Faith & Life

Saving a Happy Tree

Our Zion has a tree named “happy tree.” Whenever we look at that tree with big green leaves and small bell-like flowers, though not many, we feel happy just like its name. But when summer was about to start, the happy tree, which was almost touching the ceiling, started showing strange symptoms. Its leaves started hardening as if they were withering, and they didn’t look fresh like before at all. At first, we thought it needed more water and gave it more. However, it still looked the same. Worrying that too much water would rot the root, we stopped watering it. Thankfully, there was a sister who knew much about plants, so we asked her for a piece of advice.…

Gahng Shin-hae from Seongnam, Korea

First Fruit

‘I just need to keep my faith only!’ My long-lasting belief was broken during the last autumn feasts, which were more meaningful than ever before, because it was the Father’s 100th birth anniversary year. As I was celebrating the feasts, my fervor for preaching replaced my wrong idea. The first person I preached to in my life was my team manager. He was my boss at work, but we were friends outside work. When I was on my way for a business trip, One day, when he was at home, I asked him to accompany me on my way for a business trip, and he said okay. During the five-hour round trip by car, I preached the truth to him…

Sohn Jeong-in from Seosan, Korea

Heaven’s Teacher of the Law

Jesus said, “If you love Me, feed My sheep.” There are a variety of spiritual foods, but I’ve always wondered what food is proper for each of sheep. He said to them, “Therefore every teacher of the law who has been instructed about the kingdom of heaven is like the owner of a house who brings out of his storeroom new treasures as well as old.” Mt 13:52 The words settled my worries at once. The heaven’s teacher of the law should be able to give spiritual food from the Old and New Testaments to whoever he meets at the proper time. He should do it like the owner of a house is well aware of his house and can…

Yu Yeong-mi from Ansan, Korea

The Most Valuable Work in the World

There is a research which shows that simply knowing how meaningful and important our work is can help us increase our job satisfaction and efficiency. This is the result of an experiment which an American university professor conducted with employees at a call center that raises donations for a university over the phone and with rescue workers at a local sports center. The call center employees, who were greatly discouraged because they had to deal with customers who felt offended and complained about the sudden calls asking for donations every day, had time to meet the students who had received scholarships thanks to their efforts. It boosted their morale and doubled the amount of donation as well. The rescue workers…

We Are More than Conquerors through Love

In life, there are times when you may face unexpected difficulties. Sometimes I overcome them, thinking of God, but sometimes I get so discouraged that I just want to plop down on the ground. I was exhausted in body and mind, thinking, ‘Why doesn’t the situation get any better?’ At that moment, God gave me comfort and courage through the words in the Bible. “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: ‘For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.’ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him…

Peter Antonio Azucena Valencia from Cordoba, Argentina

Alert

When we first put on a new pair of shoes, we take much care of our new shoes to keep them as clean as we can; if our shoes get dirty even a little bit, we wipe the dirt off them right away. However, after we repeat the same thing several times, we come to care less about our shoes than we did at first. It is the same with our life of faith. When we fully realize God, we make great efforts to keep our souls clean by engraving God’s word in our hearts and trying to conduct ourselves in a godly way in everything. If we commit a mistake or fault accidently, we feel so sorry towards God…

Where I Need to Return

I was always sick while raising my three children, probably because I became exhausted physically and mentally. Many nights, I couldn’t sleep. I went to see a doctor and was diagnosed with the initial stage of depression. I tried many things that the doctor suggested for treatment. I had time to learn new things, and met my friends and talked, eating delicious food together. However, it was still painful though I spent more time and money for taking lessons, eating, and traveling. The fun time was temporary and I soon got tired, and my mind was covered with darkness again. Whenever I lay down on the bed at night and thought about the day, tears came out of my eyes…

Oita Ai from Togyo, Japan

Finding the Lost Heavenly Children

One day, while I was on my way to work just as usual, a man came to me and handed me a piece of paper. It was a flyer for finding his daughter, who was thirty nine then. The flyer had her picture when she was eleven, along with the description of how she looked and what she was wearing. The father, who had been looking for his lost daughter for about 30 years, was handing out the flyers to passersby, with his back bent and his hands wrinkled. Suddenly, a verse crossed my mind. “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Lk 19:10 Heavenly Father, too, could not take care of Himself…

Kim Min-seong from Suwon, Korea

The flower of smile or laughter

In Korea, when we see people smiling or laughing brightly and happily together, we usually say that “the flower of smile or laughter is in full bloom.” This expression likens people’s brilliant and pleasant smiles or laughter to a flower. A flower does not bloom suddenly in a day. No matter what kind of flower it is, there needs to be a certain process until it blooms; first, we need to plant the seed, and then the seed sprouts and puts forth buds. Only after this process can we see a beautiful flower. If we want to make the flower of smile or laughter blossom, we need to plant the seed first. The best place for the seed of smile…

The Spirit of Ownership

Nanami Shiono, a Japanese author and novelist known for her work titled “The Story of Romans,” stated that one of the main reasons why the Roman Empire fell even though it was so powerful was that the Romans defended their country by hiring soldiers mostly from other countries. Since the soldiers were not defending their own country, they were lacking in the sense of belonging and of duty, so they neglected which made them neglect their defense responsibilities. During the Japanese colonial period, Ahn Chang-ho, a Korean independence activist, mentioned the difference between an owner and a stranger. He said, “The house which is not under the custody and control of its owner will collapse someday.” Saying this, he emphasized…

