Concluding Thoughts

I've now been back in the States for five weeks. Much of my time since returning has been spent with my mother who still lives in my hometown in central Missouri.  She has been experiencing some health issues which at 81 years of age can be quite debilitating.  I've been thankful that I have been able to be near, help and encourage her. My days with her have affirmed God's direction for me at this time.

During my visits with my mother, I've also have been afforded a considerable amount of quite time.  So among other studies, I've been reading Eric Metaxas' new biography on Bonhoffer.  It gives some wonderful insights into the daily life and struggles Bonhoeffer encountered, especially in the mid to late 1930's, as he sought to learn and do what he believed to be God's will for his life.  Bonhoeffer's view of the Scripture comes through quite vividly as he writes to his family and friends regarding his decisions.

Bonhoeffer believed that God desired to and did speak very personally to his servants through his Word.  He read the Scriptures daily with an anticipation of God's revelation to him -- not, however, of some new or extra-biblical idea, but of God's will for him.  When pondering whether to stay in America in the summer of 1939 as Germany under Hitler was on the verge of war, Bonhoeffer read Isaiah 28:16, "The one who believes does no flee" and became convinced that to remain in America was "to flee" from his responsibility before God in Germany. 

He decided to leave the safety and security of America and return as soon as possible to his homeland. A few days later he read 2 Timothy 4 - "Do thy diligence to come before winter" and reflected in his personal journal upon this verse in these words:  "Come before winter" -- it is not a misuse of Scripture if I take that to be said to me.  If God gives me grace to do it." (Emphasis in the original) (p. 340 in Metaxas). 

As I think about the way Bonhoeffer lived his life, I am becoming more and more convinced these days that to live a life truly submitted to God's Word, I too must look daily to God in faith with an expectation for his guidance and direction through the revelation of his Word.  This will not come by the effort of analyzing the Word with human reason, but through the work of the Holy Spirit in a heart and mind that desires to do God's will.

I believe this is one of the most important lessons that I have been learning during the past year, most of which I have lived abroad at Handong.  I am open to return and serve others there in the future as God directs.  For now, though, I'll remain here seeking to study, practice and teach God's Word and way by serving others, my mother and family chief among them.  I'm also thinking of starting a new blog where I'll continue to post some of my persistent ponderings along the way.

Last Days

I find myself now living in the last days of my sojourn here at Handong.  When you know the date of your departure, the last days seem to lengthen. I finished the reading and marking of my last set of student exam papers and have now submitted my student's grades for the semester.  I'm nearly packed, but I still find myself wondering whether I'll forget something or whether I'm trying to take too much back to the States.

I have distributed out to others nearly two-thirds of the books I had shipped over last August.  I invited my students and colleagues to stop by my office over the past two weeks and select two or three books that they had an interest in reading.  Some students asked me to write a personal inscription in the book they chose.  Others (colleagues on whom I had placed no limit) just took arm-loads. The few that remained were donated to Handong's library.

During these last days, I have also enjoyed the fellowship of both students and colleagues alike who have invited me out to a dinner.  One group of students (several from my Law & Advocacy study group/debate team) treated me to a meal at Hyoam Restaurant last week.  In the course of our dinner conversation, one student asked if he might be permitted to pose a personal question.

Without hesitation, I encouraged him to fire away.  He asked me a question that is often put to students at Handong by their professors.  The answer that is expected, here at Handong, usually involves the description of a long-term plan for addressing some pressing global need that the student believes he has been called to fulfill as his contribution to changing the world.

His question:  What is your vision?  The answer I gave, though, did not fit the expected mold.  I did not have a grand vision of establishing 300 universities around the developing world (this, however, is an example of the scale of vision that students have come to expect from their professors).  Instead, I expressed my desire to be willing to do God's will whatever that might be in the coming days I am given upon this earth.

I admitted that I really did not know, with any degree of confidence, what was lying ahead of me.  I believed that for now, at least, I am to return to my home in the States and continue to fulfill the callings that God has upon my life as a teacher, husband, son, father, grandfather, and student.  I trust that God will lead and provide me with the grace and strength to do what he wills for each day.

