Faith & Life

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

The Blessing of Forgetting

The car keys you have been searching for are in your hand; the cell phone you lost rings in the drawer; the remote control you lost is found in the fridge. You have probably had one of these experiences due to forgetfulness. But what if you remember everything that happened during your life? Such a person exists; a university student in the United Kingdom can remember vividly the weather, whom he met, and what he ate on a given day. It is as if the experiences of his life were passing in front of his eyes and being recorded in his mind and saved like photos in a folder. This syndrome is called hyperthymesia. It is the condition of possessing…

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

Unchanging Seeds

You may think that if you sow a sweet persimmon seed it will produce the same sweet persimmon. In reality, if you sow a sweet persimmon seed, it produces wild persimmons. If you sow an apple seed, the apples produced are very small; if you sow a pear seed, wild pears are produced. Most fruits we eat are grafted and improved varieties. In grafting, the plant that is selected for its root is called the stock or rootstock. Rootstocks are selected from wild varieties because they are vigorous; however, their fruit is small and tasteless. That is why improved fruit varieties are grafted into rootstocks. Then, why is it that the seeds of the improved fruit varieties still produce wild…

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

The Tears of the Cauldron

In the old days, Korean mothers made a furnace-fire and cooked rice with a cauldron. Just as building a house, sewing a dress, or writing a paper requires much effort, making rice with a cauldron is not easy, either. It is more strenuous than cooking rice in an electric rice cooker or a gas stove. You need proper skills to wash and soak the rice, measure the proper amount of water, and make a fire using wood. Once the rice starts cooking, you need to wipe the cauldron lid with a cold dishcloth as steam releases. That way, the vapor inside the lid will become water and flow down blocking the gap between the cauldron and the lid. The water…

With the Spirit of Khalas

The Cape Town and the Bellville Churches from South Africa and the Windhoek Church from Namibia went for a joint short-term mission to Cairo, Egypt. Although there were many brothers and sisters who wanted to participate in the short-term mission to Egypt, only a small number of members could go. The team members who were allowed to go participated in preaching with even more enthusiasm, determination, and eagerness. In Egypt where most people are Muslims, we still met quite many Christians. It is pretty safe there, and because the stores open until late, we could preach until at night. At first, not many people listened to the word we were preaching in our poor Arabic. However, after praying with one…

Short-term Mission Team to Cairo, Egypt

Creation of the Heavens and the Earth, Brilliant Craftsmanship

Michelangelo painted the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel for four years. One of the famous pieces of the ceiling is called The Creation of Adam. To complete it, he had to raise his arms all day, and no matter how painful, he continued the work with all his heart and soul. Once completed, he satisfactorily signed his name on the fresco painting and walked out of the church. Bright sunshine, a blue sky, and birds flying in the air . . . Michelangelo was mesmerized by the beauty of nature. It was at that moment he thought: ‘God created such beauty in nature without a trace to announce that it is His work of art, yet I wanted to boast…

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

Like a Bolt Out of the Blue

I was busy arranging the kitchen till late at night because my family was planning to move out. Cleaning the refrigerator as a last chore, I opened a plastic bottle to see what was inside. At that moment, the contents in the bottle suddenly burst out from the bottle with a loud pop and splashed; the old fermented raspberry broth burst out. The kitchen was covered with the somberly reddish raspberry broth from the ceiling to the floor. It was just like a bolt out of the blue. I was shivering without knowing what to do in that unexpected situation. My husband, who was watching TV, rushed to the kitchen, surprised. He quickly grasped the situation and took the rag…

Seoul, Korea

Overcoming with Positive Thoughts and Attitudes

When people are sick, they usually hunch over, thinking they will find comfort and relief. However, research shows that sitting upright is more effective in overcoming pain than hunching over. The reasons are as follows: First, when you sit upright with a confident posture sticking out your chest, production of testosterone—a hormone that aids in pain relief, increases. Second, if you hunch, psychologically your body thinks that you cannot overcome the pain. On the contrary, if you sit up confidently, your body believes it can. This is seen psychologically as well. If you are troubled, lifting up your chin allows you to overcome more easily than lowering your head. When you have positive thoughts and attitudes, you are able to…

