determined in her heart not to become a Pastor herself.

In 2018, Ian proposed to Zane, a decade after their divine meeting at her aunt’s Christmas party.

“I was driven to ensure that word did not come to pass. So for one year, I used work as a cover to withdraw from God. I worked six days a week, 12 hours a day. I stopped serving, attending cell groups and even skipped church,” she said.

Outwardly, the fully registered pharmacist was on the fast track to wealth, status and success. Inwardly, her spirit was wasting away.

“It was the hardest and darkest year of my life. I felt so empty, so dissatisfied with life. There was a hole inside, and nothing could fill it,” she said soberly.

Heeding the call of God, Zane gave up a thriving pharmacy career for full-time ministry.

Soon, she began to change: more angst, less patience. Her work ethic began to deteriorate. People around her began to notice.

Then, the couple attended pre-marital counselling. In the first session, Zane was confronted by the God she was running from.

A humble return

“It was a wake-up call, realising my identity is not found in money or status but God alone, the One who made and formed me,” she said.

“I repented and made a bold step at work to ask for weekends off to prioritise my faith, something unheard of in the industry. Astonishingly, my bosses approved my request.”

Pastor Zane graduated from Bible College of Malaysia with a Master of Ministry in 2023. She will be graduating this year with a Master of Divinity, and is also currently pursuing a Master of Theology.

As she grew closer to God and plugged herself back into church, her heart softened before Him. The call from her teenage years resurfaced.

This time, Zane obeyed. She enrolled in part-time studies with a Bible college in 2019. The following year, she gave up her pharmacy career for full-time ministry.

Having served in the children’s ministry since she was 15 years old, her Pastors asked her to take up the role of children’s Pastor. She readily accepted.

Not your typical children’s Pastor

However, Pastor Zane admitted that being a children’s Pastor does not come naturally to her. “I’m not a kids person, and I once struggled with social awkwardness, so working with children is very hard for me,” she said.

Every aspect of running a children’s ministry requires effort, patience and zeal, from scheduling to lesson planning and engaging the children.

Pastor Zane stepped into children’s ministry out of obedience and purpose, not passion or skill.

Serving full-time while raising two of her own young children, aged three and one, is also challenging, with diapers, vomit, overtired babies, late nights and busy weekends.

“The thought of giving up keeps tempting me. The struggle is real. But it’s precisely in my weakness where God’s power is revealed (2 Corinthians 12:9-10),” she said.

Pastor Zane and Pastor Ian with their two children, aged three and one.

What keeps her going? “An intentional posture of pressing on and relying on the Holy Spirit. It’s about perseverance, not convenience,” she said.

“What has sustained me is purpose, not passion. I am constantly forced to depend on God in every aspect of ministry. Every moment requires God’s divine help and intervention.”

God’s grace at work

Every week, Pastor Zane oversees children’s ministry across her church’s two campuses, with around 40 children in attendance.

“The Lord has shown me that children are people of value in God’s Kingdom, and that they’re no less than the adults in fulfilling His purposes. When the children see me, they’re seeing God’s grace at work in a willing, broken vessel,” she said.

“The Lord has shown me that children are people of value in God’s kingdom,” said Pastor Zane (right).

She finds joy in witnessing the children’s uninhibited delight in their classes. She has also been heartened to see how the Lord has recently brought in more volunteers to lend support.

“Children’s ministry can be tiring and time-consuming, and the mental load is incredible. Yet, people are returning to serve because they see how the Lord is working in the lives of these young ones,” she said joyfully.

Zane and Ian flanked by both of their families at their daughter’s dedication. Her mother-in-law, Rev Lynda Choi (third from left), led Zane to Christ when she was 15.

The young Pastor smiles as she reminisces about her life as a clueless teenager baulking at the idea of marrying a Pastor, and becoming one.

The God who spoke then continues to lead her today, teaching her the joy of surrender.

“God’s grace is sufficient for us, and His power is made perfect in our weakness. Learning to obey God’s call, no matter how seemingly bizarre or foolish, is ultimately not about the hands (skills, abilities), but the heart (humility, availability),” she said.

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