Friends and Family

Today we sang a new song at church. It was a great song. I didn't look up at the slide for a while because I was trying to catch some zzz's I missed over the weekend. But when I did, my eyes filled with tears and I caught yet another glimpse of the love of God.

The love of God is ever-past, present, and future (i.e., eternal). It's just wonderful to look back on life and be able to see how diligently the Lord was working on us ever since we were born, and to know that there is still more blessing to come. I especially love seeing how God has worked/works/will work on me with a little help from my friends. I love doing this more, however, with Minho's life. Why? Because he's had such a rich life of faith. I love that he has an older brother who is the kindest and best older brother one could ever have. What other brother would allow his little brother, 5 years younger than himself, tag along with him everywhere--to the movies with his own friends, to church hangouts, any kind of social event, etc.? What other brother would continue to do this through adolescence and into college, when he was busy with his own girlfriend and his own life (J&S even took Minho on their dates with them)? What other brother taught a group of young kids to sing and play the guitar, kids who would go on to teach others and lead God's people in worship faithfully in other churches, college fellowships, and today in our community? What great faith God gave to Joonho. [I'm using real names from now on.]

I also love how God blessed Minho's first church experiences. I love how in junior high he would always wear a tie to church. I love how in college he would lay out his clothes before church. I love how he thinks its a sin to wear shorts to church. I hate how he wants to get to church early. I love how he never misses Bible study. I love how he plans our vacations around leading LTG now. I love how it is without question whether or not we'll attend prayer meetings. I love how 75% of the Saturday nights in his life have been spent singing and rehearsing songs for worship the next day. I love he how misses me when I'm not there to worship with him.

Don't get me wrong. I do not at all believe that my husband is perfect or holy because he does these things. I do not mean to puff him up to you all by mentioning these things. And I don't think its a sin, Phattacus, that you wear shorts to church. These characteristics, habits, and mores in the best sense are not Minho's own; they are ultimately habits that God has cultivated in Minho through time, people, and relationships. And I think that's great--the fact that God has been with Him since day one, pointing him toward Himself. Let me talk now in detail about the shorts=sin, never missing Bible study, serving as breathing. These are all characteristics of boys who grew up in KFBC, of whom Danny is one.

Now I love all of Minho's friends--you guys are all just the most fantastic bunch in the world, and it just keeps getting better as God brings us even more people to forge our souls with (yeah, I'm talking about all of you). But I have to say that I have a sweet spot for Danny and another friend named Paul. When Minho and I started to talk in depth about our lives (c. 1998), he would always talk with so much heart about his two friends Danny and Paul, guys he felt he really grew up with. Danny and Paul were both great musicians, both were sons of preachermen; both were incredibly brilliant (though their alma mater fails miserably in proving this). I eventually met Danny and Paul, and their weddings to Jieun and Jenny, respectively, were just the most blessed days for me, for a number of reasons:

1) Danny and Jieun's:
Because Jieun looked SO INCREDIBLY BEAUTIFUL, and also it was the first outing we went on as a family--J&S and Nari, M&M, Mom and Dad Hyun. We all sat in the same pew. That was really special because the first day Anne of Green Gables goes to church with the Cuthberts, Marilla tells her to ask Mrs. Lynde where the Cuthbert pew is. Also, I loved that there were so many people there that were uninvited (to the horror of Jieun, don't get her started on this; there was even a whole uninvited family of little girls dressed in the tackiest of white dresses). Anyway. Why the legions of uninvited? Because of the LOVE people have for Danny's dad, Pastor Chai. My parents even know who he is, just from being in the area. And they always say, "He really loves God." How wonderful that people would want to come see your son get married because of the affection they have for you. That they could just get a glimpse of their old pastor after so many years. How much he must have loved his sheep! Its just such a testament to his ministry. This day also brought me one of the best friends I could ever have dreamed up. Yeah, I'm talking about YOU, JIEUN GRACE CHAI!!!

2) Jenny and Paul's:
Because I got to hold in my hands the extreme paulness of Paul. The boy had a 40+ page handout for all the helpers, complete with individual pictures of the bridal party. I'll show it to you all sometime. And what an angelic wife. Danny and Jieun call Jenny the "holiest person next to Jesus." That's pretty holy. Also, Minho sang the hymn "Praise the Lord the Almighty" a capella with three others as the bridal party walked to the altar. The wedding was in a beautiful high church in Boston, and the voices sounded... heavenly. So heavenly that I quickly reconsidered my own choices of music for my wedding (big deal to me). The best part of the wedding, though, was sitting at a table with Paul's brothers Sam and Dave, together with Minho and Joonho at the reception.* I must say I felt very proud being seated with family. That through all the years of college and grad school, etc., the most intimate relationships are still the ones of family and friends you grew up playing Pac-man with at the 7-Eleven down on Story Rd. in San Jose. Minho said that we got seated at that table because there was no other place to sit, but I like to think its because of what I just explained. Sam and Dave are also the craziest men in the entire world. Just spend 2 minutes talking to each of them (not together, that would cause cardiac arrest), and you'll learn what Rich Mullins meant when he sang, "But when I leave I want to go out like Elijah | With a whirlwind to fuel my chariot of fire"; Dave updates his will every time he goes to Iraq and has been on the North Korean blacklist since birth, and Sam is just... well, I don't know how to describe him except that when he talks about his youth ministry he spits numbers in the thousands (e.g., "If we have the kids bring at least 3 friends to church each that means we'll have 9,000 total high school believers in our ministry by 2006 and take San Jose by storm"). Since when did Korean P.K.'s learn to love the Lord this much, if at all, and this from their own father?**