I expressed my aspiration in the words that the Apostle Paul used to describe the life of King David.  I said that I will have fulfilled my vision if it can be said by others of me at the end of my life that I "served the purpose of God in my own generation." (Acts 13:36). 

As I now come closer to the last of my days here in Korea (for the time being, at least), I am realizing in a deeper way, I trust, the importance of keeping a willingness to do his will as my singular vision.

Let Us Not Love in Words or Talk, but . . . .

“Let us love with deeds and in truth,” so said the Apostle John when writing in the first century to followers of Jesus.  (1 John 3:18)  His words speak to the heart of a problem that has recently come into sharper focus for me here. That problem is the human intendancy to "talk a lot" about how we love others but actually to do very little true acts of love. I realize that this is a problem in my own life, and it appears to be a present deficiency in large number of professing followers of Christ today. 

The idea that we can love merely in words is indeed a persistent problem. It came into clearer view for me a few weeks ago when a visitor to our global campus here in Korea made a presentation to students and faculty on the international crimes of human trafficking. Our visitor's stated purpose for her presentation was "to raise awareness" about this tragic reality in our world. She presented an extremely informative lecture with heart-rending photographs of victims of sexual slavery and forced labor. It was a very moving presentation. 

During the Q & A session, one very perceptive student asked our visitor what she had done to help free a victim of trafficking. The presenter's reply was quite telling. She acknowledged that there were organizations on the front lines that are engaged in direct efforts to free victims and prosecute the perpetrators of these human rights violations, but that was not something she did.

Instead, she believed her role was to raise awareness about the problem because "she was gifted at talking and making presentations." She also recounted a story about a group of high school students to whom she had given a similar presentation. Following the presentation, the students raised a significant amount of money to send to one of the organizations that is working against human trafficking. 

There is no doubt that "raising awareness" as well as "raising funding" are important dimensions in the success of any endeavor to address pressing human needs in the world. But the Handong student who first raised the question of what a person can "do" was not satisfied with the presenter's response. She knew that there must be something more.

Is there a willingness on my part to consider whether "awareness" of a need should lead us to ask the more important question: "What can I do?" And am I willing to consider whether the answer to the question of "doing" is not resolved by merely giving money or joining in the effort to "raise awareness" even further?

Are we willing to allow for the possibility . . . opening ourselves to a readiness . . . to actually take action by going and being with those whom we are so ready to talk about? Will we consider and seek God's grace to obey the command to "bear the burdens" of others?

Will we begin to move beyond merely "loving" with our words and by talking about the needs of others? Will we begin to love others with deeds that cost us more than a few dollars contributed to a cause? Will we begin to love in truth by going to, being with and bearing the burdens of others?

Happy Birthday, Thea!

Today is my older daughter Thea's birthday.  (I'll let her tell you which one it is). She's the wife of Juan Luis, and mother of Taya Maria, Maya Theresa and Aydan Juan.  She's a teacher at both Rockwood Summit High School and Missouri Baptist University.  She's also an event coordinator for MBU's annual commencement exercises as well as weddings and other special events for many.

Now, in addition to everything else, she's working on her second Master's degree -- this one at the University of Missouri - St.Louis in English. By God's good grace, she has accomplished much already in her life and will continue to have a positive impact upon the lives of her family, friends and her students. 

I am very proud of you, Thea!  Happy Birthday! Enjoy the special gift I sent along to you last week -- the safe return of your children's grand mother!  (Save a piece of that birthday pie for me.)

Hahoe Village -- The Williamsburg of Korea

One of our last opportunities to experience the wonder and beauty of Korean culture was provided to Sandy and me when my Teaching Assistant, Mr. Mok, and his girl friend Narang, treated us, a few weeks back, to a day of touring in Andong -- one of the most traditional cities in Korea.  The high-light of the trip was the our visit to Hahoe Folk Village.  Hahoe is one of the most well-preserved traditional villages in the entire country. 

