"I found no hope of living, but now I am happy in God's blessing"
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November 23, 2014 |
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Deacon Insik Park, CEO of Urim E&C Cor., Muan Manmin Church
Deacon Insik Park with Deaconess Eunkyung Kim (wife), Sister Somang Park (daughter), Brother Kyungmin Park (son)
After graduating from elementary school, I moved to Seoul. I worked during the day and at night studied in a private academy for qualification tests for middle and high school graduation and passed them. Thereafter I moved to Gwangju and started working as a chef in a Chinese restaurant. In 1988 I got married. Not long after our marriage, my wife and I often argued because of personality differences. When I got drunk, I would beat my wife who was roughly talking back to me. Seeing myself behave like that, I thought, 'It would be better if I die rather than live this way.'
In 1993, I began working as an electronic mechanic but I also began gambling. It brought me into huge debt. My wife attempted suicide by drinking glacial acetic acid when I drank alcohol, beat her, and even started gambling. Fortunately, she survived and was guided to New Gwangju Manmin Church in May 2003.
While going to church, she became healthy and happy. I also attended the church's services a few times when I drove her to the church. While listening to Dr. Jaerock Lee's message, I felt peaceful and happy. With a desire to be renewed, I started to lead a Christian life there in January 2004.
In the meantime, I skipped attending church on Sunday and went on a picnic with my mother. On the way we had a car accident. This incident helped me to keep the Lord's Day wholly, and then I quit drinking and smoking and began working as a volunteer for the church. My new firefighting equipment business also went well.
But from 2008 there was deep recession in the construction industry in Jeonnam province, which also hit my business hard. I was in great debt again between 300 and 400 thousand dollars. Feeling distressed, I met my worldly friends again and returned to my old habits of drinking, meeting women, and gambling. I was wandering that way in the world for three months. One day I heard voice from my heart saying, "Don't do that. Stop it. Stop!" Hearing the voice, I was awakened.
From January to April in 2009, I offered 3-day fasting prayer seven times and thoroughly repented. I sent my Senior Pastor my letter of repentance with my determination in it. In May, I met him and he gently smiled at me without a rebuke, saying, "Deacon Park, what you piled up has all collapsed." But I just felt thankful to God for forgiving me and thought of the ways I could repay the love of Senior Pastor who interceded for me with tears.
In November 2010, I began attending Muan Manmin Church and I started to live by the Word of God in earnest and also worked hard. Then blessings came upon my business. I won a construction contract that profited us approximately 5.7 million dollars in 2013. It kept growing and received constant orders whereas other firms in this field tended to reduce the number of employees because of low demand.
In October 2013, I prayed for around an hour before going to work and I shed lots of tears in repentance. During prayer I engraved the love of God and the Lord who came to me and changed me, and the love of Senior Pastor who has raised me with the truth to turn over a new leaf. After this period of repentance, I stood on the rock of faith where we can always rejoice, pray unceasingly, and give thanks in any circumstance.
From the start of 2014, I read the Bible carefully in a good posture. However tired I was due to having worked all day, when I got home, I took a shower, changed into clean clothes, and read it in a good posture. I jotted down the Words telling us to do, not to do, to keep, and to throw away. I prayed to achieve the heart of spirit. I was blessed to realize the love of God and the Lord more deeply. I also gave offerings the best I was able to expand the kingdom of God. Then God poured amazing blessings upon my business.
The greatest blessing for me was that I achieved the heart of spirit and received His love and recognition as man of spirit. Now my family members pray together every day and we've become an exemplary happy family in my church. In the past I wanted to put an end to my life, but now life is worth living for me. I give all thanks and glory to God who blessed me to know the true value and happiness of life.
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