雲彩之歌
我的人生樂章
樂章有主旋律與副旋律、大調與小調、和諧與不和諧、緊密的節奏與休止符，最後以悲傷或歡樂結束。我感恩，因神使我以快樂的樂章結束。
以下我要簡述生命中的幾個樂章:
【A】約五歲時，媽媽帶我搭手推車，到五公里外的教會敬拜神，從此我認識造我的主，愛我的神，這是我人生樂章快樂的開始。
【B】進教會後，我發現神給我的一份禮物一對音樂的酷愛。我開始學鋼琴、大提琴、聲樂、指揮、作曲，等。
【C】我用音樂服事神，先後創立頌恩之聲兒童合唱團、信義之聲兒童合唱團、南灣兒童合唱團、浸信之聲兒童合唱團、南加兒童合唱團、東安兒童合唱團、加略山兒童合唱團、洛杉磯華人聖樂團、洛華合唱團、忘年合唱團、洛杉磯聖樂團，等等。
【D】我從事不同工作:我當過中學音樂教師，我是台灣省立交響樂團大提琴手;曾在台中遠東廣播中心、救世傳播協會工作。來美後，我當過園丁，在汽車旅館打過工;我到開路者傳播中心服事，在不同教會擔任音樂主任近四十年。
一幅生命的圖畫
在我音樂的生涯中，我認真殷勤工作，也蒙受許多祝福。但漸漸地，我以自己為中心，我為名利和地位，把自己當偶像，帶領合唱團到國內外演出、比賽、得獎，卻忘記以讚美神，榮耀神為中心，所以我有很多的羞愧，和被厭棄的污點，
就像一條帆船在洶湧的急流中航行，失去方向；在茫茫的洋海中，尋找燈塔的引導；
在失控和無助時，呼求智慧的舵手帶領我歸回平靜的港口。感謝信實的神，祂光照我，磨練我，改變我;用主耶穌的寶血塗抹我，把我重新帶到以神為中心、以愛人如己的服事心態上，為我畫出更美的人生圖畫。
爱的切慕與親情
離台後，我在史瓦濟蘭國待過一些年日。1976年來美，就在這一年，我至爱的母親安息主懷了，這是令我傷心不已的事；由於我還沒拿到在美居留證，不能回去見我親愛的媽媽最後一面！從此以後，我把媽媽的照片掛在我辦公室的牆上，媽媽慈愛的面容留存在我心中，我從母愛的光輝體會到神無盡的愛。主的話安慰我，知道有一天我將在天上與媽媽重逢!
苦難與破碎
2004年，我做腦瘤切除手術，昏迷三週之久。醒過來後，我的聽覺神經受損，聽不到聲音，心中因此自卑、痛苦、哀傷。我的愛妻楊雅敏老師，幫我配上耳機，使我服事神不間斷。
除了耳朵受損，癲癇症也隨著而來。9/13/2014晚上，我在指揮神劇《以色列在埃及》，台上有歌者近百名，及管弦樂隊伴奏，台下有近二千觀眾，突然癲癇症發作約有三十秒之久，腦中一切空白，手在指揮，卻不知在做什麼;但神使我的靈魂甦醒，使我繼續做祂所託付的聖工。
我經歷的苦難不只在身體上，也在心靈上。由於複雜的人際關係，加上我自己生命中的汙點，以致嫉妒、嘲弄、神的管教，像炸彈接連爆炸。霎時間，我苦心栽培的果樹掉落未熟的果子，所有的合唱團體都停唱了!不可置信!
雲彩中的彩虹
撒旦雖攻擊我，但主恩更多。有一段時間，我曾不得已離開心愛的教會，到開車近一小時的分堂聚會。那裡沒鋼琴，沒詩班，沒兒童合唱團。我就組織詩班和兒童合唱團，服事神。時候到了，神帶我回母堂，成立手鐘隊，又依靠神成立洛杉磯聖樂團，在南加州的大型佈道會，培靈會，聖經預言特會，和外州華人教會獻詩，讚美神。诚然，主恩實在更多!祂使我從苦境中轉回，使絕望變為希望，使不可能變為可能，祂給我的恩愛，超乎我所求所想，祂在我生命的雲彩上現出美麗的彩虹!
心願
天路不易走，我生命的列車已快到終站，只有神知道還有多少個客站,但所經過的每一站都有不同的景色。在過去的歲月裡，在服事的過程中，雖經歷了百般試煉，也屡屢受挫，但生命的列車一直向前走;每想起主耶穌被釘十架的愛，一切遭遇又何妨呢?都不足介意了!更何況都有主的美意在其中呢!我要與神的僕人摩西同唱:「耶和華是我的力量，我的詩歌，也成了我的拯救，這是我的神，我要讚美祂」(出15:2)。在人生餘剩的幾哩路，或上高山或下低谷，生命或起或伏，得時或不得時，總要把福音传揚，完成主的託負，這就是我的心願!
朋友，你若有與我相似的遭遇，請不要因痛苦失去信心或遠離神，反要轉眼仰望耶穌，要更親近神，神能醫治你，恢復你，使你重新得力，如鷹展翅上騰!
願尊貴、榮耀、頌讚，歸給耶和華我的神!祂使我從卑微中升高，
祂使我走出捆绑與網羅，祂使我轉敗為勝!
林雲郎 2024年2月24日
*本文首次刊登於2024年2月24日「加略山華人基督教會」— 林雲郎老師見證音樂會《心願》場刊，現收錄於「洛杉磯聖樂團」官方網站。欢迎转载本文以荣耀主名，转载时请注明作者与出处，并请勿擅自修改或用于商业用途。愿这段见证能成为他人的祝福。
雲彩福音見證音樂會《心願》
Song of the Cloud of Witnesses
The Symphony of My Life
A symphony carries both melody and harmony, major and minor keys, consonance and dissonance, fast-paced rhythms and rests—and it may end in sadness or joy. I am grateful that, by God's grace, my life's symphony concludes in joy.
