Interview: Once into New Age, Now into God

This is part of our monthly interview series in 2024. Various individuals will share spiritual reflections and insights on their past, present, and future.

For the last month of 2024, I have Olivia Choong with me.

Who is Olivia Choong?

Olivia Choong (@theoliviachoong) grew up in a Catholic family but later became very involved in the New Age Movement. During her university days, she broke free from the “restraints” of growing up in a Catholic family. She stopped attending church and indulged in her newfound “freedom”—she did whatever she wanted and tried many new things.

After Olivia graduated, she put on false personas and did things she didn’t want for her work and love. Inside, she felt miserable and a lingering emptiness. During this time, she leaned heavily on relationships, partying and drinking to find meaning in life and defined herself through these pursuits. Part of her self-discovery was realising how much she cared about the environment. In November 2007, she co-founded Green Drinks Singapore, a non-profit society for various parties to collaborate, discuss, and raise awareness for environment-related issues. 

She believed trying out different experiences would help her understand her true identity. However, during this process, she became heavily involved with the New Age movement for the next eleven years. She sought astrologers for her future, psychics for her past, and tried out different healing modalities. However, she “felt harassed by spirits” when involved in New Age practices. She later realised she had opened the doors to these spirits because of these practices.

Through the grace of God, Olivia returned to the Christian faith in late 2020. The Bible is now a living Word to her. God and the Bible didn’t seem distant, dry and boring like she remembered during her youth. It has also given her a new perspective on Nature. She is now amazed by how God is so creative in creating and putting the whole ecosystem together perfectly — like how plants and pollination work.

She is currently worshipping in Singapore.

The Past

Looking back…

If given a chance to return in time, is there anything you would do differently?

After I graduated from a Catholic boarding school in Perth (Australia) and entered the university, I only attended church whenever my parents visited me from Singapore. Back then, other than my parents and guardians, no one encouraged me to go to church.

During that time, I felt restless and was searching for something to fill the void in my life. I tried to find it through my social life, and as a result, I partied and drank a lot, ironically at a club called The Church.

If I had the chance to go back in time, I would tell my younger self to stop clubbing entirely and instead seek out a home church or a Christian community in Perth to support me on my journey. Then again, I probably would have ignored it because I was looking for something fun and exciting. God and the church were just not that to me then.

How did you get started in the New Age practices?

It was at a time when I was figuring out my identity and purpose. An acquaintance introduced me to an astrologer and that’s the start of it all. During the first online consultation, the astrologer shared insights into my behaviour that no one else knew, and even provided a map indicating all the countries where I would be successful and happy career-wise. I took all that he revealed about me as my identity. That also got me interested in finding ways to go deeper to find out who I truly was since I knew by then that my work was not my identity.

Not long after, I caught up with a few friends over dinner. One of them brought her prayer beads and when I touched it, a current of electricity ran up my arm. My other friend touched them out of curiosity and felt a surge of energy through her hand too. Because of this experience, I believed the beads had power and wanted to buy them.

The shop told me the beads have varying beneficial properties, depending on which ones I bought. I ended up spending more than S$3,000 on prayer beads over the years. I would also visit the same shop to buy other spiritual objects for my home, believing it would make the atmosphere more harmonious. This shop also hosted talks and workshops on New Age spirituality, which I began attending.

With my immediate circle of friends engaging in New Age spirituality, I got deeper into it and started going for retreats and private healing sessions. One thing led to another. Because I was intent on seeking at that time, I carelessly opened myself up to everything I could, and it all seemed harmless. What began as a seemingly harmless journey of self-discovery drew me into a cycle of spiritual practices that led me nowhere.

During that time, different new-age practitioners told me that our purpose as souls was to get close to god through the evolution of self each time we reincarnated. So I was led to believe that during each life I have now and had before, my goal was to resolve the mistakes I made in a former life. Hence, I actively visited healers and spent a lot of money to work on the issues I felt god was highlighting for me to address. I also wanted to shorten the number of times to reincarnate so I sought to resolve as many issues as possible.

Anything to make you say “God has made everything beautiful in his time”?

Returning to the Christian Faith

A seed of faith was planted in me when I saw my then-boyfriend and now husband, Levan Wee, had accepted Christ and transformed. Subsequently, through an unplanned conversation with a new acquaintance, the topic somehow drifted from my passion subject of gardening to Christianity. The acquaintance led me to say the Sinner’s Prayer. There and then, I felt the Holy Spirit enter me.

It didn’t end there. During a breakfast with two pastors (a husband and wife) soon after I received Christ, I asked them for advice about spiritual disturbances. They prayed for me and the wife saw a snake spirit falling away from me. I recalled inviting it many years ago because I thought it would benefit my spiritual life. The wife then proclaimed my lower back pain to be gone even though she had no prior knowledge of this. The severe backache that would occasionally cause me walking difficulties disappeared that very day.

While it took me 41 years to finally find God and have a true relationship with Him, I wished that occurred sooner. However, I believe in divine timing. If it means that my struggle and resulting testimony have a greater impact for God’s glory, my experiences and time spent in the wilderness were not wasted years after all.

Anything to make you say “God works all things good”?

God’s Protection

I’ve always felt a pull to do “the right thing.” I credit this good conscience to my Catholic upbringing and my brother’s constant reminders to stay out of trouble. I’ve also felt somewhat protected by an external force which I didn’t know was God then.

During my 11-year foray into new-age spirituality, I immersed myself in many forms of healing modalities, from past life regression therapy to Egyptian, reiki, psychic surgery, and even healing related to extraterrestrials. I went on spiritual retreats, visited multiple psychics, played the Ouija board and its equivalent, and even had a significant “spiritual awakening” encounter.

