The Goodnews - September, 2013

Delivering the Gospel & Testimonies of Grace

2013. 9

The Nobleman that believed the word ｜ Sermon of the Month IYF World Camp in Africa ｜ Special Report 200 Deaf Students Received Salvation ｜ Testimony

These students learned how to write their names in korean at the calligraphy academy during the New York World Camp. A variety of pre-camp activities attracted young folks from around New York to participate. During the camp many of them opened their hearts and gained true happiness through the word of God.

Message of the Month

The Hopelessness of a Woman whose Son Will be Sold as a Slave There was a widow in 2 Kings 4 whose heart was far from God. After her husband passed away, she tried to make money to raise her two sons.

The widow followed after her thoughts and desires, but nothing worked out as she hoped. Eventually, her two sons were to be sold as slaves because of debt she incurred trying to raise them. When she exhausted all options for solving her problems, the widow’s heart was finally bent and broken. She threw out her own ways and sought after God. Often times we wonder, “Why do I have to face these difficulties?” or, “Why am I in such pain?” But difficulties cause us to bend our hearts and throw away our methods so we can come out to God. The widow followed the prophet Elijah’s word and began to borrow as many vessels as she could to pour oil into. Why borrow many vessels just to pour oil into them? The widow didn’t bother trying to understand but rather just followed the Word of God which she previously despised and scorned. That’s when she began to be blessed.

The prodigal son and the man with an infirmity for 38 years walked the same path. So many stories in the Bible are about man receiving blessings when he throws away his own methods to have the same heart with God. Try to imagine what the widow must have felt in her heart. How hopeless would she be knowing her two sons were to be sold as slaves! But the difficulties we face lead us to throw away our thoughts so we can have the same heart as God and receive His blessings.

- from Pastor Ock Soo Park’s sermon

Delivering the Gospel & Testimonies of Grace

2013. 9

Contents 2 Photo & News 3 Message of the Month The Hopelessness of a Woman whose Son Will be Sold as a Slaves 5 Photo & News 6 Sermon of the Month

Conscience: The Illusion of Good and Evil 12 Testimony of the Month Geon Woo A gift from God 25 Special Report – World Camp in Africa

We have a story to tell!

42 Field of Boaz

Amazon Ants 44 Special Testimony

Story from Missionaries 38 Life of Saints

The Saints of the Church of Corinth 52 A Grain of Mustard Seed

World Camp in Dominican Republic

200 Deaf Students received salvation

The Good News (Vol.203) is published monthly by Good News Publications, Inc., 3500 W. 1st Street, Los Angeles, CA 90004 E-mail: goodnewseditor@gmail.com Chairman, Chief Executive Officer: Ock Soo Park Editor-in-Chief: Hyun Tae Park Art Director: Zinna Park Chief Printer/ Press: DLAP Printing, Co. Printed on Septembre 11, 2013. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of Good News Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Copyright Š 2013 by Good News Publications, Inc.

Photo & News | World Camp, Benin

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (martial arts) Academy.

Students learn how to dominate their opponents, counterattack, and evade.

Both the teacher (a short-term missionary) and the student are attentive and serious, while the crowds are observing with amusement. The student is learning how to suppress the opponent using his legs. Satan constantly attacks us, but as long as we look upon Jesus Christ, all of Satan’s attacks lose strength in front of what Jesus has done for us on the cross.

- 2013 IYF World Camp Benin.

Sermon of the Month

If you accept the Word of God into your heart...

The nobleman that believed the Word, “Thy son liveth”…

Ock Soo Park (Pastor, Good News Gangnam Church)

A nobleman believed that Jesus was the king of kings so he had the heart, “I just need to accept the Word of Jesus!

The king I serve is the king of this land. If he commands something to be done, someone has to work to fulfill those words.

But because Jesus is the king of all kings, once you accept his Word, the work is accomplished automatically!’

In the same way that he acknowledged the king because he was his servant, he acknowledged Jesus as king of all kings and accepted and believed the Word, “Thy son liveth.”

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WHEN GOD SAID, “THY SON LIVETH…” In John 4:46 Jesus went to Cana of Galilee. There was a nobleman there whose son was sick in Capernaum. He went to Jesus and pleaded, “Come down and heal my son.” Jesus said, “Thy son liveth.” He believed the Word of Jesus as it was and as he went back, his servants met him along the way and told him that his son was healed. He asked them when he was healed and the servants replied, “Yesterday at the seventh hour the fever left him.” He was healed at the exact moment when Jesus said, “Thy son liveth.”

JUST AS ALL ELECTRIC DEVICES ARE MADE TO WORK WHEN CONNECTED TO ELECTRICITY When God made man, He also made his heart. There are many reasons why He made the heart. One is so that He can work once we accept His Word into our heart.

Washing machines are made so that if electricity is supplied to the motor, it turns the belt that spins the tub at a high rate of speed, which in turn loosens and separates the dirt from the laundry to be washed away. Washers can’t run without electricity; and if someone tries to run it with his own manpower, it will be too hard. However, if the washer is connected to electricity, the motor starts and the washer runs automatically. It washes away the dirt and wrings out the water.

Washing machines aren’t the only things that work that way. Televisions, refrigerators and air conditioners all rely on electricity to work. If there’s no electricity, no matter how good of a washer or refrigerator it is, it won’t work. As they are connected to electricity, the TV will display images, the washer will wash, and the air conditioner will blow cold air.

Just as all electrical devices are made to work with electricity, God made man so that when we accept His Word, He amazingly works.

Sermon 7

Sermon of the Month

“Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.”

What Jesus was trying to say was, “Don’t look for signs and wonders, just believe my Word; then my Word will enter and work.”

Those who do not have God’s Word in their heart are led by thoughts from Satan and the desires of their flesh. So they try to please God by doing good deeds yet they are unable to because their fleshly desires lead them. But, when we accept the Word of God into our heart, the Word works inside of us and creates a heart that we didn’t have before.

BECAUSE JESUS IS THE KING OF ALL KINGS, ONCE I ACCEPT THE WORD, IT WORKS ON ITS OWN! How sad the nobleman must have felt when his son was dying!

Because he was a servant to the king, he had power and position but it was of no use in healing his son. Even though He was a servant to the king, he had to go to Jesus to plead with him to spare his son’s life. Jesus said, “Except ye see signs and wonders, ye will not believe.” What Jesus was trying to say was, “Don’t look for signs and wonders, just believe my Word; then my Word will enter and work.”

The nobleman didn’t resist the words thinking, “I am a powerful servant of the king; I know my son is sick but isn’t Jesus being unreasonable?’ Instead, he had the heart, “All this time, I have believed in signs and wonders, but Jesus doesn’t want me to look to those things. He just wants me to believe the Word!” So, when Jesus said, “Thy son liveth!” he believed the Word as it was. A king’s servant doesn’t work according to his own will. It is the king who makes all the decisions regarding the matters of the kingdom. The servant reported situations to the king and inquired of his will. When the king considered all the reports and made a decision, the servant worked in accordance 8 The Good News September 2013

to that decision.

The nobleman believed that Jesus was the king of all kings so he had the heart, “I just need to accept the Word of Jesus! The king that I serve is king of this land. If he commands something to be done, someone has to work to fulfill those words. But because Jesus is the king of all kings, once you accept his Word, the work is accomplished automatically!’

In the same way that he acknowledged the king because he was his servant, he acknowledged Jesus as the king of all kings and accepted and believed the Word, “Thy son liveth.”

W H E N W E AC C E P T T H E WO R D, G O D ’ S P OW E R APPEARS IN US The nobleman heard Jesus’ words and believed that his son lived.

While he was going back home, his servants met him on the way and told him that his son was healed. When he asked them when he began to heal, the servants answered, “at the seventh hour the fever left him.” The nobleman realized, ‘It was the same hour when Jesus said, “thy son liveth”!’ and had even greater faith in the Lord. It was not that the nobleman prayed hard or poured his heart that his son was healed; he simply accepted the Word of Jesus into his heart.

For a washing machine to work, it’s not important to find a good place to put it. It’s doesn’t matter if you make it lighter or put oil on the motor to make it run smoothly. If you connect the washer to electricity the electricity will power the motor and the motor will run the washer. And of course the laundry will be done.

Sermon 9

Sermon of the Month

When we accept the Word of God into hour hearts with faith, the very same power that is in God’s appears in us.

Satan is very afraid of that.

What Satan fears the most is for us to believe the Word of God. When we accept the Word of God into hour hearts with faith, the very same power that is in God’s appears in us. Satan is very afraid of that. So Satan uses all measures at his disposal to remind us of the many the things we’ve experienced and the things we know, so we won’t accept the Word of God with faith.

Because all this time we lived with our own methods rather than believing in God, we have our experience and knowledge that tell us, “for this we have to do it like this, and for that we have do it like that.” That’s why it’s very fearful and burdensome to follow a way that’s different from what we’re used to.

