We are the church together!!

        Victor's father made the building, 

And Together Tuesday Children made this church with our four church families' faces

Dear children and God’s beloved children,

I cannot believe that this is our last service together in this place. I cannot even express how deeply sad I am. This is the first time in my entire life that I have felt a sadness quite like this. I did not cry this much even when I left South Korea 18 years ago. However, my heart is overflowing with joy to see all of my beloved brothers and sisters gathered here in one place in Jesus’ name. I cannot put into words how blessed, loved, and grateful I feel. For my final children’s message, I want to share one precious thing that I have learned from our 12 years of ministry here.

Jesus said, “For where two or three are gathered together in my name, I am there among them” (Matthew 18:20). Usually, we use this verse during church gatherings to ask for God’s presence while we are all smiling and getting along beautifully. However, in its original context, those "two or three people" refer to individuals experiencing deep tension—people who desperately need reconciliation, forgiveness, and true love. Both before and after this verse, Jesus shares many parables about how difficult it can be for completely different people to get along and become one.

Exactly 18 years ago today, Victor and I got married. Our journey has been both sweet and bitter. Two completely different human beings fell in love, and at times, the process of becoming one was painful. There was no way to find harmony without inviting God directly into our relationship. Because God is love. Love requires both a subject and an object; we cannot truly experience love without someone else. It is inherently relational. Even though the Almighty God needed nothing, He created human beings simply because He desired someone to love. God Himself exists as a relational community of three persons in one: God the Father, God the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Together, they show us perfectly how to love and how to be loved.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). As a parent, I believe the most painful thing imaginable is to witness the death of your own child. Yet, God chose to endure that immense pain out of His deep love for us. Jesus sacrificed Himself out of love for His Father and for us, and today, the Holy Spirit sustains this beautiful bond of love forever. Who can fully comprehend this mystery of love? I still do not know it completely, but through you, I have come to understand it a little bit more.

One hundred and forty years ago, American missionaries who knew this divine love traveled to South Korea to share it. Just as Jesus did, they sacrificed their entire lives. They faced the devastating deaths of their own children and spouses, enduring profound suffering, loneliness, and humiliation. Some Koreans even mocked them, calling them "yellow-haired ghosts." Yet, through it all, they never stopped loving the Korean people. Today, we are all living fruits of their incredible sacrifice. It is because of their love that Victor and I, along with Lydia and Abe, were able to come here 12 years ago. It is because of their example that Victor and I wanted to have three more babies, wishing to follow closely in those faithful footsteps. There were certainly seasons in our own wilderness where we could not see the way forward—times when we faced our own share of suffering, loneliness, and humiliation. But through it all, God used every single one of you to teach us how to love and how to be loved. We love you so very much, but the love you have poured into us is even greater. And yet, Jesus’ love is the greatest of all.

I may not remember every single word you have said to me over the years, but I will always remember how deeply you loved us. You may not remember everything we said from the pulpit, but I pray you will always feel how much we loved you. We may not fully understand every hidden corner of this divine mystery, but we all know with absolute certainty how much Jesus loves us.

Each of us holds a single puzzle piece of this amazing love. When we gather together in Jesus’ name, we get to see a bigger, more beautiful picture of Him, even when we are very different from one another. Just look around at each other today: Houlton, Hodgdon, Mars Hill, and Patten. Because you love God, you love us, whom God loves. And because you love our family, you love each other’s churches, which we love so deeply. It is because of this beautiful, interconnected love that we gather in Jesus' name to be the Church.

The Church is not a physical building. I am the church, you are the church, and we together are the church. Our children helped create the physical display of this church today. Victor’s father built the framework, and then the children decorated it with the faces of all four of our church families. And right there in the front is our new pastor’s family! If the Han family was called to be like Moses in this wilderness, you are now ready to cross over into Canaan with the Taylor family. Even though we are physically separating, if we continue to love the people whom God loves, Jesus will always be there—and the Han family will always be there with you in spirit. Thank you for teaching us how to love and how to be loved.

Let us pray.

“Our Provider, Redeemer, and Sustainer, thank you for creating us for relationship, and for allowing us to love others with your very own love. This sacred bond shared between our four churches and the Han family is a beautiful piece of your mystery, and it is immeasurable. Help us to keep loving one another faithfully and to truly be your Church in your holy name. Amen.”