Thursday, October 22, 2009

Happy Birthday Jonah!

Today is my "little" brother Jonah's birthday. I don't really have anything unique or clever to say, just that I'm so glad he's my brother and that he celebrates 17 years of life with my family today. I remember back when my mom was pregnant with Jo and found out what she was having. She gathered us around and said "We're going to have another 'wave rider' (our nickname for Noah, the first boy after 4 girls) !" We were all so excited. Then, when he was born, we found out he should have been dubbed "wave maker" because that's what he did. He created huge waves of turmoil by his emergency entrance into the world (due to placental abruption) And afterward, Mom was in a state of shock over this big baby with the huge head and huge eyes that looked so different from all the rest of us. And now that cute baby has turned into a handsome young man with killer dimples in cheeks and chin.

But just like the way he came into the world with a bang, I believe Jonah is going to be a "wave maker" in the world. He sometimes reminds me of the apostle Peter, who was impulsive and passionate, often speaking before thinking and acting on the best of intentions but ending in disaster. And like Peter, Jo may have to learn some hard lessons - the hard way - before he is fit to do the work God has for him. But I believe that Jonah will grow in God and become a man who serves the Lord with all his might. A man who will do great things for the Kingdom and be a real "wave maker" for the glory of the Father.

So, in that vein, I just want to say "Keep going hard after God Jonah. Take that impulsive nature and use it to serve God impulsively. Be passionate about the things of God. Happy Birthday JO-JO! I Love You!!

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Of a conference, a race, and a day at church.

Hello to everyone! I hope all is well in your lives and hearts. The month of October is already half-way over! I can't believe it! The time here is flying by.
Well, as it has been noted before, "Adventures first, explanations take such a long time." (Alice in Wonderland)
So, I'll start with a brief rundown on what's been going on. First, October 3rd was Chuseok (a Korean national holiday). Second, last week-end held two separate special events; a conference on Friday evening and Saturday for the Dongshin English congregation and on Sunday, a 10K race which I ran in and finished in a little under 48 min. (not a great time but there was an incident which affected my time significantly). Third, today at church was great with a general meeting of all the Korean small groups and afterwards good fellowship with 3 friends at a fantastic coffee shop. Lastly, I bought a bike tonight and took my first ride (and first spill) on it. Well, that's the short of it. It's late here so I think I'll save this draft and write the long of it tomorrow. And you can stop reading if you like highlights and dislike details.

Ok, so here goes. The Chuseok holidays took place the first week-end of October and basically that is Memorial Day and Thanksgiving Day rolled into one holiday for the Koreans. It's pretty significant to them and alot of them dress up in han-bok (traditional dress) and everyone travels to ancestoral gravesites and performs gratitude rites. The way it was explained to me is this: the Koreans honor their ancestors by showing them gratitude for the current prosperity. This is done by bringing gifts to leave at the grave site and bowing a special formal bow to the grave. Respect and honoring people of higher positions, especially the dead, is of great importance to the Koreans, so this tradition is a big deal and everyone does it on or near Chuseok. On the same note, I'll share a humorous story about when I asked my oldest students about the New Year's holiday here in Korea. Bart became very animated and said "I go to my grandfather's house and do this" then he got down on his knees along with Tim and they bowed down with their hands stretched out in front of them. I was shocked (and also amused, though I hid my laughter) and asked "Why do you bow to your grandfather?" All the students began answering at once and from the babble I managed to decipher that this is a special bow to show deep respect and when children do it to their parents or grandparents on New Year's Day, they then receive some kind of gift or money. Later, I told my Korean co-teacher about what they said and she laughed really hard when I told her they had physically demonstrated for me. Then she said, "But when you get older, you have to make the bow to your parents and give THEM a gift or money!" So, it pays to be children or older parents or grandparents here.

