November 3rd marked two years since Kenneth Bae became a prisoner in the Democratic of Korea (also known as North Korea), and Kenneth’s family couldn’t really celebrate a normal Thanksgiving for the last two years. You can’t even imagine the pain this caused to Kenneth and his family. Their lives were held captive, filled with deep heartache and fear. As they were wondering when Kenneth would ever be free, on November 8th we all heard the news that he was freed and was on a plane from North Korea. He was finally coming home. At his interview, Kenneth said that he was grateful that he is back home now, and what he wants to do most was to spend time with family and friends he had so longed to see. This year’s Thanksgiving Day will be more meaningful than ever before for Kenneth and his family.
What does Thanksgiving Day mean to you?  How are you planning on spending your Thanksgiving Day?  The meaning of Thanksgiving Day has certainly changed over the years. Thanksgiving Day seems to get filled with more of watching football games and shopping for bargains.  Now this year, stores are saying that they will be opening at 6:00 pm on Thanksgiving Day and extend their special deals until Sunday evening to get people into buying more stuff.
It seems shopping has become more important than spending time with family and friends, and we tend to take our relationships with people we love for granted. We always see them so what’s the big deal? This kind of careless thought and lifestyle is chipping away at the true meaning of Thanksgiving Day. Yes, Kenneth was completely cut off from his family for two years. So when he said all he wants to do most now was to spend time with family and friends, we can say we would feel the same way if we were in his situation.
But the point is that we shouldn’t take the relationships we have for granted even if your relationships are perfectly fine with family and friends. For Kenneth, the relationship with his family and friends were cut off from him unexpectedly without his control. He said he learned a lot through this ordeal, and I could sense that missing his family and friends were the most painful and difficult things he had to deal with while he was imprisoned.
My youngest brother passed away last December unexpectedly. Since we were seven years apart, we rarely had deep and intimate conversations as we were growing up. But as we got older we began to share more about each other’s life, and when he was hospitalized for three weeks before he passed away, I had gotten to know more about him. I wish I had spent more time sharing with him before this happened. Well, it’s a little too late, isn’t it? Moreover, our Thanksgiving Day this year may not be the same as last year, especially for my aging mother.
Don’t forget to appreciate the relationships with your family and friends you have now. Don’t take them for granted. The relationships you have now could be interrupted without warning, and time will not wait for you either. Enjoy and cherish what you have now, and do your best to keep it while you have it!
Also let us not forget our God who’s always been so faithful and loving to us, and give utmost thanksgiving to Him.  Let us remember how blessed we are for having our God who loves us unconditionally and provides us with all good things.
I pray that all of you would have a wonderful Thanksgiving gathering with your families and friends, and enjoy spending time together.   Have a wonderful and a happy Thanksgiving!