The decendants of one family -- the Ryu's -- have lived in this village for over 600 years.  Although they have added some modern updates -- electicity and plumbing, as well as automobiles and tractors -- the homes and other structures within the village are authentic.  As we walked toward the village on a path through the surrounding wooded hills, I realized that we were about to enter the "Colonial Williamsburg" of Korea.

Just inside the primary entrance to the village, we came upon this example of a traditional home.  This is actually just the front gate entrance to the family's compound.  It consists of retored and updated structures owned by the CEO of a large Korean corporation.  Our guide told that the reconstruction costs were in excess of $5 million US.

Here's Sandy and our guide, Young Ju, walking down a typical street in Hahoe.

Each of the established (wealthy) family homes is actually a compound of several buildings enclosed by a stone wall. Within the walls there will be a main dwelling for the women of the family, another dwelling for the men, dwelling for the servants usually built onto the interior side of the surrounding wall.  Most of the family compounds will also have a Guest House like the one pictured above.

Within the walls of the next family compound, this calligrapher had set up a tent and would gladly write a word of phase of your choosing.  I asked him to write the name that my department chair, Profressor Chi, had given me:  高 德

Situated at the very center of Hahoe Village is this 600-year old zelkova tree which the villagers call "Samsindang".  The name means "shrine for three gods."  According to traditional animistic beliefs, the tree is worshipped as a spirit. On the 15th of every January (by the lunar calendar), the villagers perform a ritual at the tree to pray for the peace of the village.

When I was walking back along one of the paths, this little sparrow caught my attention.  It reminded me that no matter where you go in the world, you always find sparrows.  And when I remember what Jesus taught.  Not one sparrow falls to ground without the Father's knowledge. And as God cares for the sparrows, you can be assured He cares for you.  You are worth more than many sparrows. 

Yangjindang, one of the oldest houses in Hahoe Village, belongs to the head of the Ryu clan in the P'ungsan area. It is one of the Korean national treasures. Ryu, Seong-ryong (1542-1607), a famous court minister who helped protect Korea from the Japanese invasion of 1592, lived here.

This is a picture of the interior of the large meeting room within Yangjindang.  I made the grevious mistake, though, of stepping-up on the wooden deck structure that surrounds the outside of the building.  The sign warning against stepping-up was written in Korean only.  I should, however, have asked our guide before stepping-up and taking these pictures.  My offense resulted in one of the other Korean visitors (who had observed my disrespectful conduct) giving me a sound chewing-out as I was later told by our guide.

Just a few kilometers down the Nakdong River is located Dosan Confucian Academy, one of the oldest in Korea.  At the top of these stairs is the entry gate to the shrine within the academy's grounds that was built to house the memorial tablet of Yi Hwang (이황). Yi is one of Korea’s most celebrated philosophers.

At the end of this very full and inspiring day, our guide, Young Ju Choi, asked another visitor to snap this photo.  We thoroughly enjoyed our visit to the "Williamsburg" of Korea.

Leav'n (and Safely Arriving) on a Jet Plane

Yesterday was Sandy's last day in Korea.  Around 9:30am we departed with our friend Abraham Lee on the first leg of Sandy's journey back to St. Louis.  Abraham drove us down from Handong's campus to Busan's (about 125 km south) Gimhae Airport.  I was the worried one.  The trip down took a little longer than I had expected due to a few "wrong turns."  Abraham, though, assured me all along the way, "No worries.  We have plenty of time to get there."  And, we did.

We arrived well before Sandy's flight was scheduled to depart.  We checked-in her luggage and then she proceeded on through the security check to her departure gate.  Gimhae in a new airport, but it only has 6 gates for departure in its international terminal. No risk of getting lost there, but Sandy was on her way to Narita (Tokyo) which is one of the largest airports in Asia.  We had hoped our friends, the Han's, were going be able to meet her at the arrival gate since they would be traveling together on the same flight form Narita to Chicago. 

