Enlightenment

How I Saved My Younger Brother

I was born as the seventh child in a family with seven daughters and one son. I had nothing special and drew no attention of people. Not only the villagers but also my relatives would even ask my name whenever they gathered on the national holidays. However, there were times when adults would pay attention to me. It was when they talked about my younger brother, the eighth child in my family. Since he was a precious son, I was an indispensable figure when they tried to find out after whom he was born. Accordingly, the most important mission for me in my childhood was taking care of my younger brother. When I think about it now, since I was…

Im Ji-yeon from Seongnam, South Korea

A Life of Steady Change

I once read that it is harder to maintain a changed self than to change from one’s current state to a better one. Looking back on my life, I have found that to be true. I could make plans and try something once or twice, but carrying it out consistently was never easy. The life of faith is the same. Even though I always resolve to change and live as a true child of God, it is difficult for us—who still carry the nature of sin—to put that realization into practice every single day, every single moment. To such people as us, God gave this teaching: “Have nothing to do with godless myths and old wives’ tales; rather, train yourself…

Yoo Bo-mi from Soon cheon, Korea

The Meaning of the Morning Glory

The symbolic meanings given to flowers according to their characteristics are called the “language of flowers.” For example, the green rose symbolizes “noble love that exists only in heaven.” I learned this from a new sister I met at a club gathering, and for some reason, it deeply moved me. That encounter sparked my curiosity about the meanings of other flowers as well. The hyacinth represents humble love, the cotton flower signifies a mother’s love, and the morning glory stands for good news. The moment I learned that the morning glory symbolizes good news, I was immediately reminded of our mission to proclaim the gospel of heaven. As those who spread the good news of the kingdom of heaven with…

Jo Min-ah from Seongnam, Korea

The Sound That Eases My Longing

“Turn left.” “Continue straight.” Even when I know the way to my destination perfectly well, I still find myself entering the address into the navigation system—just to hear its voice. I think it started after I installed a navigation system that offered Korean-language guidance. Having lived abroad for nearly twenty years since leaving Korea, I no longer face much difficulty in daily life. But when I first settled here, waking up each morning to the unfamiliar language around me made my head ache all day. If a conversation drifted even slightly beyond my understanding, I would strain to keep up, forcing my brain to work faster. When that failed, I would simply “switch off” my mind and give up trying…

Kwon Soon-young from Fresno, CA, U.S.

Air

I work in a job that requires a lot of physical movement. These days, because of COVID-19 prevention measures, I wear a mask while working, and even the slightest movement makes me feel suffocated and irritable. But when I move to a different spot for a moment, take off the mask, and take a deep breath, there is no greater joy than filling my lungs with fresh air. Then I thought, “If I had to live in an environment where the air was even more restricted than it is now, how stifling and difficult would it be?” With that change in perspective, my irritation turned into gratitude. Today as well, I thank God for giving me the simple happiness of…

Kim Min-seong from Suwon, Korea

Foreigners and Strangers on Earth

It has been several years since I came to the Philippines. By God’s grace and through the love of my Zion family, I’ve adapted so well that I sometimes forget I am a foreigner, and for that, I am truly thankful. Still, there are moments when I feel disheartened, especially when I’m unable to fully express what’s in my heart to the local members. When speaking with those who struggle with English, I try to mix in simple local phrases, use a bright smile, and express love and care through cheerful gestures. There were times when, despite looking up words in dictionaries or studying with translation apps, wondering how I could comfort a member after work, or how I could…

Jeong Eun-seo from Las Pinas City, Philippines

For the Everlasting Crown

When we are in God, we are happy and joyful with the grace of salvation and the promise of the kingdom of heaven. However, there are many things we need to be patient with and endure as God’s children. Before getting married, it wasn’t easy to go to church, leaving all the colorful neon signs of the city behind after getting off work on the weekdays. However, whenever I shook off the temptation and studied God’s word at the church, or focused on the spiritual work with the young adults of the same age group, I gave thanks to God for giving me self-control and moving my steps toward Zion. After marriage, there were more things that require self-control than…

