He almost died

Koot van wyk (DLitt et Phil; ThD) Visiting Professor, Department of Liberal Arts Education, Kyungpook National University, Sangju Campus, South Korea, Conjoint lecturer of Avondale College, Australia

He almost died. The young man from the village of Woenam. We visited him today again like very other Sundays before. In the hospital in Mungyeong on the seventh floor. You see, he has been in hospital now for over two and a half years, almost three. He had a stroke three years ago and since then only his eyes move. Nothing else. He is fed by a pipe and in the throat is a hole through which he breathes. Mr. Park or Woenam Park as we all know him. 43 years old. He was married but his wife left him and took their daughter. Then he heard after a while that his daughter was in an orphanage and he got so angry that he was struck by a stroke. It was the first stroke. He is a man of much temper and the first time we met him, my wife and I were three years ago at his parents' house in the Woenam village. That Sabbath afternoon the Chongni church was giving out pamphlets for Christ and my wife and the head-elder Lee’s wife and elder Song visited Park Woenam’s house. Afterwards we went there a couple of times to pray for him and to visit them. But then he got another stroke and landed in the hospital. He was not a Christian and his parents insisted that they were Buddhists.

His parents refused to visit him and said that it hurts too much to see him like that. So they visit him only on festival days, like Cheosuk or New Year. My wife and I started visiting him every Sunday. My wife just translated the book Give your guilt away by Pastor Schulz. She read it for him. At first we would come there and he may be so angry that he refused us permission to read for him. But it was on and off. One week not another week no problem. He got used to our visit and started to expect it. After the first book, we read the Gospel of John every week. Then the Gospel of Mark. Now we are busy with the Gospel of Matthew and today was Matthew 3. There were days that he blinked with the eyes that my wife should read two chapters.

What we do is that my wife reads the chapter or explains a verse to him and then he blinked double every few seconds meaning that he understands what she is saying and I would say loud in Korean ye, meaning “yes, I see”. So in that way, my wife gets the feeling that mr. Park is interactively communicating with her.

When we come there he would ask us to lower the bed on his head side, then turn his head to the left, then shift his right foot more to the right side and his left foot more straight. Sometimes he wants suction first to remove the slime from his chest.

But one thing is clear today. He is only skin and bone with the skin full of sores. But the eyes are soft and the temper is long gone. He gave his heart to Christ before my wife could finish pastor Schulzes book Give your guilt away. The eyes are contempt, happy to see us, eager to hear the Word of God. Surprised at times about the incidents in the gospel. From heaven God and the angels and the unfallen worlds were watching the greatest faith in our region. No legs, no arms, no movement, no tongue use, no speaking, no sound, no sinning, no deceiving, no actions of violence, no gossiping, no cheating, no stealing, no backbiting, no hatred, absolute no opportunity for sinning. But, despite his condition, he accepted God, His Savior and Redeemer and Friend. Heaven loved it today. The CNN of heaven was there and a reality show was filmed for the unfallen worlds. He is the greatest faith in our region.

I prayed while I say ye and ye and ye and ye and ye saying “God, see his blinking! God and angels and unfallen worlds see the ‘yes’ for God and ‘no’ against Satan with those blinking responses”. And it continued with ye and ye and ye. When we pray we pray for him, his daughter, his two other brothers and his parents.

When we finish he blinks and the mouth forms kamsahamida “thank you”. No sound. I verbalize everything I think he wants to say and my wife translates for him and he blinks saying or admitting that is what he is thinking.

When we walk away to the elevator we are full of the Spirit of God knowing that he almost died, the second death although he will soon go to sleep. The terminology has changed. His situation is no longer pitiful, he is not going to die but just sleep and he almost died but the love of God redeemed him from misery. Irony says the world, but no it is not. Blessing. Eternal blessing.