Heartwarming Stories
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January 12, 2009 |
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As the economy is in a recession, it is said this winter in Korea is the coldest winter since the Asian financial crisis of the late 1990s.
Perhaps that is why we are constantly seeking heartwarming stories anywhere our senses lead us.
Perhaps that is because we want to affirm that the warmth of the love of Our Lord still exists in this world.
Just as a candle burns itself to light the darkness, there are individuals who put a smile on the faces of their neighbors with good deeds and service.
Let us together find the secret to warming our society through such individuals' lives. The following are heartwarming stories from Deacon Young-Gyu Choi, who earns the joy of service through traffic service, and from Deaconess Sung-Boon Im, who has been experiencing the blessings in spirit and in flesh following the healing of a variety of diseases by God's power. (Editors)
 "Trivial deeds of goodness go a long way."
~ Deacon Young-Gyu Choi (Cell Leader, 31st Parish)
Whenever I see church members hurrying their steps to the sanctuary at an intersection nearby, I could not be happier. I have been serving here for the past 5 years and directing the flow of the traffic.
Even when I worked in Masan as Onsite Safety Manager of a construction company or in Andong for 3 years, I never failed to come up to Seoul every Sunday to carry out my God-given duties as a vice president of Volunteers' Brigade and group leader, and attend the services. As my heart was light, I never thought of the commute as a chore.
This is how I came to be more diligent with this duty. About 3 years ago, I was driving late one night, fighting the fatigue and the sleepiness from the excessive amount of workload, and ended up crashing into the guardrail. The car was immensely damaged but except for a small injury on my left shoulder blade, I was completely fine. People who had come to the scene looked back and forth between my crushed car and me, and were simply stunned and curious. The left shoulder blade was healed upon receiving the Senior Pastor's prayer. From that point on, I began living as though it were my second life and became faithful to anything and everything. Had it not been for God's grace, I would have already ended up in the other world.
Around August of this year, I learned that Deacon Jung, a fellow cell member, could not attend the Daniel Prayer Meeting because of the distance to Seoul from Bucheon and the costs of the roundtrips. I soon learned that there were more cell members in similar situations. Thinking that the cell members could participate in the Daniel Prayer Meeting and pray together if I installed a GCN (Global Christian Network) antenna, I installed one at Deacon Jung's business. Deeply touched by this, Deacon Jung made available for us a part of his business as a meeting place for our cell and each of us contributed to making that space cozy and comfortable for all. To this date, that place has been immensely popular and served as a place of worship for Men's Mission Cell service and of the Daniel Prayer Meeting for all those who are not able to go to the Main Sanctuary.
I have a habit of recording such trivial testimonies on my computer. I do this so that I will never forget the grace God has poured upon me. I am merely grateful to learn that when I give my heart even to the smallest and the most trivial of things, it can be a source of tremendous joy for many people and make my own life prosperous.
 "Don't hold on to things in greed! Share!"
~ Deaconess Sung-Boon Im (Cell Leader, 32nd District)
"Do you have a room?!"
One evening in December 2007, a man whose head was cleanly shaven came into my home. I had been renting out rooms downstairs and one of them happened to be vacant. We live in scary times and I hesitated for a moment. Still, as someone who believed in God, I couldn't turn him away, either.
One part of me felt as though there was God's will to be found somewhere in this. I spoke with my husband, who said, "If we let him go on this cold night, he will freeze to death. It doesn't look like he has any other places to go. Let's give him a room." We did exactly that, turned on the boiler so he could stay warm, and gave him a few comforters.
Later on, I studied the man's face and found numerous scars on it. It didn't look as though he'd led a normal life. No household goods were ever found in his room and he never went outside to work. Day after day, he had people and drank away. When I went in to the room from time to time, I found it a complete mess. My husband and I were unable to receive any rent money from him for months but we weren't really looking to receive it anyway and naturally, all the utility bills he ran up became our responsibility.
From time to time, the man, looking much worn out by alcohol, came and asked for some kimchi. My husband and I felt compassionate towards him and placed some living necessities in his room and occasionally gave him some money to spend. We couldn't drive away someone who had come into our home. If we had and something were to happen to him, my husband and I would regret it and be very much wounded in our hearts. Had I not believed in God, I suppose I wouldn't have invited him in the first place.
After meeting God, I have been healed of angina pectoris, heart disease, diabetes, and depression, and my husband has been healed of the 5th degree of the sequel from defoliant and living a healthy life. I think our gratitude for God's grace compelled us to remain patient for that man.
When we told him, "Let's not live like this. Let's go to church," the man would listen to us in silence and say, "Yes, I will." A few months later, he said he indeed wanted to go to church. He has since become a member of Manmin Central Church, diligently attending it every week, and is actively spreading the love of God. He has become neat and tidy, and sometimes brings home the homeless and provide them with a good night of sleep in his room. Even our neighbors are stunned to see him so transformed.
A few months ago, my husband and I heard that a piece of land we had owned for years was being redeveloped and we unexpectedly received the price of the land, which we had been told we would receive over the span of a number of years, all at once! I am certain it was the manifestation of God's Word, "Whoever ... gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water to drink ... he shall not lose his reward" (Matthew 10:42).
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