Those Who Absolutely Obey God’s Word

I often thought, ‘Ah! This is what I should do,’ or, ‘I should get rid of my sinful nature,’ after listening to a sermon or watching an educational video. Within a few days, however, I would soon find myself leading the same lifestyle as before and feel a great deal of shame. Yet I would justify my action, thinking that I was at least keeping worship services. But I came back to my senses when I read this verse: “Everyone who sins breaks the law; in fact, sin is lawlessness.” 1 Jn 3:4 I thought that lawlessness referred only to disobeying God’s commands such as the Passover or the Sabbath day. Since I kept God’s commands, I thought I was…

Jo Gyeong-jun from Yangsan, Korea

The Perfect Pasta Sauce

A food company in the United States asked a consumer psychology expert to find the perfect taste of a pasta sauce. It was to find the best taste, “the bliss point,” as any other food company tries to find out. “The bliss point” refers to the optimum concentration at which the combination of food ingredients in the food reaches the peak of sensory satisfaction. The expert made 45 kinds of sauces such as spicy, sweet, sour, and salty, and let people taste it. As a result of the experiment, there was no taste that was particularly scored higher than others. The bottom line was, “There is no such thing as a perfect pasta sauce in the world. There are only…

Strive for Heaven

If one cultivates and practices virtue towards God by doing good, where will his soul go? His faith, deeds and blessings will remain with him, and he will receive glory in the eternal kingdom of heaven. The Bible tells us to train ourselves to be godly. From now on, little by little, we should try to practice hospitality and also to practice honoring God. Give glory to God all the time by using your good mind to the fullest, and strive for the eternal kingdom of heaven for the rest of your life on earth. Father’s Words Give glory to God all the time by using your good mind to the fullest, and strive for the eternal kingdom of heaven…

Through the Time of Refinement

Diamond is a mineral made when carbon has endured high pressure and high temperature in the depths of the earth for a long time. However, a rough diamond itself doesn’t look like a jewel at all. Besides, not all diamonds are treated as precious. Some of them are beautifully recreated through the hands of jewelers to attract the world’s attention, while others are processed and are used for industrial purposes. The value varies, depending on what kind of process it goes through. “But he knows where I am going. And when he tests me, I will come out as pure as gold.” Job 23:10, NLT God likened the process of the refinement of faith to the process of obtaining gold.…

Yu Min-jeong from Busan, South Korea

God who divided the Red Sea

During the Sino-Japanese War, a Chinese missionary was evacuating along with over a hundred children who had lost their parents. When they reached a desperate situation where they had no more food to eat and no place to go, the missionary gave up on everything and collapsed. Then a child came to him. “Sir, be strong! God will protect us. He even divided the Red Sea for the people of Israel.” “That’s right, but I am not Moses and I do not have a staff that can create a miracle.” When the missionary helplessly answered back, the child said. “You are not Moses, but God is the same God who divided the Red Sea.”

Every Day Is a Special Day

It was a Tuesday. After helping my husband prepare for his going to work as usual, I was resting for a moment in my room while my children were preparing for going to school. Then, my two children came to me together hand in hand and spoke out loud at the same time. “Mom! Thank you for raising us!” It was very unusual for them to say so. I was curious about what had happened to them. “Huh? Why?” “Nothing special. We wanted to buy you something, but why don’t you take this and buy something you want?” Then, they handed me a creased bill. Receiving an allowance from them, I felt like their sincerity touched my hand. It was…

Cho Yun-ju from Uijeongbu, Korea

How to Break Free From Trivial Worries

There was a man who always felt restless and anxious over small and trivial matters. His desire was to live without worry. So one day he went to see a wise man in his village and asked him how to be free from anxiety. Then the wise man said: “Why don’t you set aside a specific day for worrying?” So he decided to worry on one day each week. From then on, whenever he was confronted with any trouble, problem or worry, he wrote it down on a piece of paper, along with the date it occurred, and put it into a box. On an appointed day, he opened the box and started to read what was written on each…

God Is Our Guide Forever

Sometimes I think, ‘I am lacking in many ways. How can I successfully carry out my God-given mission?’ Soon, however, I get reminded of God’s sure promise, which makes me cheer up. “For this God is our God for ever and ever; he will be our guide even to the end.” Ps 48:14 God divided the Red Sea for the Israelites to cross over on dry ground and destroyed the fortified city of Jericho to level the way to Canaan. God is still guiding His children who are preaching the gospel to all people around the world in the age of the Holy Spirit. Although I am still weak in faith, I will do my best to successfully carry out…

Jeon Sahng-hui from Seongnam, South Korea

I Will Remember Their Sins No More

“No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest,” declares the Lord. “For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more.” Jer 31:34 It is not easy to forgive someone who has done wrong to you or hurt you. Even if you manage to forgive him, you will be distressed whenever the painful memories pop up. You can forgive him maybe with your mind, but it seems difficult to completely remove the scars in your heart. What if God has forgiven us but remembers our sins? When I think about the weight of our…

Choe Hyeong-hwan from Panaji, India

Limitation

In the 1900s, it was considered beyond human capability to lift 500 pounds (approx. 270kg) in weightlifting. Vasily Alexeyev, the legendary Russian weightlifter, attempted a 500-pound lift, but he failed every time; he was only able to lift up to 499 pounds. In 1970, the World Weightlifting Championships were held in Ohio, USA. Alexeyev gave up on the 500-pound lift, and he easily lifted the barbell of which his trainer had said, “It weighs 499 pounds.” Shortly after, the weight he had lifted was announced. 501.5 pounds! Since then, there have been many weightlifters who are able to lift over 500 lbs.