There seems to be some confusion about when Pastor Lee will take over as Senior Pastor even though both he and I have made it clear several times in the past. I advised against it when people wanted to make a special video to celebrate Pastor Lee becoming the 4th Senior Pastor of Seoul Baptist Church, because I felt that it was like throwing a big bridal shower when the wedding is still years away and might confuse people, making them think that he is taking over immediately. As I've said before and am saying again: I will retire on the last Sunday of August 2012. Pastor Lee will take over the next day. Until then, I am the senior pastor of Seoul ...

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A while ago Missionary H.Y. Kim gave a testimony during our Wednesday prayer meeting that deeply moved me. She is physically handicapped. When she was a small baby, her father handled her roughly after getting drunk and damaged her spine, crippling her. She ran away from home when she reached her teens because she could no longer take the physical and mental abuse both her parents gave her. She ended up at a vocational school where she learned to knit. A kind Christian instructor helped her open her heart and accept Jesus when she was 15. Since then, she won 3 gold medals in International Apprentice competitions and received a medal from the South ...

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My only hobby is watching movies. Movies generally fall into two categories, reflecting reality or fantasy. Realistic movies depict real lives. They are blue and dark in color tone and make us depressed after watching them. Other movies have stories that are unrealistic, even fantastic. They use a lot of yellow and orange tones and make us happy after watching them. The movie "Pan's Labyrinth" is the rare movie that is both realistic and fantastic. It's set in Spain in 1944, when the country was divided into two factions, Republicans and Fascists. The heroine Ofelia is a young girl whose widowed mother remarries a Fascist unit commander fighting ...

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This is sad to say, but in many churches, lay leaders - elders or deacons - have become obstacles to church ministry rather than helpers. Instead of being honored and respected, they are resented and ridiculed by church members. How do we become and remain respected church leaders to the end? Let me share my thoughts based on my experiences as both a lay leader and pastor. First, you must be involved in actual ministries. Our deacons are respected by our congregation because they’re willing to get their hands dirty. They’re seen as role models because they’re the first ones to volunteer for hard work and the first ones to make sacrifices. If ...

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Some of our younger church members are suffering from diseases that are hard to diagnose and find cures for. This is occurring more and more in our congregation. I prayed for them for a long time but hadn’t seen any improvement in their conditions. After a while, I got discouraged and started wondering why I should continue to pray for them when God wasn't answering my prayers at all. Then one day, God said to me "Did I really not answer your prayers?" This word brought me back to my senses. I realized that God had answered my prayers for people’s health many times. My wife is a good example. The 5-year survival rate for ovarian cancer patients ...

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Many parents make idols of their children. They skip Sunday worship services and neglect ministries to support their children's extracurricular activities. What they don't realize is that their children's success or happiness doesn't depend on how much energy they put into their children. It depends on God. When I decided to go to seminary, my son Danny was 9 years old and my daughter Christine was 8. My wife took my decision hard. Like a lot of Koreans from my generation who went through many hardships including the Korean War, neither my wife nor I were well to do financially when we were growing up. We couldn't do many things we wanted to because ...

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Sometime ago, a church member told me that our shepherds and deacons were complaining that they had too many things to do at church. I was a little upset and also puzzled by this remark. Saving souls and helping make disciples of Jesus requires a lot of energy and sacrifice. Before we appoint shepherds and deacons, I explain to them all the responsibilities required from them and ask whether they are willing to make sacrifices to their families and jobs if necessary to fulfill their duties. At the same time, we also make provisions to help shepherds and deacons not burn out: a 6-month sabbatical for shepherds after 3 years of service and a 12-month ...

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