However, people who believe God know that whatever we did until now according to our experience and methods is evil so we have to beware of those things. We must know precisely that if we follow our methods and experience then we will be destroyed and so we must throw them away. Once we throw away our methods and experience, then we get to accept the Word of God and God works inside of us.

THE LIGHT THAT CAST OUT THE DARKNESS AND MADE THE WORLD BRIGHT Even though the man with an infirmity for 38-years clearly knew that he couldn’t rise and walk, when Jesus said, “Rise, take up thy bed and walk,” a fight arose between his thought and Jesus’ Word. When he cast out the thoughts that he believed in for a long time, the Word of Jesus entered into his heart. It’s like Genesis 1, after darkness was upon the earth for thousands, tens

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of thousands, hundreds of thousands of years. But when the Word of God entered, light came upon the earth, cast out all the darkness and made the world bright. Through the light, flowers bloomed on trees, fruits came forth and the earth changed beautifully. The Word of God itself is the light. Once we accept the Word of God, the darkness in our heart disappears and God works.

Temptation, disappointment, despair; all these things are fruits of darkness. They appear in people who are in darkness and drag their hearts. But if God’s Word enters, because the Word is light, despair, temptation and darkness go away and it brings peace, joy, faith and hope in us to bring forth fruits that are of God. WE ARE JUST LIKE THE MAN WITH AN INFIRMITY FOR 38 YEARS AND THE NOBLEMAN The nobleman was a person like us. The man with an infirmity for 38 years was also a person just like us. God made us the same way He made them. Just as God’s Word entered into the heart of the man with an infirmity and he was able to rise with new strength, and just as the nobleman’s son was healed the moment his father accepted Jesus’ Word, whosoever accepts God’s Word receives great and precious grace and God works in him.

God leads us to accept His Word. Regardless of who we are, once we accept the Word of God, God’s power appears and changes our lives. From then on, we are held by God’s hand and His amazing works are accomplished through us.

Sermon 11

Testimony of the Month

Geon Woo A gift from God Geon Woo confined me in a prison without bars.

And inside the suffering I experienced was the providence of God in which He wanted to give my family and me good things. From this perspective, Geon Woo was a gift from God to our family.

Seon Ah Kim(Good News Jeon Ju Church, S. Korea)

SUCCESS, MARRIAGE, AND DIVORCE When I was in college I took a test to become a flight attendant. But after failing the interview, I decided to follow my friend who became a celebrity for her work in television as a make-up artist. I quickly learned the beauty trade as a hairdresser and opened a salon before my peers. The salon was a success.

My colleague at the salon got married so I followed her and her husband to Jeonju where we started a salon together. It wasn’t difficult to decide to move there. Since my parents are from the same region I was somewhat familiar with the area.

The two of us were co-owners and we had five employees. I was successful because I had a dream and goals and the skill

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Testimony of the Month

to accomplish them.

During that time I met my husband, fell in love, and got married.

But after my first son Geon Woo was born, my husband and I argued frequently. We finally ended up getting divorced after Geon Wo o’s f i r s t b i r t h d a y because the fighting was getting worse and worse.

My mother-in-law said that she would care for Geon Woo and took him With my friend(left) who lead me to salvation in.

The time I spent apart from Geon Woo was very difficult.

I couldn’t eat because I missed him so much. I was confident I could do anything I wanted if I tried, but my husband and child were living signs that this wasn’t true. Even though I married my husband because I loved him, we ended up parting ways. And I couldn’t take care of my loving child or even see him when I wanted to.

THE LIGHT THAT CAME INTO MY HEART, AND THE FAMILY REUNION I applied for a work visa and studied English so I could leave Korea and open a salon in Australia. One day in the midst of difficulty, I called a friend I met at the postnatal care center where I stayed after giving birth to Geon Woo. My bornagain friend guided me to the Good News Jeonju Church after seeing how sad I was. In September 2007, I started a Bible study with Sun Young Kim, Pastor of the Good News

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Jeonju Church. On September 23rd, the word of Genesis Chapter 1:3 came into my heart. “Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” The bright light of Jesus Christ shone upon my heart that was lost deep in the shadow of death and filled it with light. All my sins were washed away and I became holy and began a new life.

After receiving salvation, Pastor Kim told me to reunite with my husband. I told my husband, “I met this church and received salvation. In the past because I was arrogant and greedy, we ended in a divorce. It was my fault,” just as the pastor guided me to. My husband accepted my apology and followed me to church where he heard the gospel. After five months of being divorced, we got back together.

GEON WOO CONFINED ME IN A PRISON WITHOUT BARS Geon Woo was very different from the last time I saw him.

He wouldn’t look into my eyes. He was insecure and cried every night. Since my mother-in-law had a job, she would leave for work early to drop Geon Woo off at daycare and pick him up in the evening. Perhaps that’s why Geon Woo was insecure. Although my husband said that he received salvation, he didn’t attend church after we got back together.

The gospel wasn’t precise in his heart. It was hard to stay together because our hearts didn’t match. The arguments were the same as before. The happiness from my salvation was only momentary and pain started to creep back into my life.

After a while my daughter Seo Kyoung was born. She was sick for no apparent reason and had to be admitted to the hospital often. When she coughed she would vomit yellow gastric fluid. In six months she was admitted to the hospital seven times. My husband worked for a large company and was involved in a labor union so I had to take care of the all the household chores. Even though my husband earned a

Testimony 15

Testimony of the Month

lot of money, I was lonely and unable to bear the difficulties that piled in front of me because we couldn’t share our hearts.

If it were not for Geon Woo, I wouldn’t have anything worthwhile in my life. I didn’t lack financially and when I compared myself with other people, I was better off. The heart to trust in myself was rooted so deeply that even though I went to church, I would not rely on God to help me with my difficulties. If the problem with Geon Woo was resolved I was going to quit living spiritual life. The word preached at church was right, but other than that, there wasn’t anything special or worth while to me there.

I wanted to know why Geon Woo was distracted and cried out all the time so I started taking him to the hospital from the time he was four years old. At the hospital they said Geon Woo showed symptoms of ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) but they weren’t sure because he was too young to tell. The hospital said they would be able to make a more accurate diagnosis once he reached first grade.

To help with his treatment, I put him in speech-therapy, arttherapy, and play psychology.

Geon Woo was like a prison without bars. Was it because we divorced? Was it my personality? Or was it because I’m a horrible mom? I was in more pain because I thought it was my fault for the way Geon Woo was. Life was so hard.

I went to more treatment centers and searched for other hospitals.

“I’M USUALLY A PERSON WHO CAN’T!” August 2012, I became the IYF advisor for Woo Suk University by the grace of the church. I looked forward to being free from Geon Woo who always tied me down.

Although I couldn’t live spiritual life, I hoped to receive grace by experiencing God’s work, so I put a lot of effort

16 The Good News September 2013

The church began to interfere as I walked the crisscrossed path, and I could not accept.

I reached my limit of hearing my wrongful heart being pointed out.

into it. As time passed, I thought I was doing God’s work by faith. I was joyful because I felt free from Geon Woo. But the harder I worked, the more the humanistic image of Sun Ah Kim would appear rather than God. The church began to intervene as I walked the crisscrossed path but I couldn’t accept it in my heart. I reached my limit and couldn’t tolerate having my wrongful heart pointed out to me anymore. Inside my heart I thought, “This is who I am! I can’t do it! How can I live spiritual life? Everything is an act!” From January 2013, I stopped going to church. I thought I could live a normal life if I left but it was desolate and difficult.

I WAS NAAMAN In the Spring of 2013, Geon Woo received an examination at the Jeon Joo Yeh Soo Hospital so he could enroll in elementary school. Geon Woo was somewhere between a normal child and a child with ADHD. He was enrolled at a regular school instead of a special-education school. His homeroom teacher would often call me to say that it was difficult to teach my son because he was always distracted.

Even though I was sending Geon Woo to receive so many treatments on a regular basis that there was little else left for him to do, his teacher was telling me that I was neglecting him. God spoke to my heart. “Can you do without me?

What can you do?” I carefully thought about the things I thought I could do and had done. Although I worked diligently, in the end it didn’t matter at all.

Testimony 17

Testimony of the Month

My husband changed into a thoughtful provider who cares for his family after he received salvation because of Geon Woo.

After Geon Woo’s first month in school, I became a failure and began seeking out the church again. Interestingly enough, the church was holding a workshop on how to live a proper spiritual life. Pastor Oh Yoon Hong spoke about General Naaman in 2 Kings 5.

Although Naaman was a leper, he despised the word of God because he thought he was also a great general. He was cured later on because he threw away his thoughts and washed his body in the Jordan River. Although Naaman was a leper, he lived with the heart of a general! I saw myself within his story. “Oh, I am Naaman!”