Choosing the Narrow Path: The Best Decision of My Life

In Wisconsin, where I was raised, and throughout much of the Midwest, people tend to lead traditional, family-centered lives, rarely moving far from home. So my choice to leave for New York City in pursuit of my dreams came as quite a shock to my family. My dream was to perform on Broadway. I wanted to step onto the world-renowned stages of Manhattan and eventually become a stage director. To pursue this goal, I majored in theater arts, studying everything from acting and directing to costume design and makeup. After earning my bachelor’s degree, I applied to several graduate programs and was given the opportunity to continue my studies in New York. Amid countless plans and decisions, it was God…

Allyssa Dunn from New Windsor, NY, U.S.

Tenacity

The Tarahumara in Mexico are renowned for their running ability. They call themselves “Rarámuri” (running people). To them, running a full marathon in a day is not a challenge. When hunting a deer, the Tarahumara chase after it. A deer may be much faster than the Tarahumara, but does not have their endurance. The Tarahumara never worry even if a deer runs fast and disappears from their sight; they can track it by following its footprints and secretions. In a day or so, they eventually catch the deer after it falls from exhaustion from sprinting for such a long time. Determination and perseverance have great power.

Conflict, an Opportunity for Everyone to Become a Winner!

Nowadays, crimes occur among family members very frequently in our society. A lack of communication makes even the members, whom you should love and care most, the objects of crime. Long-term conflicts deepen emotional confrontation and may cause a drastic action. Someone said, “Running a home is like gardening.” If you don’t pull out weeds at the proper time, even a beautiful garden will be covered with weeds. Conflicts are like weeds. There are always conflicts even in happy and ideal homes. A conflict is a proof that they are alive and that they love each other. Just because there is a conflict, it doesn’t mean that they don’t love each other; and just because they love each other, it…

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

Put on Your Pink Lens

When you’re in love, your brain releases feel-good chemicals like dopamine and phenylethylamine. These boost your mood and deepen your affection for the other person. Suddenly, even small things seem delightful, and you naturally see everything in a more positive light. This phenomenon is sometimes called the Pink Lens Effect—when love makes the world glow in soft, rosy hues. This month, try looking at your family through a pink lens. You might be surprised by how many sweet, endearing qualities you notice—things you may have overlooked before. Let love brighten your vision! Tip See what you thought were fl aws as hidden strengths. Give generous praise when you notice something good. Choose to interpret your family’s actions kindly. Speak with positivity—even when you…

Pray for Your Family!

In the film Aladdin, a magical lamp grants three wishes. When Aladdin unexpectedly comes into possession of the lamp, he chooses to use his final wish—not for himself, but to help someone else. Through that selfless act, he finds a love he once thought impossible and steps into a happy ending. Just like that lamp, we, too, have a powerful gift: prayer—our direct conversation with the Almighty God. Prayer is vital for ourselves, but it shines even brighter when we pray earnestly for others, for such prayer can only come from love. This month, let us take time to pray for our family. God, who hears every prayer, will be pleased and listen with joy. Tip Set a regular time…

The Theory of Affordance

Why is it easier to study in a library? It’s because the space is filled with books, the atmosphere is quiet, and everyone around is focused on learning—conditions that naturally promote studying. This concept, where certain forms or images prompt a specific behavior, is known as the Affordance Theory. For example, the reason studying at home is difficult may be due to behavioral affordances: a TV or computer makes you want to turn it on, and a soft bed makes you want to lie down. But if we use affordance effectively, we can improve our concentration even at home—by creating an environment that resembles a library. Removing distractions and setting up a neat space with a desk and bookshelf can…