Looking back, I saw how I was indeed very much protected by God.From hearing many online testimonies of people dabbling in the occult, I realised many things could have gone much worse and horribly wrong in my life when I was trying out a wide range of practices. I had managed to avoid terrifying and confronting demonic encounters, possession, and being influenced by evil spirits. I have also been in accidents where I could have died. I almost drowned in Ko Lanta in 2012, and once fell off a scooter on the busy CTE after a collision, among other incidents. 

And while I was in the “spiritual awakening” state, I experienced intense heat, insomnia, and heightened energy. Moreover, due to the lack of sleep and inability to focus during that time, I couldn’t read maps and got lost and I became irritable and ill-tempered. This experience only lasted around 5 days for me. But I know of someone who developed anxiety and PTSD because of this “spiritual awakening” and the effects on her lasted at least two years. Another person I know had the symptoms on and off for years and he would go running to expend the excess energy and go swimming to cool down.  

So I am thankful that even though I left God, He stayed by my side, shielded me throughout the years, and would later use these experiences for good. My experiences in new-age spirituality have allowed me to speak directly and reach out to those who are dabbling in it, especially Christians. Also, sharing my testimony through Salt & Light and public platforms has helped many Christians see how harmful these new-age practices are.

What are the most memorable lessons or insights you had?

Back then, I felt that new-age teachings made sense. I was sensitive to the energies and I could physically feel some measure of well-being when I attended the healing sessions. I also felt it was all about love and positive emotions in a safe environment, free from organised religious teachings. I was surrounded by many well-meaning friends who seemed well-attuned to energy and were energy healers, so I believed what I was experiencing was beneficial to my spiritual life.

However, in hindsight, I feel New Age spirituality has half-truths mixed with many lies. After experiencing the joy, peace and healing God has given me after returning to the faith, I could see that my life had been burdened by constant striving to improve my fate, doubts about the future, and an underlying lack of hope. Even though I seemed to feel at peace over those 11 years, the moments were fleeting and cannot compare to the level of peace I feel today. Now, I am certain of my life in eternity and assured that God is in control, and everything will turn out for the greatest good.

At that time, I also wished to detach from people and the world, but the truth is: God wants me not only to live connected with others but also to be in constant fellowship to love and serve them. In contrast, I now feel much more fulfilled as a Christian.

Through finding Christ, I also saw how all these new-age practices had opened doors to the enemy and negatively impacted my life. When I decided to leave new-age spirituality, I experienced an unprecedented surge in spiritual attacks. I had nightmares daily for months, but it was a minor inconvenience compared to what I had gained in my relationship with God.

The Present

Looking at now…

Are you at a mountaintop, in a valley or plains?

I am on a mountaintop, although I have my valley moments.

This year, I came out from a long period of intentional reclusiveness. God has been leading me gently out of my shell over the years and gradually revealing the life He intends for me. In my daily walk with God, He has helped me shed a huge weight of unhappiness from my life and I now feel more joyful and positive about my future.

In this season, what is God speaking to you about or teaching you?

Not too long ago, I received a Word of Knowledge that I should aim higher, look further, and not be complacent as God has more in store for me. For many years, I have shied away from facing people, preferring to work behind the scenes.

But now I see how God wants me to be bold and use my gifts and knowledge to help and inspire others through my gardening social media platforms and personal capacity. 

What fruit of the Spirit do you think God is growing in you?

I believe God wants me to exercise self-control by using my time well and having a better work-life balance. I have felt convicted to work on these areas for some time and more recently I’ve even received a Word of Knowledge about this.

I spend a lot of time online for work, but I found myself using mobile apps excessively, which has impacted my time management. This lack of discipline has made it difficult for me to maintain a healthy work-life balance because I lack a structured schedule and clear boundaries for myself and others. I often feel like I am chasing time and there aren’t enough hours in a day. So I ended up working late into the night, leaving me exhausted the next day, and the cycle repeats itself.

I know that God wants me to do a lot more meaningful things with my time instead of wasting it on watching content that is not useful for personal development, so I am definitely working on this one.

What is your bible verse of the season?

You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden.

Matthew‬ ‭5‬:‭14‬‬ ‭(NLT)

The Future

Look forward…

What are your dreams or plans for the future?

I will continue to advocate for sustainability at The Tender Gardener which I started in 2014. I document my sustainable living journey and urban farming through written, video and workshop content. I hope to encourage city dwellers to explore the possibilities of introducing greenery into their lives and connecting with nature.

Also, I’m working with an illustrator on a children’s book and I hope to publish it next year. It is a book God has put in my heart and I first received the Word of Knowledge through Levan. God revealed the book’s name and storyline and that the illustrator would be female. Months later, God confirmed the identity of the illustrator, who turned out to be someone I already knew. I’ve finished writing the story and the illustrator and I are now in the early stages of designing the main characters.

The book is about being brave in the face of trauma. This book comes from a personal experience of unjustified caning by my tutor over four years as a child. I hope that this book will give strength and encouragement to the children who need it and help them see that they are not alone in their trauma.

God has also given me more moments to hear from Him recently, either through dreams, open vision or visuals during prayer. I know that He is guiding me towards a greater goal. Whatever that is, I await with anticipation.

Editor’s Note

We thank Olivia for sharing her testimony of how she made her way out of New Age practices and into a life with God. May it make you more aware of how real the unseen realm of light and darkness is. Also, her current lesson of stewarding her time well is so apt for this generation of phone users. I am looking forward to her book which is going to minister to many young souls and broken hearts. If this post speaks to you,leave a comment or send us a message to encourage Olivia to continue sharing her testimony.

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