I had spiritual counseling with Pastor Hong. Pastor started preaching about sin and the gospel. I thought I knew the gospel because I received salvation, but I didn’t. There were many things I didn’t know. Pastor taught me one by one in detail. I finally found out that trusting in myself was sin.

“I must deny myself! I must rely only on the blood of Jesus and look toward Him!” My heart was clearly organized and a distinct line was drawn. Even though I didn’t repent as I should have, God

18 The Good News September 2013

led me to turn my heart. As my heart turned, God also changed the heart of Geon Woo’s homeroom teacher. The teacher started to care for Geon Woo from her heart.

I HAVE TO KNOW THE PRECISE REASON FOR WHAT THE PROBLEM IS One day during the wives’ meeting Pastor said God dislikes vagueness and likes preciseness so if your spiritual life is vague it is very difficult. It should be precise. As I listened to Pastor’s words, I had the heart to find out what exactly was wrong with Geon Woo. So starting from April, we went to the Jun Bok City Hospital to receive a variety of examinations, including psychological and electroencephalogram tests.

The test results revealed a tumor that was causing damage to Geon Woo’s brain. He needed medication. The damage to Geon Woo’s brain was the cause of his hyperactivity and difficulty in learning. Knowing the exact reason freed me from the endless guilt that somehow I was to blame for his condition. But while I was becoming brighter, my husband was falling into great despair. He cried when he found out that Geon Woo wasn’t just distracted but was actually suffering from brain damage.

Geon Woo began to take medicine. Some of the most potent medicines in the world are drugs for the mentally ill.

Geon Woo suffered from side effects like vomiting, diarrhea, intense itching, and a bloody nose just like the doctor said he would. He would also bite the inside of his mouth until it was bleeding and swollen. But I wasn’t fazed. The thin weakly drawn line in my heart to acknowledge the Word of God as the truth rather than the circumstance before my eyes helped me to overcome the situation with confidence saying, “This is the process of God’s work!”

The doctor observed Geon Woo’s reaction and adjusted the type and dosage of medication. After the ninth Testimony 19

Testimony of the Month

adjustment we finally found the medication that best suited my Geon Woo. RECEIVING A DISABILITY CERTIFICATE… When Geon Woo’s homeroom teacher couldn’t handle the negative side effects of his medication, she thought it would be better for him to stay at home. When the professor heard about it, he told her that since the negative side effects were only temporary, she should not send him away.

There was no nurse station at the school Geon Woo attended because it was a small country school in the Won Joo province, so if Geon Woo suddenly became sick, it was difficult to manage. Geon Woo’s doctor said he would declare him disabled so that he could get a disability certificate that would allow him to attend any school. He could either attend a regular school where disabled children are integrated by a guidance counselor or a special school with only disabled children.

After hearing from the doctor, my husband’s heart descended into the valley of death. It was already hard for us to handle the fact that our son’s brain was damaged and that he had to take medicine, but the thought of his child being officially registered as a disabled person was too much for him to deal with. My husband thought he could make money and raise his son well, so he was so tormented by the fact that he couldn’t help his son from suffering. My husband asked me to go to church with him to receive the laying on of hands prayer from pastor and told me he wanted to talk with him. He was normally not a person who would do that… My husband wept in front of pastor. That day the gospel came into his heart and from then on, Geon Woo’s strange behaviors disappeared and we were able to find a medication well-suited for Geon Woo.

20 The Good News September 2013

“I CHOSE PUREUN SCHOOL” Geon Woo got along well with normal kids and soon caught up with his study like never before but his teacher hinted that we should find a different school, saying, “You will move once you receive the disability card, right?” I began to look for integrated schools in Jeonju City and Wanju District. In the process I had the heart that I would be ruined if I followed my thoughts. On one hand I thought that if Geon Woo went to an integrated school and adjusted well it would be okay. But on the other hand I thought he could be scarred for life if it didn’t work out so I should just send him to a special-education school. As I visited the Pureun School located in the Wanju District, I had the heart that God doesn’t want me to just suffer and be scarred. “There is a school that God prepared for Geon Woo!” I made up my mind that if God sent Geon Woo to

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Testimony of the Month

Now I became a person who believes that the word of God is true regardless of my child, and I am a person who cannot live without the word.

a special-education school, then we should be joyful! and told the teacher that Geon Woo would be going to a specialeducation school during the second semester.

On July 8th, 2013, the doctor prepared a disability certificate application and I went to the town office. Once I registered my child as a disabled person, my heart was very difficult. That day, Seo Kyoung had an accident and required four stitches in her forehead. My pelvic ligaments were strained so my left leg was swollen. I thought faith was growing in my heart but it was very hard and difficult.

The Special Education Office, which is affiliated with the Provincial Offices of Education, evaluates disabled children’s conditions. A school commissioner, a pediatric psychiatrist, a special education teacher, and nine others decide whether a child should be enrolled in a special-education school.

The school commissioner sends an official document to the relevant school asking them to permit the admission of the child into the school. The panel of judges asked me for a particularly long period of time how I lived, how the child came to have a disability, why I wanted to send him to a special-education school, and more. After I finished answering their questions, I asked them to please send an official document to Pureun School so Geon Woo could go to a school where they would love and embrace him. After listening to my story, the members of the panel began to say, “If you are moving to a different school because of me, I hope you don’t go.”

My heart was so difficult because of Geon Woo’s problems 22 The Good News September 2013

in school and I cried out to God as I prayed, “God, deliver me from this difficulty!” One day, as I was reading Psalms, one verse came into my heart. “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? And why are thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance.” (Psalms 42:5) I was very thankful to feel the heart of God in this word. Until then, I didn’t share my heart with my husband. But that day I shared my heart with him and said, “Honey, I received this word. This word will protect us. Although our circumstances are difficult, it says that we will praise God for His help.” We cried together in front of the word God gave us. We held onto the word. And the word held onto our hearts.

Afterwards, I went to school and Geon Woo’s teacher asked me to go to the principal’s office. The teacher said, “If you are moving because of me, I hope you don’t go. Geon Woo is doing well now and he gets along good with his friends.” The principal also said that he received a phone call from the school commissioner and told me what he said.

When most mothers of disabled children go through an evaluation, they cry and plead with the school commissioner to let their child go to an integrated school. But when I asked the school commissioner to send my child to a special education school he couldn’t understand so he called the principal to persuade me to change my mind. He even sent an official document to the school to let Geon Woo continue to attend his present school. The principal said, “I discussed with all teachers who would be in charge of Geon Testimony 23

Testimony of the Month

Woo until he graduates and they all agreed to help him out.�

He earnestly asked me to continue to send Geon Woo to his school. I felt like God was leading Geon Woo in that way so I was very thankful.

BEFORE AND AFTER Before I felt like my husband was just someone who earned money. But he changed into a thoughtful provider who cares for his family after he received salvation because of Geon Woo. My husband became someone I can share my heart with and whom I admire and obey.

Before I thought if Geon Woo got healthy I would leave church, but now I believe that the word of God is true regardless of my child and I am a person who cannot live without it. I can’t believe how happy and joyful it is to live a life of sharing my heart with others inside the Word of God. I hope my family will continually live inside the Word of God. Geon Woo confined me in a prison without bars. And inside the suffering I experienced was the providence of God in which He wanted to give my family and me good things.

From this perspective, Geon Woo was a gift from God to our family. In all these things, I give thanks and glory to God.

24 The Good News September 2013

Special Report – World Camp in Africa

Special Report 25

World Camp is making history

We have a story to tell!

The World Camp was held July 24th through August 10th in Ghana, Benin, Tanzania, Cameroon, and Kenya. The participants were soaked in happiness as they swam freely in the river that flows from heart to heart. Pastor Ock Soo Park preached about the world of the heart through the words in the Bible. As the students listened to the mindset lectures they were able to look into their own hearts and see how wrong and evil they were and meet God who loved them dearly. “The lepers were pitiful but they stepped forward with the heart God gave them. Even though they had no way of knowing, when they followed the guidance of God, they were able to eat all they wanted and save the people trapped in the city of Samaria. I hope you all can also come out from your thoughts and be led by the word of God to become a person who brings forth these kinds of works. “(Pastor Ock Soo Park, during Kenya World Camp) The great works of God will appear through those led by the word of God. Above all else the hope of a precious “life together with God’s word” was spread like little seeds in the hearts of the young people in Africa.

Benin/ July. 24th(Wed) ~ 29th(Mon), National Theater Tanzania/ July. 29th(Mon) ~ Aug. 2nd(Fri), Mlimanicity, Dar es Salaam Cameroon/ Aug. 1st(Thur) ~ 5th(Mon), National Theater 26 The Good News September 2013

World Camp in Africa | Benin

I saw amazing works when I accepted the will of God Gwang Woon Kim (Missionary, Good News Cotonou Church, Benin)

IS THIS REAL OR A DREAM? In order to get support from the government of Benin during the World Camp, we needed to draft the necessary documents to present to the Ministry of Youth and then

submit them to the Presidential Office where they would be considered for approval by a panel of government officials.