From Pastor Neil’s Heart
November 23, 2014

I enjoy watching and participating in baptism.  It’s always a wonderful experience for me which never gets tired.  As people get ready to get baptized, they look nervous, but also excited at the same time.  Their family members and friends are there to support them and share that very special moment in their walk with Jesus.  After they make their public confession of faith in Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior, and get immersed in the water as a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, their countenance looks so joyful and peaceful coming up out of the water.  Not only do the people who get baptized experience joy, but also family members and friends who are witnessing the baptism experience the same joy as well.
What’s the meaning of baptism?  It's important to understand that baptism does not guarantee anyone a ticket to heaven.  Salvation comes only through the acceptance of Jesus Christ as the personal Lord and the Savior.  There's nothing we can do to earn it.  Unless true conversion comes first, then baptism is just a meaningless ceremony.  Then how is it related our salvation?   It's not something we must do in order to be saved, but it's something we do because we are saved.   There will probably be people in heaven who were never baptized because of various reasons.  The Bible mentions the thief on the cross was saved without getting baptized because Jesus promised Him eternal life.  The thief never had an opportunity to get baptized.
Oftentimes, we emphasize too much the outward act of baptism.  Yes, it is a command of Jesus Christ to the church and to the new believers.  When Saul met Jesus on the road to Damascus, Jesus commanded Saul through Ananias, “Get up, be baptized.”  Also, it is a public declaration of our relationship to Jesus Christ.
But it's the inward change that we truly need to focus on.  Titus 3:5-6 says, “He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because His mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”  This "washing" is what baptism represents.  Jesus washes us from our sin.  But the next statement is more important.  As we’re washed by Jesus through baptism, our mind is also being renewed by the Holy Spirit!
Last Sunday, we baptized three of our beloved people, Justine, Kibaek and Melissa.  I could tell Melissa was feeling nervous as she stood on the stage sharing her testimony in front of many people, including her family members and friends.  But at the same time I was in awe of how deeply I could feel God’s presence within her in response to her recommitment to God.  Justine had to wait for her baptism for a long time because we had cancelled the last two scheduled baptisms.  We really felt so bad about that. But she was determined and persevered. I couldn’t hold my tears just watching her.  She was sobbing profusely and streams of tears were flowing from her eyes.  Her tears were not from sadness or stress.  Rather her tears were the songs of joy that come from the heart of God.  When I saw Kibaek’s joyful and smiley face as he came out the water, I knew in my heart that only Jesus can give anyone that kind of joyful and smiley face.
Some people might think baptism is nothing more than a public display of someone’s commitment to God: they get immersed in the water and then it’s over. However, when you’re the one getting baptized, it’s much more than that. It’s the moment of the tenderness touch of God’s fingers on the person who are getting baptized. It is an emotional time, and you’ll never forget how the mighty power of the Holy Spirit’s presence can touch not only the person who is getting baptized but also the people who are participating in it.  Have you yet to be baptized? What’s stopping you from getting baptized now?

From Pastor Neil’s Heart
August 24, 2014

The word, “accountability,” makes us feel quite uncomfortable and even scares many of us. We are afraid that if we become really honest with each other, there will be judgment and disapproval for our mistakes.  Especially if you are pastors or leaders in the church, your credibility and reputation is always on the line, and if any dishonesty or misdeed is exposed, you may be afraid that your future leadership ability may be questioned. But scripture teaches us to confess our sins to each other and pray for each other. Scripture does not exempt anyone from having to be accountable. In fact, scripture emphasizes that leaders are to be the most accountable so that others may follow their example.
So we know for a fact that, as a believer, each of us is accountable for our actions. Then, the next question is do we have a proper understanding of God’s intention of accountability for believers? We must remember that God’s intention of accountability is to show love to one another. Jesus said he gives a new commandment that we love each other. As I have loved you, so you must love each other. The teaching of Jesus begins with love and ends with love.
Am I saying then that we shouldn’t care about how others are living and simply disregard them from facing the facts? Absolutely not! Sometimes we are afraid to hold people accountable because we don’t want to create unnecessary tension that we have simply decided to look away. But this is not how the church should function because God’s love requires a commitment to one another. We must learn to love each other enough not to ignore our sins.
Then, how do we go about being accountable for each other? Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrated his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus laid down his life first for everyone before he asked us to be accountable. It takes love and humility to be held accountable. Accountability is not about judgment. It is about love so that we may be what God has called us to be.
Also Paul says in Galatians 6:1, “Brothers and sisters, if someone is caught in a sin, you who live by the Spirit should restore that person gently.  But watch yourselves, or you also may be tempted.” Yes, believers must be honest about our sin, but accountability must point back to the throne of grace and become accountable to the love of Jesus because the ultimate purpose of accountability is restoration. And it must be done with the intention of love, not judgment.
One of the biggest problems in the church is that we trample on the wounded. But this is not God’s intention for us being accountable each other. Are we as a church wiling to be accountable to each other? Then first we must show one another that we love them, and our goal has to be for restoring them.
As our church moves forward, we will continue to face many issues of accountability. And the course of action that we take will either make us or break us. We shouldn’t overlook the sin and refuse to face the facts, nor should we expose the sin openly and inflict wounds of hurt. As long as what we do points back to God’s grace and love, and our focus is on restoration, not only will God restore our mistakes or shortcomings but also we will grow stronger and tighter as a community of believers.