That hope, though, was not to be realized.  While still awaiting Sandy's departure from Busan's Gimhae, Abraham encouraged me to check my email to see if Dr. Han had sent me any information about the arrival gate for Sandy's flight into Narita.  When I checked, I found an email from him, but it contained information that I did not give me any reason to reduce my worries. 

In fact, I got even more concerned when I read that John would not be able to go down to Sandy's arrival gate -- Gate 81 at Narita.  Rather, he informed me that Sandy would need to find her way through the international terminal's connection security and then further make her way down to meet the Han's at Gate 73 for their departure.  I was able to page Sandy and get a message with that information to her before she departed on the flight from Busan to Narita.

That was my last opportunity to speak with her in Korea.  So, with "I love you, and I'll talk to you soon," we concluded the call, and Sandy boarded her departing flight.  Abraham and I stayed at Gimhae until the status board showed that American Airlines Flight 5848 had in fact departed.  I was hoping that Dr. Han might be able to send me a quick email from Narita when he and his wife met-up with Sandy, but that email did not come.  I, however, took "no news" (as my mother always taught me) to be "good news."

And it was.  Sandy moved smoothly through Narita, met-up with the Han's and departed on the trans-continental flight to Chicago.  She was seated beside an elderly Chinese woman who was on her way to Chicago, too, to visit her daughter.  Sandy was able to help her with her immigration and customs forms and visit with her -- even though she spoke very little English -- during the flight.

About 14 hours later, I was able to get a call through to Sandy's mobile while she was waiting in Chicago's O'Hare Airport for the connecting flight down to St. Louis.  Another 4 hours later, and I called my daughter's mobile phone and confirmed that Sandy had arrived safe and sound back in St. Louis.  She was enjoying the celebration of her arrival with Thea, Taya, Maya and Aydan!  My load of worries was finally lifted as I heard all their voices over the phone!

Now, I have another 25 days to complete this semester, prepare for my own departure from Korea and travel back to the States.

Two Weddings and a Talent Show

Earlier this month, Sandy and I were invited to attend the weddings of two teachers from the KEBS Sunday School class that we help to teach at The Joyful Church in Pohang.  Pictured above is our friend Samuel and his new bride.  Their parents stand together on each side of them as they are presented to their 500+ guests as husband and wife for the first time.  Korean weddings are very elaborate affairs.  Both of the weddings we attended (one on Saturday and the other on Sunday afternoon) were held in the Grand Ballroom of the Philos Hotel -- the biggest hotel in Pohang.

In between these two formal events, we were invited to serve as judges that Saturday night for the University's International Student Union "Open-Mic" talent show.  Our trainer, Aleksey, was among the many contestants.  As a graduating senior this semester, he sang a parting song that brought tears to many of the young ladies' eyes.  I was happy when the other five judges agreed with me that Aleksey was clearly one of the top performers of the night.  He won second place!  I was called upon to announce the winners and hand-out their prizes.

We enjoyed a full weekend of celebration and quite a bit of fun!  There was a striking similarity, though, between the weddings and the talent show.  All three were very much staged "productions."  At both weddings, special songs were sung by friends of the bride and groom.  The second wedding even featured a singer who is well-known in Korean popular culture.  The weddings themselves were performed in the midst of banquet tables at which many of the guests had already begun to eat and drink even as the ceremony was occurring. 

The weddings were, however, distinctly marked by the honor given to the parents of the bride and groom in Korean culture.  At the point in the wedding ceremony when American bride's and groom's would give roses to their mothers, the newly wed Korean couple is instructed by the presiding minister to turn first to the parents of the groom and bow.  The bride bows from the waist so that her upper body is at nearly a 90 degree angle to her lower body.  The groom, however, goes down on his knees and then bows with his arms extended out in front of him along the floor and with his face all the way down to the ground.

After bowing to the parents of the groom, the couple comes across to the parents of the bride and the same bowing ritual is performed in their honor.  The value and respect such actions showed to the parents of the married couple was definitely the hallmark of the ceremonies and what -- in the midst of a fun and entertaining weekend -- we will remember most from these two weddings and a talent show.