However, preparing even one document usually takes a couple of months. We hoped

Special Report 27

the youth department would help us, but as the day of the camp drew near, we found that the Ministry of Youth didn’t prepare the documents because they deemed the IYF World Camp to be a religious event. I thought it would be difficult to get government support for this World Camp.

I was thinking about who to invite and decided to invite the President’s son. Of course it wasn’t easy to meet him. The day after I spoke to the ViceMi n i s t e r o f Cu l t u r e a b o u t the World Camp I found out that his older brother and our church elder knew each other very well and that his brother was very close to the President. Soon after, our elder met the President’s son and

he showed a keen interest in the World Camp in Korea and especially about the Ministers of Youth Forum that was to be held there. Two days before the forum he received final permission from the President and left for Korea with his attendants. The President’s son came to Korea and as he listened to Pastor Ock Soo Park’s words and had spiritual fellowship his heart opened wide.

When he returned to Benin, he was very active in helping to prepare the World Camp.

First he called the Minister of Youth to get the support documents for the camp made quickly. He then called us to the President’s office to talk about the preparations for the

The National Theater in Benin where the World Camp was held. It usually costs $40,000 to rent for an event like ours but we were able to use it for free.

28 The Good News September 2013

camp where we discussed the potential for problems with f o re i g n e r s p a s s i n g t h ro u g h customs, free visas, and problems with the National T h eatre. It w a s n’t d i f f i c u l t to solve the visa problem or passing through customs, however it was difficult to rent t h e Na t i o n a l T h e a t re . T h e government couldn’t help us with this particular problem; the rental fee was $40,000.

Two days before the camp we went to the President’s office again to talk about the camp and the President’s son said, “I talked to the Minister of Finance about the National Theatre so try talking to the Ministry of Finance”. When we

Youths from the Benin church performed nightly.

arrived at the Deputy Minister’s office, he happily greeted us and said, “I received a call from the Minister.” Right away he called the Head Manager of the National Theatre who agreed to allow us to use the theatre for six days for free! I couldn’t tell if I was in a dream or if

Special Report 29

Pastor Ock Soo Park with the President of Benin who addressed the students at the World Camp.

this was really happening. As we walked out of the Deputy Minister’s office we were so happy. The words,“Thank you God! Thank you God!” came out automatically.

THE PRESIDENT VISITED WORLD CAMP. Before the camp started we submitted forms for Pastor Ock Soo Park to be able to meet the President and invite him to the camp. Although Pastor Park would be able to meet the President, they said it would very difficult for the President to come to the camp.

In t he mi d dl e o f t he ca m p on Saturday, July 27th Pastor Pa r k t o o k m e m b e r s o f t h e 30 The Good News September 2013

Gracias Choir with him to meet the President of Benin. The President was very happy when he heard about “Ddobyul”(an herbal medicine made from plant stem cells that has shown promise in treating a variety of diseases like certain types of cancer and even HIV AIDS).

On Sunday, July 28th we were n o t if ie d t h a t t h e Pre s i de nt would come to the camp. That mor ni ng at 10:50 AM, th e President arrived and gave a 50 minute message to the young people of Benin participating in the camp. The speech was broadcast throughout the n a t i o n b y t h e s t a t e - ow n e d broadcast station ORTB. The President told Pastor Park,

“My friend, my pastor, I hope you take care of the youth of the country”. He also promised to give ten hectares of land to build a factory to produce Ddobyul. Amazing things were happening right in front our eyes like a dream. The brothers and sisters, the students participating in the camp, and all the people watching it on TV all witnessed it happening.

All the participants in the camp were happy and the brothers and sisters felt little by little how precious the gospel is.

instead receive God’s will and duly carry it. Lord, you gave your heart for Africa to the servants of God, and I’m so thankful that you will fulfill that heart. Later, Pastor Park said Africa will be free from AIDS and malaria and that one day people will say, “Africa used to have AIDS. Africa used to have malaria”. During the camp I was able to see God fulfilling the heart He gave to the servants one by one.

FATHER, WORK ACCORDING TO YOUR WILL. When I heard the World Camp would be held in Benin I was really burdened because it was so much more than I could handle. I wanted to avoid this burden. But one day I read in the Bible that although it was a burden for Jesus to be nailed to the cross, He said, “Nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.” When I saw Jesus say this, I changed my heart. Just as Jesus said He would follow the will of His Father, I was able to see that I didn’t need to run away from this burden but Special Report 31

World Camp in Africa | Tanzania

The place where 2,500 Tanzanians met God Hee Young Jeon (Missionary, Good News Dar es Salaam Church, Tanzania)

THE PLACE WHERE GOD AND MAN MEETS “I wa nted to come here to tell you this stor y; the stor y of Jesus who died for all the sins of the people of Tanzania. Jesus didn’t die on the cross just for me but for you as well and

32 The Good News September 2013

He washed away all our sins.”

Pastor Ock Soo Park delivered this gospel message as the main guest speaker at the Tanazania World Camp. It was Pastor Park’s hope to have the World Camp in Tanzania for this very reason but this wasn’t very clear

in my heart when I first began preparing for it. When my mind became clouded fighting with the thoughts that there was no way to overcome the burdens and difficulties in front of me, I met God in my heart and w a s a b l e t o h e a r t h e w o rd God spoke to me. My greatest burden preparing for the camp was financial. Even though the brothers and sisters from Korea supported the effort with their precious offerings, it only covered about a day’s rent for the camp. Because the Tanzania church is still very young, it couldn’t cover the costs with the saints’ offerings. The city of Dar Es Salaam had to sponsor us. I had doubts that a place where 70% of the people are Muslim would ever help us but the Word of God was different from my thoughts. When the Israelites came out of Egypt, they acquired silver, gold, and garments from the Egyptians.

The Egyptians fell into deep sadness when the final plague which killed all of the first

Pastor Ock Soo Park sat down on the stage as he preached the Gospel in Tanzania.

born of every creature came. I couldn’t understand how they gave the Israelites their precious things, but God did it so that later those items could be used to build the tabernacle. This amazing work was accomplished in order to prepare the place where God and man would meet. I met God’s hear t in those words.

The World Camp was the tabernacle. It was to be the place where 2,500 Tanzanians would gather for five days to hear the gospel and meet God. “Then there is no reason why God wouldn’t help!” Strength and peace began to rush into my heart. I had the heart that if we asked people for whatever we needed God would move

Special Report 33

A student gave Pastor Park this drawing of him preaching while lying on his side as a gift.

them and bestow grace, so we sent a list of items we needed to many companies and God worked for us just the same way He did for the Israelites in the Bible We received a lot of goods and cash including 1,000 liters o f g a s o l i n e f ro m a Mu s l i m man who was the CEO of an oil company. Advertising companies sponsored the posting of twelve billboards in India, and six 12x10m billboards on the main roads of Dar Es Salaam. One day an eight ton truck came to d e l i v e r t h i n g s p r ov i d e d b y sponsors. Almost everything we needed including 8000 bottles o f w a t e r, 6 0 0 0 b e v e r a g e s , cornmeal, sugar, things for

34 The Good News September 2013

washing dishes, and even soap, were provided by sponsorships. Even the ministers who received salvation while attending the minister’s forum helped with the camp. The government supported the camp with buses and we were able to find a place for 2,000 people to sleep for five days at an unimaginably low price. Foreigners who came for the camp were exempt from paying visa fees. God did everything that I couldn’t.

“I ALSO GOT UP FROM THE MIDST OF SIN.” Pastor Ock Soo Park arrived in Tanzania after the World Camps in Ghana and Benin.

However, he contracted typhoid in Ghana so he was tired and looked like he had very little energy. Sometimes he didn’t have any strength so he would take one of the chairs that the Gracias Choir used and sit down on the stage to preach the gospel. One day he just sat on the stage itself and continued to preach. Amazingly, Pastor

opened the Book of John and preached the world of the heart in the gospel on the first day just as the Tanzania Bible Association gave us 3,000 copies of the Book of John. The camp participants met Jesus and the man with an infirmity for 38 years as they opened and read the book of John together.

On the last day of the camp, a certain youth drew a picture and gave it as a present to Pastor Park. On it was written “Take up thy bed and walk.” It was Jesus’ words and a picture of Pastor on the stage lying down showing the image of the man with an infirmity for 38 years. The student also wrote, “Pastor, thank you. As I listened to your words I also rose up from my sins.”