Kang Gyeong-mi from Changwon, Korea

Mom’s Baby Book

In the days of my puberty, a war of nerves with Mom was my daily routine. As usual, I was scolded by Mom and banged the door, entering the room. I murmured that I would never talk with her anymore and sat in front of my desk. I opened a book to study. Strangely, I became fastidious whenever I tried to study. So I decided to study after cleaning up, and started to arrange books on the bookshelf. Then, I found an old book that I had never seen before. Baby Book was written on the front cover. It was Mom’s baby book. I became curious about the stories of my babyhood. On the other hand, I got nervous at…

Kim Hyeon-ji from Uijeongbu, South Korea

Eye

Starting a few years ago, my left eye looked blurry as if there was a fog. The same symptom started on my right eye also. I wore glasses, thinking it might be presbyopia, but I still felt frustrated. I went to the eye hospital because my wife urged me to go, but the doctor told me to go a bigger hospital to find out the exact cause and only gave me an eye drop prescription. Afterwards, because of the busy restaurant which we were running, I couldn’t spare any time. But later when I couldn’t even distinguish an object, I felt the seriousness of the situation and went to a big hospital. The doctor said he doubted that it was…

Choi Yong-gyu from Seoul, South Korea

Parental Love

I always thought my son was a little kid, but he is already a lot taller than I am now. It’s still vivid when he was a lovely little kid whom I could embrace, but now I can be embraced by him. I’m happy that he’s grown, but sad at the same time because I know I am not everything to him anymore. When he was a kid, he would burst out into tears whenever I wasn’t right next to him, and he said that he could never live without me. However, as he grew up, he started sharing his interests with his friends, and looked for me less and less. I thought about how much he thought about me…

Jo Eun-jin from Changwon, South Korea

God Daily Bears Our Burdens

Whenever I faced difficult moments though rarely, I fell into a sense of shame and felt burdened—‘Why am I the only one tired and suffering?’ But there was the One more burdened than I was. “Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens. Selah.” Ps 68:19 God knows how lonely and exhausting it is for us to pass through the desert of faith. That’s why God daily bears our burdens. It’s all thanks to Heavenly Father and Mother who bear our load and lead us to salvation, so that we can have a little more rest and strength to move forward to heaven.

Daejeon, South Korea, Kim Mi-jeong

Mother’s Love Only for Her Children

One day, I was having lunch with my grandfather, and we were discussing the most important thing in relationships. I mentioned communication as something I thought was important, and then he told me an old story: Before my dad was born, my grandparents had another son. He was born brain-dead, and the doctor told my grandfather that he would live only a day or a week or two weeks at most. My grandfather’s biggest concern was how it would break my grandmother’s heart to see her son die like this, and he wanted her to avoid the pain. So he made a decision, without consulting her, to send the newborn off to an institution far away. Afterwards, he could see…

Philadelphia, PA, U.S., Maxwell Rothstein

Take Off Your Old Self and Put On the New Self

When I look back at the life I lived, I cannot help but cringe. Everyone knew my personality: loud, arrogant, and spoiled. I was set on my plans of world victory and I was going to show it off to everyone I knew. I only wanted things to go my way or there was no way. Who on earth could have pulled me out of myself? Looking back, my past was just dark. Some years had gone by and I felt like Solomon: “Meaningless! Meaningless! Utterly meaningless! Everything is meaningless.” There was even a point in my life where I thought, ‘If I die now, I wouldn’t have to work anymore or be on this earth!’ Three days had gone…