October 9th and 10th was a church retreat/conference for the English service that I attend. I went out with a group at 10:30 p.m. on Friday night to the Mu-Hak chapel in the mountains outside Daegu. We got there in time for the last half of the first session with the main speaker. He was a Korean who had moved with his family to New York at the age of eight and was fluent in both languages. His personality was very passionate/exuberant and his messages and doctrine were excellent. The first session was on the Lord's Prayer which I only got to hear some of but it was really good. The second session was the one that really grabbed my attention though. It was on the purpose and calling of our lives and I felt like I was listening to a Korean-accented John Piper most of the time. Indeed, he quoted Piper several times thoughout the conference. But what he said that impacted me the most was this. "God doesn't need you to do what you think is your "calling". He can use anyone or anything for that matter to get the job done. What your true calling and primary purpose really is, is to love and glorify Christ. It is not what you do to serve, it is belonging to and finding your existance in Christ." So often I forget that what I am doing is secondary, that it is not my 'calling' but merely the vocation which has resulted FROM my calling, i.e. to belong to God completely, heart, soul, mind, and strength. I needed that reminder that God DOESN'T NEED ME. He graciously allows me to be part of His work and plan. The final session was on repentance and was likewise very insightful and deep. We also had workshops on various topics. The one I chose was the one on 'Waiting' headed up by a girl named Elise. It was a time for some great thoughts and discussion. We camped out on the wooden floors of various rooms on Friday night after a fantastic bonfire (at 12:30 a.m.) which included some fun and worship songs and roasting marshmallows on chopsticks! All in all, it was a wonderful time and I was blessed to be a part of it.

On Sunday after the conference, I headed over to the Dalgubul 10K race at 9:00 a.m. It was kind of weird to see so many Koreans out for this relatively small race (at least I thought, maybe it wasn't). I almost never see Koreans out running but they all look fit anyways so they probably don't even have to train. The course was on a wide dirt/gravel trail along a river (not sure which one) and it was flat and dusty. As I was running the race, several Koreans standing along the trail or passing alongside would say to me "Pighting!!" and once as I passed a water station, they called out "America! America! Good! Pighting!!" It was so nice to be encouraged by perfect strangers in another language when I felt so out of place (being the only foreigner among hundreds). I finished in halfway decent time but had an GI related incident which was not so great and which I will not detail. Afterwards, I was presented with a medal which a smiling Korean hung around my neck. As I was sitting in a chair near a table, a group of Koreans began to beckon to me and invited me to join them for some post-race fare. I thanked them and accepted, whereupon I was promptly given a plate of tofu and kimchi, along with a huge bowl of Makeli (traditional Korean rice wine). Although I was hesitant at first, due to their motions and requests to drink, I finally tried a sip. To my surprise, it tasted rather sweet and not hardly alcoholic at all. I drank about half the bowl and ate some tofu but mostly just stuck with water, which is what I prefer after running a race. I left soon after, walking almost twenty minutes before locating a bus stop. After getting home, I took a nice soak in a hot shower and crashed.

Finally, yesterday was church again and as usual, I was blessed by the warm inclusiveness of my Korean friends. After the main Korean young adult service, they had a big meeting for all the small groups in which they had small cups of fried chicken chunks and spicy egg sandwiches. Then, when that meeting was over, my small group got together and shared prayer requests and prayed together. Once our prayer time was finished, Jo Hyung Chul, Ji-Yung, and another girl whose name is difficult to transliterate, and I went out to a coffee shop called "Hands Coffee" for some more hang time. It's so cool to be around these guys because they are so willing, even eager to answer my questions about Korean language and cultural dos and don'ts. They seem to have fun teaching a Migukun chingu their language. I think that it may be in part because they feel uncomfortable and clumsy with the English language and it makes them feel better to know that I feel that way too and also I think they are glad someone wants to hang out with them and learn their language. We were going over body parts like hand (son), foot (bal), leg (da-lee), arm (pal), ear (kwee), mouth (eep), etc. and also they taught me the correct usages of some words I had heard in conversation. We had some wicked good coffee while we talked and then they dropped me off at the subway station with promises of bowling next week. I can't wait!

Well, this has been a longer post than I planned and I apologize for that. If you read this far, you are truly my friends (or perhaps a little insane or just gluttons for punishment). In any case, I thank you for your patience and time with my long-winded tales.

My prayer requests are:
1. That I would constantly be reminded of what my true calling and purpose in life is
2. That I would stay in good health. Sickness has been making its rounds among the teachers.
3. That I would use my time here wisely and profitably to serve and better equip myself for future service.
4. That my language skills would continue to grow and improve and that I would be diligent in applying myself to learning quickly and in every way I can.

Thanks so much! I love and miss you all!
Faithfully, V