I think alot of people listened

to the Word and received the forgiveness of sin. On the last day of the camp, I met a certain young lady who was waiting for me. As soon as she saw me she began to cry and said, “I’m so happy I came to this camp. All of my sins were washed away after listening to the Word. I wanted to tell you how thankful I am.” In one year I can’t even preach the gospel to 50 people. It’s embarrassing to admit but I was so lazy, negligent, and arrogant. The 2,500 people who attended this camp met the gospel as they heard the Word, watched the performances of the Gracias C h o i r, a n d h a d g r o u p a n d individual fellowship. When we first started we had nothing but when I looked back after it was over, God fulfilled everything

Meeting the President of Tanzania

Special Report 35

because of the gospel. Because the Minister of Youth received salvation, it was possible for Pastor Park and the Gracias Choir to be invited to the Presidential Palace and meet the President of Benin. During the camp Pastor Park gave a book of his mindset lectures published in Swahili to the President of Tanzania as a gift. The President was very interested in the book and said, “It’s a great book! Let’s put more pictures of the World Camp in it and distribute it around the country.” He also said cancer is a bigger problem in Tanzania than AIDS, so he sent a special medical team and his own personal physician to Korea to observe the work that is being done with Ddobyul.

The President was also impressed by the Gracias Choir.

He sang along with the Choir, and smiled in amazement as they sang Tanzanian songs. The Choir was also televised on the evening news.

BADILISHA FIKRA The servants of God that

36 The Good News September 2013

traveled far from Korea, the missionaries from around the world that poured their hearts into the camp, and the Good News Corps volunteers that lent their hearts and inexperienced hands all fulfilled different roles but they were all drawn together to meet God’s heart.

Not only the attendees but also we who were managing the camp fell into God’s heart and His work which made the camp a blessing that changed our hearts. I thank God for giving us the opportunity to truly experience the heart embodied in the motto of our Tanazania World Camp, “Badilisha Fikra (Change your mind)”.

World Camp in Africa | Cameroon

A Joyful feast for the invited people Young Sam Kim (Missionary, Good News YaoundĂŠ Church, Cameroon)

520 PEOPLE REGISTERED AT BUSY INTERSECTIONS When I visited Korea in late 2012, Pastor Ock Soo Park said it would be nice to have The World Camp at Ghana, Togo and Cameroon in 2013.

Our church brothers and sisters longed for Pastor Ock Soo Park and Gracais Choir to come for a long time so they were thankful a n d h a p p y, b u t w e r e a l s o burdened in the corner of their heart. Regardless of my heart,

Special Report 37

God allowed us to prepare for the World Camp and during t h e p r o c e s s o f p re p a r a t i o n He showed me the word in Matthew 22:4. “Again, he sent out other servants, saying, ‘Tell those who are invited, “See, I have prepared my dinner; my oxen and fatted cattle are killed, and all things are ready.

Come to the wedding.”

Strengthened by this word, I began preparing for the camp.

God said this World Camp would not be a camp where we work and prepare but rather He would allow us to enjoy ourselves. We made posters and fliers, and we advertised the camp through radio and

television. But because of one p r o f e s s o r’s c o m p l a i n t s , w e couldn’t promote the camp at the largest college in the capital, Yaounde.

“What should I do?” In t h e m i d s t o f m y p r a y e r, God showed me the verse in Matthew 22:9, “ Therefore go into the highways, and as many as you find, invite to the wedding.” After I received the word, we went to busy intersections where there were many pedestrians. In the shade we displayed promotional items the short terms made w i t h t h e c o m p u t e r, v i s u a l materials that would capture peoples’ attention, a World Youths from Cameroon Church perform.

38 The Good News September 2013

Camp performance schedule, and the music of the Gracias C h o i r. T h u s w e b e g a n t o promote World Camp.

Many people showed interest and on average about 2 0 p e o p l e a d a y re g i s t e re d and paid the fee for the camp.

There were 520 people who registered while we promoted at the intersections. God worked in a way that was completely opposite from the way we thought. Many people came all the way to the church to register for the camp and through other things, God showed us once again,

how He reveals Himself after breaking down the frame of our thoughts.

DISCOUNTED PRICE OF $1,000 A DAY One month prior to the c a m p , Pr e s i d e n t s f r o m 2 5 African countries gathered for a weeklong conference at the Cameroon National Theater, the very same place that we were to rent for the World Camp. Before the conference b e g a n , t h e y r e n ov a t e d t h e theater so the stage and seats were like new. We were able to take advantage of the great

The focus of the World Camp in Cameroon was the Gospel Class.

A pastor from Korea is leading one of many such classes.

Special Report 39

Camp attendees participating in the mini-marathon early in the morning.

n e w l y r e n ov a t e d f a c i l i t i e s .

T h e Na t i o n a l T h e a t e r h a s 2,000 seats, and normally costs $3,000 a day to rent but because they found out we were an organization that does positive work for youths, they allowed us to hold our event for five days for $1,000 a day.

After the Benin camp, people going to Cameroon had difficulty entering the country because their airplane broke d ow n . Bu t t h a n k f u l l y Go d allowed them to arrive before t h e c a m p a n d by re c e i v i n g grace, they passed easily through customs. I felt in my

40 The Good News September 2013

heart that God had pity on us.

BROKE DOWNTHE FRAMES OF CAMP AND ALL PROGRAMS WERE CENTERED AROUND THE GOSPEL CLASS O n t h e f i r s t d a y o f c a m p, male, female, young and old, were like children who couldn’t sleep the night before a field trip unable to hide their joy.

The music was soaked with the beautiful harmony of the Gracias Choir and the love of Christ in their heart, and it melted the hear ts of the listeners.

Pastor Park spoke about the

man with an infirmity for 38 years in John 5 saying that he was captured by the thought that he couldn’t do anything but once he accepted the words of Jesus, he was freed from all suffering and sadness. This helped the students accept the words of Jesus into their hearts.

They were moved deeply in their hearts by the Christmas Cantata. As I watched the beautiful Cantata performance, I was overjoyed to meet the heart of the Lord. The Easter Cantata which was held on the last day also moved our hearts deeply.

For this camp, we broke the frame of our thoughts formed in prior camps and all the programs were centered on the Gospel Class. Because more than 1,000 people were new participants, we divided them into English Gospel Class, College Student

Class, and Senior class so that they could all hear the Gospel i n d e t a i l . Ev e n t h o u g h w e thought they would complain, they fell into the word as they sincerely listened and poured out testimonies of how they were freed from the painful, heavy, burden of sin.

I was thankful that I had the chance to deny myself through the camp. There were many occasions when I couldn’t go on with the preparation without denying myself.

Through the work, the Lord revealed my lacking and made it impossible to continue. I was thankful because without the camp, there would be no need to deny myself, but God made me encounter difficult circumstances to empty my heart. And that empty heart was filled with the hope that came from Him. In all these things, I return the glory unto God.

Special Report 41

Field of Boaz

Amazon Ants Dong Sung Kim (Pastor, Good News Daegu Church, S. Korea)

In the Amazon rain forest, there are millions of species of living creatures. There are even over 200 different kinds of ants in the Amazon. Among them are certain types which use beetles to help them cultivate food. The ants feed beetles leaves which are digested and excreted by the beetles as waste. The ants then eat the fungus which grows on the beetles’ waste. The more the beetles eat; the more fungus for the ants to eat. When the beetles die, their bodies also become food for the ants.

Another kind of ants cultivate fungus from leaves. These ants climb up trees and gnaw away at leaves until they fall to the ground. The other ants wait for the leaves to land. Isn’t it amazing? The ants then carry those leaves into a tunnel

42 The Good News September 2013

where small worker ants chew the leaves into smaller pieces.

Then, even smaller ants chew the leaf pieces into a pulp (like the raw material used to make paper), and mix the leaf pulp with waste that’s rich in enzymes. This mixture of leaf pulp and waste is moved to a chamber where it's spread out over dried leaves. Worker ants bring pieces of fungus that were grown in another room and plant them into the mixture.

The ants then tend to the fungus cleaning it as necessary to keep it in cultivation according to their precise work system.

There’s another kind of ants. Red ants collect liquid sugar from aphids and protect them like their own livestock. These ants carry the sugar from the aphids back to their tunnel and share with other ants. Just like a shepherd herding his sheep to a land full of grass, the ants herd aphids from one leaf to another. They even build dugouts made of mud for the aphids near the plants’ roots.

When I heard about these different kinds of ants, I was truly amazed. Although they’re such small creatures, I think they’re also rather wise. It reminds me of a verse in Proverbs 6:6 which says, “Go to the ant, you sluggard! Consider her ways and be wise.”

About 30 to 40 years ago, there was a certain brother’s father who was battling gastric cancer. Cancer is hard to cure even these days despite great advances medical science, so back then there was little to no hope for his recovery. The father had two thousand dollars, which was enough money to buy a house back then. Because he had so much money, he was confident that he would be able to pay for a cure.