Riverside, CA, U.S., Vivian Paire Dewong

When Every Part Isn’t United

“It’s an intruder! Attack!” “No, wait! I’m not an intruder. We’re a family!” “Liar! Attack! Attack!” This is what goes on inside the body of someone with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is an autoimmune disease; a disorder in which the immune system attacks the thyroid because it looks at the thyroid as a foreigner in the body. The thyroid is located in the front of your neck. It’s in the shape of a butterfly. The thyroid gland makes hormones that control metabolism and energy. Low or non-functioning thyroid can lead to hypothyroidism, a condition in which the thyroid does not make enough hormones for the body’s needs. It can cause certain symptoms such as fatigue, depression, weight gain, hair loss,…

Manhattan, NY, U.S., Viana Lynnette Vazquez

God Leads My Way

I was troubled many times with lots of concerns when I was about to carry out a plan. Nevertheless, I prayed to God only when I was desperate. I got sobered, however, when I realized that it was not my plans and efforts that made everything possible. “In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps.” Pr 16:9 Everything has happened according to God’s will, including my overseas mission experience. It seemed as if I made a plan and worked on it, but if God hadn’t led me, I couldn’t have done anything. I give thanks to God Elohim for walking with us and leading us to heaven.

Hyderabad, India, Ryu Gi-bok

Removing Stains

I’d like to share what I’ve realized while painting the Libreville Church in Gabon. We paint our Zion building every dry season. Since we cannot do it in the rainy season even though we want to, we have to paint in this season unless we want to be surrounded by dirty walls for a year. But there is one thing we must do before painting: stain removal. As it often rains and there is lots of moisture during the rainy season in Gabon, moss and mold which discolor walls are easily formed. If we just paint without removing stains, it looks good temporarily but mold will come back and walls will look worse than before. Stain removal is necessary, but…

Libreville, Gabon, Lee Jeong-ho

Making Pittu

When there is a gathering for the male adult group in Zion, I prepare meals, selecting a dish among the menu they like. Although they are exhausted after working all day, they come to church right after work to study the Bible. Whenever seeing them, I want to make something for them and I care a lot about creating the menu. One day, I decided to make pittu, a traditional Sri Lankan food. I needed a special pot to make pittu. Pittu is thick and has a long cylinder shape, so a pot that fits the exact size is needed. When you put dough into the pot and steam it for about eight minutes, appetizing pittu is made. Although I…

Colombo, Sri Lanka, Baek So-hyeon

Unfailing Love

As we walk the path of faith, there are times when we don’t understand why certain things happen, only to realize later that those very moments were filled with God’s hidden blessings. Whenever I’m tempted to rely on my own thoughts instead of trusting in God’s will, one verse always comes to mind: Let them give thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful deeds for mankind, for he satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Ps 107:8–9 Reading this passage, I am reminded once again that Heavenly Father and Mother love us with unwavering constancy and always fill us with what is good. Looking back on my journey of faith, I see how…

Shin Jun-hee from Suwon, Korea

One Meal vs. Twenty Thousand Meals

It was a day I cooked for my father. Though I was tired, it was nothing compared with my father, who had come home late and hadn’t even had lunch. So I quickly washed the rice and set it to cook. “Thanks to you, I didn’t miss one meal today. Thank you.” After finishing his meal, my father said this with a smile. I felt proud, but suddenly found myself reflecting: “How many meals have I not gone without thanks to him?” As I thought back over the years I’ve lived, it must be well over twenty thousand meals. In that moment, I was struck by how much love and care I’ve received throughout my life. Seeing my father express…

Ju Yeong-ho from Seoul, Korea

Class President Campaign Promises

At the beginning of the semester, my second child—now in third grade—decided to run for class president. Here is the campaign pledge he wrote: If I become class president, I promise to be like a school supply for all of you. First, like a ruler, I’ll always adjust to match your needs. Second, like an eraser, I’ll help wipe away bad thoughts. Third, like tape, I’ll build strong and lasting friendships. Fourth, like a pencil, I’ll leave a meaningful mark in the history of class presidents. Please vote for me! As I read his pledge, I found myself reflecting on my own faith and making a renewed resolution. I want to meet my brothers and sisters where they are, keep…

Kim Deok-sun from Busan, Korea