You know by now that a recurring theme for my blog updates is time, both in my inability to give timely updates and in my unending wonder of how quickly time passes. Over a month later, a year older, and well over halfway through 2009, I am here (late as usual) to recap my full, momentous, and blessed month of July in Korea.
God richly blessed me right at the beginning of July on my birthday week. Will Joseph (see above left picture--the other American in the middle), a great friend from Belhaven that now works for Redeemer New York as a missionary to China, came to South Korea to visit Jae Yoo and I! On his way back from a mission trip to China, it was an easy and opportune trip to take! I cannot begin to tell you how enjoyable and exciting it was to have a friend I only knew in Mississippi be with me in South Korea! Since Michael and Dorothy Preston left South Korea in March, there had been no connection between life in the States and life on the other side here. When I was blessed to take a short trip back to MS in May for my sister's graduation to see her, family, and friends, Korea almost felt like a dream. No real, tangible connection existed between the two worlds I experienced. There was my former life growing up at home and in college. Then there was my new life in Korea that felt like a new world altogether. There was almost no way for me to explain or put the other world into words. Seeing, talking to, and fellowshiping with Will formed a bridge for the two worlds. Part of me could not fathom how Will and I went from sitting down and talking about college, life, and theology in Mississippi at Newks to sitting down and talking about the church in Asia and America, life, and God's work in South Korea! Such a humbling, striking, and surprising reality to me that God has seen fit to use two young sinners like us to serve and watch God's Kingdom and church grow together globally. I don't deserve to have this opportunity, nor am I worthy to be a part of such a work. Yet God has brought me here to display His power in my weakness, to show me and lead me to repent of my sad, pathetic, sinful attempts at building my own kingdom. All this He does that I might see the glory and wonder of His victorious and global Kingdom with Jesus as the King, the Truth, the Love, the Power, the Glory, the Way, and the Message and me as His messenger, pointing others to Him and never to myself. What a sweet blessing to see and hear God working through another fellow brother I knew while at Belhaven! The time flew by so quickly with Will, Jae, and I having numerous conversations, great meals, late nights, deep laughter, empowering encouragement, mutual upbuilding, and wonderful storytelling! How gracious and kind my God is to have provided such a time of refreshment during my birthday week in Korea!
The other momentous occasion in July came just a week later for our first church retreat (see above picture on the right). 20 people from our body gathered together for a weekend (Friday night-Saturday evening) of fellowship, relaxtion, worship, and spiritual refreshment in a retreat center surrounded by breathtaking Korean mountains! Though I have enjoyed living in the city of Seoul, it is very difficult to find solitude, untainted creation, and fresh air here, as is the case in most massive metropolitan cities. With these facts in mind, our retreat to the Korean countryside was a most welcome, delightful, and rejuvenating time! Korean mountains are just flat-out gorgeous, being immersed in a sea of trees. It was such a blessing to no longer be surrounded by tall, thin sky-scrapers in Seoul but to now replace them with these beautiful mountains. During our retreat, we had plenty of reminders of the Western world, as we feasted on the likes of hot dogs, hamburgers, chips, and beans for dinner; pancakes, bacon, and eggs for breakfast; and barbecue for lunch. Worlds can and do, indeed, collide...as our stomachs could all attest. : ) One of the most refreshing parts of our retreat was swimming in the lake nearby. Though very cold and difficult to take the plunge in, those brave souls who found the strength and fortitude to do so were richly rewarded with an incredible time...me included. : ) One of the main purposes of the retreat was for spiritual refreshment and fellowship. God definitely blessed and fed our souls with these gifts through our time of worship, and especially through sharing our testimonies, stories, and devotionals in small groups. Though our body is a very unique and diverse mix of individuals, God is making us a very close community, as we get to know each other more. I am discovering over and over gain how much I need community. My identity, problems, sin, body, life, vision, hopes, and story is not my own for me to figure out; it is the possession of Jesus Christ and His church. Unless I embrace this reality in my life, I cannot grow, nor be the man that God has created me to be. I can only grow as an individual in Christ as I am deeply involved in His community that He has put me in to make us all reflect His Son to each other and the word from one degree of glory to another. Thank God that He never leaves us isolated in ourselves without hope and help outside of us, but that He continually enwraps us in the light of His presence and community. I am so thankful to be a part of Covenant church in Korea.
Please keep Covenant church and I in your prayers. As each day, week, and month passes, there are so many new adventures and challenges God brings for our body. Currently, we have just started a Worship team to oversee, plan, and lead our worship each Sunday and in other occasions when we meet. We are also preparing to launch small groups in the fall with leadership training scheduled for September and the actual small groups to start in October. Along with this, we are prayerfully planning and raising support for moving to a new location in the next month or two, so we can connect and bring more people into our body to worship God (our current space can only fit about 40 people). These next few months are going to be an intensely busy and exciting time. Please be praying for God to center us in the gospel during the mountain highs and valley lows that He sends to mature and transform us. Also, pray that I would be earnest in seeking to show and share Jesus Christ in this community and city. Over and over again, I struggle with living for myself, trying always to be significant in the eyes of others to bring my own name renown and praise. Pray that God would unveil and reveal this subtle and deadly sin to me each day, leading me to constant repentance and faith in Him for the sake of His name and His renown alone.
Finally, I thank you all from my heart for your deep involvement and impact in my life. As I said before, we are not self-made individuals. We become who we are through Christ and the community and people He puts around us. I would not be in Korea, nor would I be who I am today apart from God putting you in my life. I think of you all often, as your example, words, and love continually encourage, exhort, and challenge me throughout my time in Korea. Thank you for leading me to Jesus...to see and discover more of His presence, power, love, and truth. With Paul, I pray for and thank you in these powerful words of God:
"I thank my God in all my remembrance of you, always in every prayer of mine for you all making my prayer with joy, because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now. And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. It is right for me to feel this way about you all, because I hold you in my heart, for you are all partakers with me of grace...For God is my witness, how I yearn for you all with the affection of Christ Jesus. And it is my prayer that your love may abound more and more with knowledge and all discernment, so that you may approve what is excellent, and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God." --Philippians 1:3-11
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