Unfortunately, the cancer eventually won. Before he died, he worried that his money, which was in the form of two checks, would be burned along with his belongings, so his last words were, “Under me, the two checks…” All that time he was lying on top of the money, which gave him hope

FIELD OF BOAZ

43

and comfort. If he realized he was just a man with no power to even breath without God’s grace, then he would have depended on God. People live arrogantly, blinded by their own goodness and without anything really worth being proud about. Humans may seem to be wiser than other creatures but they are truly foolish. When we look at King David’s son, Absalom, we see how his life ended miserably despite the fact he was highly regarded and no blemish could be found in him from head to toe. I think people are very foolish. Man is supposedly wise and the lord of all creation but we are no better than the ants. People live an arrogant life just like Absalom because they don’t see how foolish they actually are.

A man may think himself perfect but all men are foolishly the same. We need to realize that we are like insects; hopeless without God’s grace. That’s why David said, “But I am a worm, and no man. (Psalms 22:6)”, and Asaph said, “I was so foolish and ignorant; I was like a beast before You. (Psalms 73:22)” When we realize that we’re less than insects like the prophets did, then we can learn from the ants to yearn for God’s grace and compassion.

44 The Good News September 2013

선교사들의 이야기 Story from Missionaries

Missionaries’ Testimonies Series 2

Now as a servant who only hears the word of God

Earlier this year God gave us a promise that, “There will be 100 servants of God like D.L. Moody and John Wesley in 2014.”

According to the promise, God raised up the servants through faith. The testimonies of the missionaries who came to Korea to attend the 2013 World Culture Camp were especially hot with the Spirit. In this series of five testimonies, they share how foolish and shameful they were following their own hearts and talk about how they met the love of God when they reached their limits. ▣ How Can He Rise?

| Bum Sup Kim (Missionary in Brazil)

Testimony 45

Special Testimony

How Can He Rise?

Beom Seob Kim (Missionary, Good News San Paulo Church, Brazil)

“IS THIS A CHINESE RESTAURANT? I’D LIKE TO ORDER 80 BOWLS OF BLACK BEAN NOODLES.” On a flight to Korea to attend the World Camp, I read Luke 15 and thought, “I will be merry and happy when I come to Korea just like the father who said to eat the fatted calf and be merry when the prodigal son returned!”

The World Camp ended beautifully within the grace of the Lord and around 70 to 80 missionaries from around the world gathered at the Good News Gang Nam Church.

During the camp I was in charge of the senior group and was leading the gospel class so afterwards was my first chance to attend the fellowship between Pastor Ock Soo Park and the missionaries. As soon as Pastor Park came to the meeting, he scolded us. “It’s a waste to feed you. It’s even more of a waste to turn on the air conditioners for you. Go back!” In my heart I thought, “I heard that the fellowship went fine yesterday. What’s going on today? Us missionaries came so far and after such a long time, can’t he be more welcoming?”

Pastor stood up with his bag as if he was going to leave, but instead he asked if anyone had anything to say. Then his cellphone rang.

“Hello? Yes, is this a Chinese restaurant? I’d like to order 80 bowls of black bean noodles.”

Even though pastor said it was a waste to feed us, I could

46 The Good News September 2013

선교사들의 이야기 Story from Missionaries

My heart burned just like the hearts of the disciples when Jesus expounded the scriptures to them on the way to Emmaus while listening to pastor explain the story of the man with an infirmity for 38 years.

see his heart – he wanted to buy us noodles. My heart melted. I felt he was just saying he didn’t want to feed us but that was not his heart – I could hardly eat the noodles we had for lunch that day.

Pastor’s remark was with the same heart that Naomi had when she told Ruth and Orpah to return to their houses.

Orpah’s heart which was hidden deep inside was revealed by the rebuke. The spirit and the flesh were divided in my heart just like Ruth and Orpah were divided by Naomi. The fellowship with the pastor was great. I really enjoyed the fellowship with the pastor.

MY HEART BURNED WITHIN ME LISTENING TO THE STORY OF THE MAN WITH AN INFIRMITY FOR 38 YEARS. On the second day of the meeting, we had fellowship from 4 am to 11:30 pm. Living abroad as a missionary for a long time, I was uncomfortable sitting on the floor.

Nineteen hours on the floor started to hurt my back. Other missionaries started twisting and turning as well. They must have felt like me.

Pastor explained about the man with an infirmity for 38 years – especially when Jesus asked him if he wanted to be healed. Because the missionaries also wanted to be made

Testimony 47

Special Testimony

whole, they competed for the microphone when it was time to share testimonies. When Jesus asked the man, “Wilt thou be made whole?”, he was able to open his anguished heart – something he couldn’t share with anyone else all his life. My heart burned just like the hearts of the disciples when Jesus expounded the scriptures to them on the way to Emmaus while listening to pastor explain the story of the man with an infirmity for 38 years. Sin is not so much evil deeds like lying and stealing. Although they are also sins, fundamentally, sin is unbelief.

HOW CAN WE LIFT THE ROOF OF A COMPLETED BUILDING? Brazil church used to be a two story building, with each floor about 400 pyeong (about 14,208 sq ft). When Pastor Park came to Brazil early last year, he went up to see the rooftop of the building and said, “It would be good to add another story.” We began construction right away. I couldn’t exalt my heart during the construction because of big and small accidents that occurred one after another. After eight months, we finished the four meter high third story, put trusses up for the roof, and covered it with plywood. Then I saw Pastor Park in Chile.

“Construction is going well, right?”

“Yes. We finished the walls, windows, and ceilings. Now we only have the interior left.”

Pastor wanted to see the remodeled building, so I showed him a photo. Pastor looked closely at it and said, “The chapel should be here.” We already built a nice 300 pyeong sized chapel to seat 800 people on the second floor, what did he mean the chapel should be on the third floor? It was something I couldn’t imagine. Four meters was not tall enough for a chapel on the third floor; it had to be at least six meters high. The roof was all finished. How could we

48 The Good News September 2013

선교사들의 이야기 Story from Missionaries

I told pastor that it wouldn’t work because of the roof. He said, “It’s really simple.”

How can it be simple...

go two meters higher? On top of that, how could I tell the missionary school students and short-term missionaries who worked with all their heart for eight months that we have to do more construction? I didn’t want to, so I started talking about the difficulties. But pastor said, “That’s not a problem at all.”

The biggest problem was the roof. In order to go up two meters, we would have to take down the trusses. But to do that, we would have to take off the panels we put on top.

When we reassemble the panels later on, it wouldn’t matter how well we did it, we would end up with leaks in the roof.

To make matters worse, there are torrential rains in the summer in Brazil, as if there were a hole in the sky. I told pastor that it wouldn’t work because of the roof. He said, “It’s really simple.” How can it be simple?

“Listen to me. Don’t dismantle the roof. Just lift the whole thing up.”

“How can we lift a 400 pyeong roof?”

“You know what a vehicle jack is, right? Lift the trusses with vehicle jacks.”

“With Vehicle jacks?”

I didn’t want any more construction. It seemed impossible but I thought I should stop talking about how difficult it would be because pastor seemed so sure about it.

Testimony 49

Special Testimony

THE FIERCE FIGHT BETWEEN PASTOR’S WORD AND MY THOUGHTS Even though I replied, “I got it” before I left the room, I couldn’t accept what he said. I wanted to scream! I was so frustrated I just wanted to take it out on someone. Right then an elder from my church was passing by.

“Elder, Pastor Park told me to use the current chapel for the theology school and make a new one on the third floor.”

“Third floor?”

The elder didn’t say anything. My heart began to feel lighter, as if half of the burden was taken away. Then I saw a minister who was in charge of the construction passing by.

I told him what the pastor said about having the chapel on the third floor instead of the second. The minister asked, “What about the roof?”

“He said to lift it with vehicle jacks.”

“Vehicle jacks?”

This was a construction method never before heard of.

Jesus said, “Rise, take up your bed and walk.” to a man who was immobile for 38 years with an infirmity. How could he rise? Before construction, pastor’s word and my thoughts fought fiercely inside my heart. I was so conflicted. I couldn’t run away from church. I thought it would be better for me to go to a small city and establish a church.

“Why do I feel so burdened? Why am I trying to be responsible?” The eldest servant of Abraham didn’t have faith to find a wife for Isaac because he wanted to avoid being responsible so he asked Abraham, “Must I needs bring thy son unto the land?” He was trying to be responsible for the work of God and so was I. Abraham told him that God would work and that it wouldn’t matter if he couldn’t do it.

When Abraham’s heart was able to enter the servant’s heart, he was able to go forth with peace.

I remembered when my family came to Brazil for the first

50 The Good News September 2013

선교사들의 이야기 Story from Missionaries

I’m so embarrassed.The roof was lifted up, but God lowered my heart so much.

time. Pastor sent us to Brazil; a place where we didn’t know anyone, let alone anyone who was a saved member of the church with the word, “Jehovah-jireh”. God revealed the things He prepared and we received a lot of grace according to the word. So why did I feel burdened about what Pastor said? It was In fact through his guidance that we purchased this big, 400 pyeong per story building in Brazil.

