God Speaking to Korean Members Today

(Koot van wyk)

My wife is dr. Sookyoung Kim and she should have been a pastor but woman are not made a pastor in our church. They wanted to make her an elder with me and ordain her as one together with me, but she declined. She read all the books and the Bible and is convinced that a deacon is sufficient for her. So she is called by all deacon Kim in our little congregation. She sometimes preach at prayer-meeting, she plays the piano every time since she has studied for two years Church Music at a Presbyterian College in Seoul. She was organist with Mervyn Maxwell’s wife at Fairplane Church in Benton Harbor near Andrews University in Michigan for years. They use to drive together to church on Sabbaths. She has the stature and role and function of a pastor and assist our local pastor Kang, the writer of Hymn 489 in his service for our church, but called deaconess.

It was to our house that the neighbors came one Sabbath afternoon because my wife told her husband about Jeosu Hospital where he could go for his advanced prostrate cancer. Late in the afternoon, mrs. Che’s husband decided to go and we jumped in the cars with pastor Im Ki-dong’s wife and drove down to Jeosu Hospital to book him in. Our neighbor became well there, met Jesus, and for his baptism we drove down months later. Two years were added to brother Che’s life until his wife was also baptized in our church. She and two of her closest friends, the poor family Lee.

Brother Che died and our church assisted with the funeral. Sister Che was left well off by her husband and she is still the owner of a number of properties in the area. Her faith in Jesus grew stronger and stronger.

This morning my wife read the Mission Story about a Brazilian Academy that is going to get the funds for their Sabbath School Offering. She was touched by the Holy Spirit during my wife’s reading and when my wife finished, she came to my wife and said that she has decided to donate money to this academy in Brazil. We do not know how much she is going to give, but one thing we know, God touch people’s hearts. It is events like this that makes ministry and the function of it and worship and the participation in it, and a relationship with God so meaningful. The poor family Lee, is no longer poor. He has savings of $7000 in the bank. My wife helped his wife to be registered as a citizen since she is illiterate and handicapped, as her husband is as well. The family is known to bring large containers of their vegetables to church and share it with the local members. Considered to be the poorest family, they have the richest hearts of all and the Lord loves this so much, He is blessing them ten times over and over.