Home > Praise and Thanks Volume I
You almost head to quit your pastor job!
Chapter 36 - You almost head to quit your pastor job!
 
My body had grown weak from planting a new church, and having to travel to San Jose to serve Youth Born Again Mission. My body kept getting feverish and could not focus. I had a lot of cold sweat. One Sunday worship during service I was in such a great pain that I had cried in middle of a sermon. I had to stop the service because of the pain. But because my church was newly opened it was hard for us to have a guest speaker. I had to hold against the pain. When I went to sleep, my body would be wet (with sweat), and I thought I was floating because of chills. My wife was working at the time in a company’s cafeteria. I was lying in bad sweating and in pain when brother in Christ SeungBae Park had called. This brother in Christ was in charge of conducting our choir back in San Jose.  He also helped with Youth Born Again Mission in San Jose many times before he had started to attend seminar. I could barely respond on the phone and he replied “Pastor I can sense something is wrong. I am on your way right now!” and hung up his phone.

He was attending an American Seminary, and for him to come to see me he had to drive an hour and half. When he arrived at the apartment I lived in, he took a towel from the house and wiped my sweat and asked “Pastor, do you know any doctors?” To be honest, I had to have a health check up every year, but because of financial hardship I had no insurance. So I had passed many years without a health check up.  So I didn’t know any doctors immediately in the area. I decide to call Pastor SoonSik Kim who had helped me get my first office and provided me a place to meet for my new church and told my story. At that time Pastor Kim owned a book store so he was attending a church of an acquaintance. Pastor Kim said “In our church there is Dr. HongSik Kim,” and gave me his address.

I got into SeugBae’s car with his assistance, I was powerless. I was raining sweat… after a 20 minute ride I visited the doctor, but he had moved to a new location. So I had to ride to the new place. After entering the doctor’s office and explaining the situation, the nurse put me into a bed to be checked by doctor. After short time Dr. Kim came in. While he was diagnosing my problem his face looked serious. He took some blood sample as well. After a short time he said “Welcome to this hospital, had you have to go to a Community Hospital instead, because of no insurance, you would’ve had to quit your job as a pastor.” He added on saying “Don’t worry my father is a pastor as well. He is currently retired and is in Hawaii. I had studied in Columbia Medical University and specialize in kidneys.” So the doctor was specialized in internal body. But he was specialized in kidneys. Apparently my kidney had become infected so severe, that my white blood cells to fight and recover my kidney were at 0%.

After the diagnose he took some time to give me different shots. There would be other patients to look at, without a time to rest he came in and checked me occasionally. After he took care of immediate dangers, he said “Pastor, I will charge you only for the things I diagnosed on and nothing else. Even if that is too hard, then you can pay partially.” I could only be so thankful that I had tears in my eyes. It was during the evening before he was going home. I went in and out the doctor’s office for 15 days to be treated. That is how I got better. If renal failure happened I would’ve had to do renal dialysis, that would’ve made me weaker and I would have to leave my newly planted church and the YBA ministry.
Why did God give me such hardship on my health when I had devoted my life to young adults and my new church? This is not a question I should be asking. Rather what this circumstance was there to achieve a grand goal? Indeed! It was through other people that I was miraculously healed! I thank dearly to brother in Christ SeungBae Park (Now a missionary) and Dr. HongSik Kim. I had a meal with Missionary SeungBae Park few weeks ago. I still give my thanks to Dr. Kim who is working in Southern California.

I had a strange dream while I was sick.

I thought I saw a bunch of young pranksters that I knew who were attacking me with dry grasses, dust and were throwing rocks and shaking sticks at me. I think even though it was a dream, those were the people who had hurt my feelings in the past. They would not stop even if I had told them to stop. I started to chase after them to punish them. They had run into a dead end and were stuck. I thought this would be my chance to punish them and was reaching out, when a large figure came between me and the pranksters. When I looked carefully the figure was colored in bright, pure gold. I keep looking up and saw that it was the kind face of Jesus who was looking at me with loving eyes. I knew it was a dream but I still saw Jesus in my eyes. At that moment I felt like a powerful shock had gone through me and my body started to turn very bright. Oddly my feeling to punish those children suddenly went away. I awoke from the dream mesmerized, then went back to sleep. There was another dream. I was sitting in a very hot, dry desert alone, sweating. Suddenly, a voice called from heaven commanding me to “Dig the area.” I dug out the sand with my bare hands. To my surprise, fresh water came pouring out like a waterfall! I shouted in joy and was dancing. The voice came again this time to dig another area further down. Same thing happened again. God had given me a new vision and power that no man could give during my physical pain. “Thank you God!”

While I was in a bad shape, something happened in our church. Some of the core members from planting the church said “small church is hard to have good education for children, so we have to move to another big church.” If one has ever served a church, once your members say they have to leave, they have thought it through a lot and have no other choice. They wanted to have a dinner meeting so I went and they apologized and said “There’s only a few hundred dollars left in the church bank account, close the church after using that or keep running the church.” After that all of the families relocated to other, larger churches. As a human side it was very sad feeling. That money would be only sufficient enough to run a month. But I couldn’t close the church like that. I was disappointed that the central members who had started the church with me had to leave. A short time after they had left my mother had passed away. While I was in a wreck God had healed me.

The only members were now the students of UCLA. I told the church that I had gatherd, what happened and I had no place to gather. Southern California is a warm place, so I thought of gathering at a park for short time; Pastor SoonSik Kim said a disabled helping group called “Watered Garden” had an office available so he contacted them so I can gather for short time. He was so kind. But I knew we couldn’t stay there for too long. I had borrowed from a Lutheran church in nearby city. At that our congregation started grows, so I had found another Black American church with same denomination near UCLA to have worship there. It was because many of the UCLA student members had to drive an hour to attend church. The church now owns a building.

As I finish this writing I give my thanks and regards to Missionary SuengBae Park, Dr. HongSik Kim, and Pastor SoonSik Kim. God gave me a path through other people to give renew my strength when I am weary in my life’s journey. Not only my health but when I almost had to stop my job as a pastor.

(February 2011)
 
Number Title Reference
42 Epilogue
41 My Lord Yahweh-yireh
40 “Let us get married!”
39 Unforgettable, elder Min
38 We wish to stay at your place for a night Pastor!
37 You almost head to quit your pastor job!
36 Once again, a newly planted church
35 I’ll give you my credit card number.
34 I wish to be in a Bible Study!
33 Mrs. Ruth Brown and Elder JaeMyung Kim
32 “Confession of the Witness” Musical
31 When do you wish to have a worship service here?
Page: (1/4), Total: 42