So obviously we've had more time to spend with Danny and Jieun than Jenny and Paul being at BayLight. And its been great. Its also nice that the senior Hyuns and Chais love each other, too. It gives our friendship historical weight, and that's something I value in all and sundry--music, china, even clothes. Who threw the M&M post-reception party? Mrs. Chai, of course. Who does Mrs. Chai stay with when she comes back to San Jo'? My in-laws, of course. Who cried the most at our wedding? Christine Chai Jung, of course, for which Minho received one of his only statements of anger ever given him from Peter Jung, who said, "Minho I'm mad at you--my wife cried more at your wedding than ours!" Who came home from Houston after Christine and Peter's wedding saying, "She married the man who loves her, who she was supposed to" in his tender voice? Minho Hyun, of course! We get each other, the good and the bad. Like for instance, we understand the in-your-face humility that Danny tries to cultivate driving his beat-up Corolla. We understand the importance of asking not only, "Do you tithe?" but "Gross or take-home?" and high-five each other when the other says, "Gross, of course!" (Don't worry, the Lord is even more disgusted than you are, if you can imagine.) I know why Danny and Jieun rip themselves from their bed 3 hours after they went to bed on Sunday morning and sing their hearts out. I know why the only material the Chai's had for me to wrap their dishes in was a countless pile of old retreat t-shirts with big acronyms using only the letters K, C, the occasional P, another C, and F. Why, you ask? Because its the way God has raised them up in His church. And despite the false humility and authentic pride, God has just been so faithful. You know that verse, "Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads" (Deuteronomy 11:18)? The retreat t-shirts remind me of that. How? If we believe that the Word of God is what it says it is, how could it not have seeped through all of the bad cotton, sweat from the basketball games, dirt from the Turkey bowls and STRAIGHT INTO THE HEART? HOW? How faithful is the Lord, even in the trifles!

So seeing Danny's name up there on the screen brought tears of joy to me. And what beautiful lyrics, sung side by side with his dear wife, and his dear friends from college.*** The line "giving everything that I have to you" (or something like that) just floored me. Danny is so blessed intellectually and the song made me so excited for how the Lord uses this to bless others (his website has extreme traffic) and how He will continue to use this. Danny once said, "I would love to write a significant piece of philosophy in my lifetime." All of us have NO DOUBT that you guys will make it happen, with the Lord's help. The song was not at all brought about by the few hours he spent on it, but by the love of God at work in His family, friends and in his own heart all these years following after him; all the years of singing songs about God and loving Him. I can't imagine, as a parent, being more proud and full of thanksgiving than when my own child comes to know the Lord and uses His precious talents for the benefit of His church, which is what D&J, Ted, Aaron, Jay, Mel, Minho and Jeff do for us EVERY WEEK. And to dedicate one's life to loving the Lord and His people! I won't even go into what our pastors through, but man, Kims, I thank the Lord for you and we SUCH A LOVE YOU WITH ALL OUR HEARTS!

Why this rapture? Why this joy? It definitely has a context. Last week, our little Nari came to know the Lord. Or as she likes to say, she now has a "ticket to the promised land." During their home schooling time last Monday, Susan explained the story of the Israelites and the promised land to N&N. She happened to mention that we, too, have a promised land--a place where we can be with God forever. Nari asked, "How do we get there? I want to go!" So Susan explained to her the path to salvation, and how we need Jesus and His sacrifice to be with God forever. Supposedly Nathan, that little zish, asked to go, too. [Random question: is the comma before too now unnecessary? I've been noticing its absence in a number of publications.] So Susan led them through the sinner's prayer, and BAM! Party in heaven for our dear little niece and nephew. And Nari brought it up on her own accord with Joonho when he came home. Isn't that cause for this rapture and joy?

So Sunday I saw Nari at church and sat her down in my lap to ask her about it. "I heard you have a ticket to the promised land, Nari," I said. She said: "Yeah, I do, I have the ticket." Me: "So you know about Jesus? What did he do? He..." "DIED!" she cried. Then Nathan starting saying a bunch of incomprehensible stuff which I figure was something along the lines of Jesus' sacrifice. Then they both saw Stewart and ran away. It was so sweet. And later that night we celebrated Big Daddy Hyun's birthday, with 2 of our uncles from Sacramento and Davis, our Chin-halmoni, and mom's brother's family. What a nice party. Dad is just the best. I also told Mom about Nari and Nathan coming to know the Lord. She was just so happy and she talked to Nari about it. Nari asked, "Do you have the ticket to the promised land?" Though Mom didn't really understand what Nari said (she has a way of screaming words, that girl), she was also so happy. What a family!

I also had to go through something painful this past week and it left me feeling so empty, like I had poured my heart and soul into a glass jar only to realize that the jar never existed. But the love of God is not so; the sinful love we can offer to others is still never in vain. It is all worth something in the end. Minho helped me remember that the jar still exists; may it be used to bring yet another sinner to know the incomparable love of God.

And Shirley got married! What a beautiful wedding it was! Now my Shirley loves crafts and stationery and ribbon, etc. etc. etc. She also loves people. Her husband said at the reception that all the effort they put into the gifts, favors, programs, etc. (I'll show you how incredible they are sometime) was so that each person would feel and see how important and special they were to Shirley and Drew. I really felt that. And how loved they are in return! Congratulations, Shirley and Drew! We LOVE YOU!!!

SOLIDEOGLORIA

*I have a theory that the Lee brothers are exact foils of the Hyun brothers. Anyone that knows both families wanna talk about it?
**I think Stewart will give Sam a run for his money, just you wait now.
***Aptly enough, Danny and Minho made their first attempt at songwriting together, back in 1994 when Danny lived with the Hyuns. The song went something like, "On this road of life, we reach the fork of indecision," etc. etc. etc. HILARIOUS!