Let me briefly share several movements in the composition of my life:
[A] When I was about five, my mother took me in a pushcart to a church five kilometers away to worship God. From that moment, I came to know the One who created me, the God who loves me. This was the joyful beginning of my life’s symphony.
[B] After attending church, I discovered a gift from God—a deep love for music. I began learning piano, cello, vocal performance, conducting, and composition.
[C] I used music to serve God, founding multiple children’s choirs and sacred music groups including: The Voice of Grace, The Lutheran Voice, South Bay Children’s Choir, Baptist Voice, Southern California Children’s Choir, Dong-An Choir, Calvary Children’s Choir, the Chinese Sacred Music Ensemble of Los Angeles, Luo Hua Choir, the Generations Choir, and the Los Angeles Sacred Music Ensemble.
[D] I’ve worn many hats in my life: a secondary school music teacher, a cellist in the Taiwan Provincial Symphony Orchestra, and worked with Far East Broadcasting and TransWorld Radio in Taichung. After immigrating to the U.S., I worked as a gardener and a motel laborer. I later served at Breakthrough Ministries and held the role of music director at various churches for nearly forty years.
A Portrait of Life
In my musical journey, I worked diligently and received many blessings. But over time, I became self-centered. I pursued fame and status, placing myself on a pedestal. While leading choirs on tours and winning competitions at home and abroad, I lost sight of my original calling—to glorify God through praise. Shame and disgrace followed me like stains, as if I were a ship caught in turbulent waters, drifting without direction, desperately seeking a lighthouse, crying out to the Master Helmsman to guide me back to a peaceful harbor.
Thanks be to our faithful God. He shone His light upon me, refined and transformed me. Through the precious blood of Jesus, He blotted out my transgressions and brought me back to a heart of God-centered service and love for others, painting for me a more beautiful portrait of life.
Longing for Love and Family
After leaving Taiwan, I lived in the Kingdom of Eswatini for several years. In 1976, I moved to the United States. That same year, my beloved mother went to be with the Lord. It was a heartbreak I cannot forget. Because I had not yet received my U.S. residency, I couldn’t return to bid her a final farewell.From then on, I hung her photo in my office. Her loving face remains etched in my heart. Through her motherly love, I came to understand the boundless love of God. The Lord's Word comforts me, and I know that one day, we will be reunited in heaven.
Suffering and Brokenness
In 2004, I underwent brain tumor surgery and remained in a coma for three weeks. When I awoke, I had lost my hearing due to nerve damage. The silence plunged me into deep sorrow and inferiority. My loving wife, Teacher Yang, Yamin (Jasmine), fitted me with hearing aids, enabling me to continue serving God without interruption. In addition to hearing loss, I developed epilepsy. On the evening of 9/13/2014, while conducting Handel’s Israel in Egypt—with nearly a hundred performers on stage, a full orchestra, and an audience of two thousand—I suffered a seizure mid-performance. My mind went blank for about thirty seconds. My hands kept conducting, yet I didn’t know what I was doing. But God restored my soul and enabled me to complete the sacred task He entrusted to me. My suffering was not only physical but also emotional. Complex relationships and the stains of my own failures brought jealousy, ridicule, and divine discipline—like a series of explosions. In an instant, all the fruit trees I had nurtured lost their unripe fruit; all my choirs stopped singing. Unbelievable!
A Rainbow Among the Clouds
Though Satan attacked, God’s grace abounded more. At one point, I was forced to leave my beloved home church and attend a branch church nearly an hour away. There was no piano, no choir, and no children’s choir. So I built them—serving God wherever I was. When the time was right, God led me back to my home church. There, I established a handbell choir and, by God’s strength, re-founded the Los Angeles Sacred Music Ensemble. We sang at major evangelistic meetings, revival conferences, prophecy seminars, and Chinese churches across the U.S., lifting up praise to God. Indeed, the Lord’s grace overflowed! He turned my despair into hope, the impossible into the possible. His love and mercy far exceeded what I could ask or imagine. He revealed a radiant rainbow in the clouds of my life!
My Utmost Desire
The heavenly road is not easy. The train of my life nears its final station. Only God knows how many more stops remain, but each stop has brought a unique landscape. Though I have faced countless trials and setbacks in my years of ministry, the train never stopped. Every time I reflect on Christ’s love on the cross, I ask—what more could I desire? What hardship should I fear? Especially knowing that His perfect will lies in all things.
I join Moses in singing:
“The Lord is my strength and my song; He has become my salvation. He is my God, and I will praise Him.” (Exodus 15:2)
In the remaining miles of my life—whether climbing mountaintops or descending into valleys—may I preach the Gospel in season and out of season, fulfilling the commission the Lord has given me. This is my utmost desire.
Dear friend, if you are going through similar trials, do not lose faith or distance yourself from God. Instead, lift your eyes and fix them on Jesus. Draw closer to Him. God can heal you, restore you, and give you new strength—so that you will soar like an eagle!
To God be the glory, honor, and praise.
He lifted me from lowliness,
He delivered me from bondage and snares,
He turned my defeat into victory!
Samuel Lin February 24, 2024
*This article was first published on February 24, 2024, in the program booklet for the testimonial concert “My Utmost Desire” by Maestro Yun-Lang Lin at Calvary Chapel Chinese Fellowship, and the article is now featured on the CCOLA’s official website.
You are welcome to share this article to honor the Lord’s name. Please credit the author and source, and do not edit or use it for commercial purposes. May this testimony be a blessing to others.