WE STARTED TO LIFT THE 400-PYEONG ROOF WITH 68 FLOOR JACKS The Word defeated my thoughts. When I returned to Brazil, I told the brothers and sisters about the new construction we were going to undertake. They murmured. Some protested.

I was the same way. Without faith, that was only heart we could have. When we looked for a way other than what pastor said, the cheapest we could do it for was around $40,000.

We made up our minds and started the work. My heart didn’t waver. We bought five ton and seven ton jacks; 68 of them altogether. The seller asked why we were getting so many. After cutting the H beams to put in between the trusses and the frame, we set up the floor jacks to lift the roof. The brothers and sisters were all in charge of one jack each. To prevent the roof from collapsing, we reinforced it with steel struts here and there.

Testimony 51

Special Testimony

We turned on some music and I grabbed a microphone.

When I shouted, “One!” everyone repeated, “One!”, and lifted up the roof with their jacks. That big roof started to move up. “Two!!” “Three!!” We could lift up 12cm a time.

Then we inserted wooden shims to hold the roof up to that point. We set up the jacks and started lifting again.

When the roof was raised 1.8 meters the missionary school students in one corner cried out, “Pastor!!” I went to check it out. The roof was shaking. The steel struts even started to bend. I was afraid. If the roof tilted to one side and collapsed, it would cause unimaginable damage; like something you might see on TV. But we couldn’t stop. We had to lift it 2.2 meters to install the H beams we cut. God said in 2 Chronicles 20:20 that if we believe His prophets we will prosper. I forced everyone to continue. The higher it got, the more the roof shook. But we didn’t stop. We finally got it to 2.2 meters high. Immediately we put in the H beams and welded them. That’s when the elder grabbed the microphone.

“I just want to find a hole to hide in. I’m so embarrassed.

The roof was lifted up, but God lowered my heart so much.

I didn’t have faith. I was afraid that something would go wrong.”

He didn’t just speak for himself, but for all the brothers and sisters. What everyone thought was impossible just happened. Lifting those huge, heavy trusses covered with

52 The Good News September 2013

선교사들의 이야기 Story from Missionaries

panels with 68 jacks is something you can’t even begin to think about doing. With 68 brothers and sisters holding the jacks and many others supporting them, it was obvious that a serious accident would occur if anything beyond our control went wrong. It was impossible for us to take this way without assurance that it was the will of God. When the third floor went from 4 meters to 6.2 meters, it looked good. Last March when Pastor Park visited Brazil, he went straight to the third floor and looked around.

Then he said, “It looks much better than I imagined.” He also commented that it was an excellent chapel and that he hoped to preach the gospel to the thousands of people who will be sitting there.

AFTER THE MEETING FULL OF SPIRIT At Gang Nam church, I remembered that incident as I sat listening to Pastor Park telling us about the man with infirmity for 38 years. When I faced hardships in Brazil, there were times I cursed out loud. If it were up to me, I would have run away already. But because the Lord sent me, He broke my heart to trust in myself which allowed me to believe in Him and find what He prepared for me. Brazil became a country of indescribable blessing.

I am so thankful to have a servant of God who helps us gets rid of our thoughts and leads us to live strongly by faith.

I was grateful to attend the fellowship for the missionaries and return to Brazil.

Testimony 53

Life And Spiritual Life

The Saints of the Church of Corinth Could Not Walk the Path of the Gospel Young Joon Park (Pastor, Good News Dae-Yeon Church, S. Korea)

THE GOSPEL BECAME POWER We held the first Youth Ministers Forum two years ago at the time of the World Camp in Korea. Although it seemed difficult at the time to invite the guests, we were surprised when ministers from 24 countries chose to attend. During the second forum held last year, many ministers from the first year attended, and most of the people who attended the forum received salvation. Afterward, the news we heard from many countries was truly amazing. Those ministers opened the way for presidents and first ladies to hear the gospel and they poured their hearts for the World Camp helping us receive government assistance like it was their own personal responsibility. We are unable to do this kind of work with our own strength. These people are not helping us because we’re so good at preparing these events but because the Gospel entered their hearts it became power to them.

WE MUST PREACH THE GOSPEL When we held the World Camp and Ministers Forum, it was more precious that we could preach the Gospel to each one of them rather than having those events end well. Just as it’s useless to build an ark if no one enters it, it’s meaningless to

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hold events if we do not preach the Gospel at them.

The Gospel God gave us is truly precious and powerful.

When we recruit college volunteers and train them, it’s because we want to preach the Gospel to them. They couldn’t help but to live evil lives but they received salvation and changed. Our hearts are joyful when we hear the stories of how students who were once addicted to games changed.

As we held World Camps and other events, God taught me that we have to preach the Gospel. Many saints do not experience the power and work of God and live without any strength in their hearts because they don’t. More than for any other reason, it is necessary to receive grace to preach the Gospel.

DO YOU HAVE THE HEART OF THE GOSPEL? “Is any man called being circumcised? let him not become uncircumcised. Is any called in uncircumcision? let him not be circumcised. Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God.” ( 1 Corinthians 7:18-19) What is God saying to the church in Corinth? It is not

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All of us, doing well or not, being humble or not, receiving grace or not; let us not languish over such things.

I hope that we become people who live boldly only for the Gospel and then stand before God.

important whether a virgin marries or not; circumcision or uncircumcision is not the problem; and I do not need to be bound by whether I’m humble or not. These matters are absolutely unimportant. It’s saying that not having the heart to preach the Gospel is the problem. The hearts of the saints from the church of Corinth have fallen into ancillary matters. In reality their hearts have departed from the Gospel. Paul wanted the saints of the church of Corinth to realize this fact.

THE EXACT PURPOSE OF LIFE If we call ourselves Christians, then the purpose and direction of our life must be for the Gospel. Unfortunately, there are many saints whose hearts have departed from the Gospel and have fallen into a life of right and wrong. In Genesis 16, God asks Hagar, “Where did you come from and where are you going?”

God pointed out that Hagar had no direction or purpose in her heart.

We can be happy with whatever work we do if we keep the Gospel as our purpose. Afterwards, we experience the power and work of God. But the saints of the church in Corinth didn’t know where they came from and where they were going so they lived according to their thoughts. How can God work inside them and how can they guide even a single person into the ark?

If we also say to ourselves, “Since I received salvation, I will go

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to heaven,” and live without the heart for the Gospel, there will be no work of salvation that will arise through us.

“Defraud ye not one the other, except it be with consent for a time, that ye may give yourselves to fasting and prayer; and come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.” (1 Corinthians 7:5) This word contains the heart of Paul for the saints of the church in Corinth to not give Satan the opportunity steal away their heart for the Gospel. Paul is earnestly speaking to the saints of the Corinthian church because they have given their hearts over to Satan and lost the heart for the Gospel.

IF WE LIVE FOR THE GOSPEL, GOD IS RESPONSIBLE FOR OUR LIVES “Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and increase the fruits of your righteousness,” (2 Corinthians 9:10) “Even so hath the Lord ordained that they which preach the gospel should live of the gospel.” (1 Corinthians 9:14) Here it teaches us that the sower is the person who preaches the Gospel. No matter what their character or condition may be, God promises to give abundance to such people who disregard other matters and preach the Gospel. And it also says the preachers of the Gospel shall live by the Gospel. Within

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these words, we can see the heart of God who wants us to become Gospel preachers.

Jesus is inside the hearts of saved people. That Lord says if we live for the Gospel, He will add all things unto us. Even though you may lack skill, preach the Gospel to those you meet.

Even though we are lacking, Jesus inside us is powerful and will appear and work.

I still remember preaching the Gospel to certain people who received salvation. When I lived in Seoul Yeongdeungpo, there was a friend of a sister who worked at the bakery who received salvation and is now serving the church. That brother attended church for 40 years but suffered because there was no work of God, but he received salvation and is now living a new life. How precious and beautiful is it to know that there are brothers and sisters who received salvation through us? In the course of our lives, I would like all of us to have the traces of the Gospel so that on the day we stand before God we can hear the comforting voice of God calling us “good and faithful servants.”

The saints of the church in Corinth didn’t live for the Gospel; instead they lived giving themselves over to Satan. Let’s not worry about doing well or not, or being humble or not, or receiving grace or not; instead let’s become people who live boldly only for the Gospel and stand before God. 58 The Good News September 2013

A Grain of Mustard Seed

World Camp in the Dominican Republic

200 Deaf Students received salvation

THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC WORLD CAMP FUNDED ENTIRELY BY THE GOVERNMENT We received a lot of God’s grace during the World Camp in the Dominican Republic. We were especially grateful to the mayor of Santiago who opened his heart to IYF and requested government support for the World Camp. He supported us so that we could focus on running the camp while all the funds were managed by the government. The government provided for all the lodging, food, and camp promotion. They also aired information about the camp and helped gather the students to attend. All we had to do was Testimony 59

guide the students to the Word. Over the past three years, many city hall officials received salvation and we built a stronger relationship with the mayor.