From Pastor Neil’s Heart
February 9, 2014

The last couple of weeks have been very difficult and disheartening moments for our family that we had to watch my youngest brother laying in the hospital and his condition progressively deteriorating, and eventually passing away this past Thursday.   When a family member passes on, it is very hard to deal with losing your loved one.  My mother, especially and understandably, was having the most difficult time watching her own baby son slowly getting worse rapidly the last few days.  I’m sure that my mother would feel as if the whole world was falling down around her.   Trying to overcome this heartbreaking experience will be awful and may take quite some time for my mother and our family. 
My brother, Soongchan, was diagnosed with liver cancer about three and a half years ago.  It was already at an advanced stage where even a transplant was not possible.  The only option he had was to be on the clinical trials at the Johns Hopkins Hospital.  We had our happy moment a couple of years ago when he was declared that his cancer cell was dead and his liver was under control.  Many people from our church members and my mother’s church members were praying for him, and we felt as if our God answered our prayers.  However, his cancer came back again.
Soongchan has been the black sheep of our family in terms of our faith in Jesus.  He’s been in our prayers for his salvation for more than 33 years.  He was a very nice and gentle person, and always tried to live righteously, and not hurting anyone.  He was well respected and loved by friends.  But when it came down to accepting Jesus, he continued to be stubborn and refusing.  In the spring of last year, when he agreed to sign up for the Alpha Class, I really thought it was God’s timing that he would come to accept Jesus as his Lord and the Savior this time.  And when it didn’t happen at the end of the class, I was very disheartened and disappointed.
And my worst fear was becoming true of my brother dying without knowing Christ.  As he was lying in the hospital bed and his condition progressively deteriorating, I was in a desperate praying moment of crying out to God that He must save him before he dies.  I was pleading with God, “Didn’t you say that believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved – you and your household (Acts 16:31)?  I want my brother to be saved so that I can see him in heaven.”  I’ve asked P. Mark, chaplains at the hospital and at the hospice, and others to witness to him, but he kept refusing.  Time was running out.
And it was last Saturday evening.  My brother was in and out of consciousness, and he couldn’t carry much meaningful conversation for long.  His college friends came over and were trying to talk with him.  He was only able to respond for a brief moment at a time.  After a while, after all of his friends moved to another room, I was alone with my brother in his hospice room.  And I felt that I had to speak with him before he lost consciousness completely.  I said to him, “I want to thank you for being my good bother and am going to miss you.  You’ve been such a good son to our mom, and you lived well and have done everything you needed to do.  So feel free and go in peace.  Soon you’ll be going home, and I want you to go to the home in heaven because God wants you to be in His house.   But only the child of God can enter into His house.  The truth is you can become God’s child if you accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior, then, you can go to heaven.  Would please accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior for me?  Because I want you to go heaven, and when I get there later, I want you to be the first one to come out and greet me…..”
Lo and behold, he finally said “Yes” twice.  I was thinking, “Is this real?”  So I’ve asked him again, and He said “Yes” twice again.  At last, after 33 years of praying for his salvation, God answered our prayer!!!  My brother looked so peaceful when he passed away early Thursday morning, and I know for certain that he is heaven now.  Though it may take quite some time for us to overcome our grief of losing him, we greatly rejoice for the fact that he finally came to know Jesus and he is at the heavenly place where our God is the King.   So are you still praying for someone for their salvation?  Don’t give up and persevere till the end, and it’s worthwhile!

From Pastor Neil’s Heart
December 15, 2013