200 DEAF AND MUTE STUDENTS ATTEND WORLD CAMP Something special took place during this year’s World Camp.

The association for the deaf and mute of the Dominican Republic asked if 200 of their students could attend the camp. These students are often discriminated against because of their impairment. Because they are unable to hear and/or speak, they communicate through sign language. The 200 students and their pastor sat at the edges while the sermon was interpreted into sign language.

I thought how nice it would be if the students could listen to the Gracias Choir. They couldn’t listen to the beautiful melody of the piano and violin performance, but could only watch. They couldn’t hear the lovely voices of Soprano Jin Young Park and Hye Mi Choi, and Tenor Tae Jik Woo and Paul Oh. However, they were very happy to attend the camp and be given food and a place to sleep provided by the city, because they were once discriminated against and put down. From time to time, there would be other students who would get up during the middle of service to go the bathroom, but these students didn’t. They concentrated intently on each and every hand sign the teachers made.

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MISSIONARY SEUNG JAE LEE PREACHES THE GOSPEL Missionary Seung Jae Lee from Chile met the deaf and mute students. He had the heart to preach the Gospel to them himself so he gathered them to share the Word of the Bible while their teacher interpreted in sign language. It was touching to see the majority of them receive the forgiveness of sins after the Gospel was preached. Both the teacher who interpreted for them as well as the pastors who chaperoned them were very thankful to Missionary Lee for taking two hours of his time to preach the Gospel in so much detail.

They too were touched by hearing the Words. I felt very thankful that evening when Missionary Lee told me about it. The missionary told me, "There are still some students who are unsure about their salvation, but I will preach the Gospel to them in more detail from a different perspective so they can have assurance tomorrow." I felt unspeakable gratitude towards God after hearing that. Through IYF, we gather students from around the world to give them music, academies, and even cultural exchange where students share their hearts with one another. We also preach the Word of God twice a day, morning and evening, during the mindset lectures. The teachers of each class also preach the Gospel to their students. The students that attend the camp come from diverse backgrounds and many of them have attended church or Christian events but rarely are there Testimony 61

any students who have heard the Gospel. When you see such students' lives change as they receive the forgiveness of sins through hearing the Gospel, I can’t express how amazing it is.

The Mayor of Santiago measured the scholastic abilities of the students during this camp and he was very pleased to see an average score of 85 among 1,400 students. God allowed us to experience many things as we preached the Gospel.

AN OLYMPIC GOLD MEDALIST RECEIVED SALVATION DURING THE US WORLD CAMP In 1980, God gave me the opportunity to meet lepers and preach the Gospel to them, so I visited churches a week at a time to hold conferences. During those conferences, I saw many lepers rejoice after being saved. Later on I saw many people in Africa and America receive salvation and change as well.

Recently, during the past US World Camp, a ver y famous female athlete who was an Olympic gold medalist and is currently a stunt woman came to give a key note lecture. She spoke about the work she was doing and her difficulties, then she attended the conference that evening and returned. However, as she listened to the Word that evening, she thought, “That pastor is telling me that I am not born again even though I am.” She said that she felt tormented that evening. As she wept and felt tormented all night, she came to the camp venue the next day and began 62 The Good News September 2013

talking about her heart as we had lunch together. I told her in detail about how God had washed away our sins through the blood of Jesus Christ. That day, upon receiving salvation, she felt so joyful and said she would work for IYF her entire life.

AS GOD OPENS THE WAY FOR US TO CONTINUE TO PREACH THE GOSPEL...

I was ver y thankful we had the World Camp in the Dominican Republic. The 200 deaf and mute students who are experiencing difficulties like not being able to get a good job or being held back from other opportunities including marriage were able to attend. God led the heart of missionary Seung Jae Lee to preach the Gospel to them for two hours with the heart to pity them. As the missionary conversed with them through interpretation in sign language, the majority of them received salvation and rejoiced and changed. The mayor was very pleased to see it all, but more than anyone else, the teachers and the chaperone pastors were the ones who were the happiest. I can’t say it all in words how thankful it was.

There are still many people in this world who need to hear the Gospel. When I think about how God is continuing to open ways for them to meet us, I am very grateful. I look forward to seeing how God will open doors for us to preach the Gospel to people with dark hearts and bear the fruits of salvation.

Testimony 63

64 The Good News September 2013

GOOD NEWS MISSION CHURCHES • Good News Central Church 3500 W. 1st St., LA, CA 90004, USA Tel.1-213-440-4369 • Good News Orange County Church 3330 W Lincoln Ave., Anaheim, CA 92801, USA Tel.1-714-366-0207 • Good News San Jose Church 1548 Curtner Avenue, San Jose, CA 95125, USA Tel.1-408-500-2130 • Good News San Diego Church 4292 Poplar st, San Diego, CA 92105, USA Tel.1-619-573-8340 • Good News Anchorage Church 1020 W. Fireweed Lane, Anchorage, AK 99503, USA Tel.1-907-830-5115 • Good News Las Vegas Church 9443 Breechcloth Way, Las Vegas, NV 89117, USA Tel.1-702-285-2817 • Good News Hawaii Church 1219 Keeaumoku St, Suite 400, Honolulu, HI 96814, USA Tel.1-808-679-2800 • Good News Salt Lake Church 353 Park Creeke Ln, APT #B, Salt Lake City, UT 84115, USA Tel.1-801-656-5299 • Good News Sacramento Church 7100 Fair Oaks Blvd, Carmichael, CA 95608, USA Tel.1-916-996-4655 • Good News Tacoma Church 10103 South Tacoma Way, Lakewood, WA 98499, USA Tel.1-253-267-4161 • Good News Dallas Church 1149 Plano Rd., Garland, TX 75042 , USA Tel.1-214-886-3317 • Good News Houston Church 6530 Rolla St., Houston, TX 77055, USA Tel.1-713-498-1980 • Good News El Paso Church 4805 Atlas Ave., El Paso, TX 79904, USA Tel.1-915-603-0055 • Good News Kansas Church 501 W. 100 Terr., Kansas City, MO 64114, USA Tel.1-816-210-0351 • Good News Ottawa Church 212-71 Boul Fournier, Gatineau, QC J8X 3P7, Canada Tel.1-613-263-0377 • Good News Singapore Church Blk 918 Jurong West St., 91 #1-110 (S)640918, Singapore Tel.65-8220-2054

www.goodnews.kr

GOOD NEWS MISSION CHURCHES • Good News New York Church 300 Nassau Road, Huntington, NY 11743, USA Tel.1-631-745-4734 • Good News Brooklyn Church 597 Degraw St., Brooklyn, NY 11217, USA Tel.1-631-988-1206 • Good News Atlanta Church 11011 Rogers Circle, Johns Creek, GA 30097, USA Tel.1-678-473-1594 • Good News New Jersey Church 1075 Queen Anne Road, Teaneck, NJ 07666, USA Tel.1-201-543-1208 • Good News Detroit Church 1181 Harding Ave, Rochester Hills, MI 48307, USA Tel.1-248-971-4151 • Good News Chicago Church 4825 W. Jarlath St., Lincolnwood, IL 60712, USA Tel.1-847-329-0237 • Good News Boston Church 228 Ferry St., Everett, MA 02149, USA Tel.1-617-943-9739 • Sydney Grace Church 72-74 Joseph St, Lidcombe Sydney NSW 2141, Australia Tel.61-2-9749-2114 • Good News Finland Church Porslahdentie 23 C 9 00980 Helsinki, Finland Tel.358-45-112-3588 • Auckland Grace Baptist Church 18 Kaipatiki Rd, Glenfield Auckland, New Zealand Tel.64-9-440-9214 • Good News Kingston Church 63B Deanery Road, Kingston 3, Jamaica W. I. Tel.1-876-620-9340 • Good News Mission Baptist Church-Tema Good News Mission. P.M.B. Comm. 1, Tema, Ghana (W/Africa) Tel.233-22-305857~8 • Good News Mission(K) Nairobi Church P.O.Box 57329, Nairobi, Kenya -00200- Tel.254-729-398912 • Good News Kampala Church P.O.Box 33441 Kampala, Uganda Tel.256-414-271-357 • Good News Mission(Burundi) Bujumbra Church B.P 2207 Bujumbura, Burundi, Central Africa Tel.257-79901723 • Good News Mission(R) Kigali Church P.O.Box 3539 Kigali, Rwanda, Africa Tel.250-78-8610363