Legacy of Faithfulness
Many of us as 1.5 or 2nd generation SDA Korean-Americans have or will experience the sad but inevitable reality of aging parents. Our parents who were once so vibrant with life and were our heroes and guardians are now experiencing what Solomon describes as “the day when the keepers of the house shall tremble, and the strong men shall bow themselves, and the grinders cease because they are few, and those that look out of the windows be darkened.” (Ecclesiastes 12:3) This is the sure path of our human mortality and as we see a generation of faithful patriarchs and matriarchs passing the torch to a new generation, it makes us reflect on some of the values and character of their lives that we want to emulate.
They were courageous and hard working, possessing the grit that is required for first generation immigrants to survive in a new and unfamiliar land. They were willing to sacrifice of their comfort and pleasure to provide from their frugal life, a better life for their children. They had determination and resolve to “do with all their might whatsoever their hand found to do.” (Ecclesiastes 9:10)
The strength of their might was in their wholehearted dependence on God. Without the comfortable support from parents or a majority culture, they relied on their Heavenly Father to provide for their needs and through their firsthand experiences of the miracles of “manna” in their lives, they grew in deep devotion to God. Their consistent devotional and prayer life became a necessity and joy in their lives and many of us as children were witnesses to their daily fervent communion with God.
Growing out of their faithful personal relationship with God was their loyalty to the body of Christ, the church. Friday night, Sabbath morning, Sabbath afternoon, and early Sunday mornings would find them worshiping together at church with their church family. Their church life was given a priority as they desired to seek first the Kingdom of God. They did not “forsake the assembling of themselves together but exhorted one another to love and to good works.” (Hebrews 10:24-25) They faithfully sang together, studied their Sabbath School lessons together, recited their memory verses quarterly and yearly, loved to hear the Word of God, and did not neglect home visitations. We, as their children, received a rich heritage of Sabbath blessings and connections to church family and friends all over the world.
They were persistent in their pursuit of providing education for their children and motivated us to aim high and study hard. Not only academically but spiritually, they did their utmost to “train up a child in the way he should go, that when he is old, he would not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) Morning and evening worships were as habitual as meals and they were “diligent to teach spiritual truths to their children when they sat in their home, walked by the way, when they laid down and when they rose up.” (Deuteronomy 6:7) Through their faithful support and encouragement, many of us now enjoy a more comfortable life than they had with better jobs, bigger homes and beautiful churches that their sacrificial pledges have paid off.
These are some of the legacies for which I am so grateful and as I think of the blessings we enjoy from their years of faithful living, I think of the counsels of
“For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and depths that spring out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat, and barley, and vines, and fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of oil olive, and honey; a land wherein thou shalt eat bread without scarceness, thou shalt not lack any thing in it; a land whose stones are iron, and out of whose hills thou mayest dig brass. When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the Lord thy God for the good land which he hath given thee. Beware that thou forget not the Lord thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day: lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein; and when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied; then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the Lord thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage; who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint; who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end; and thou say in thine heart, my power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth. But thou shalt remember the Lord thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.” Deuteronomy 8:7-18
As we experience the inevitable cycles of life, I pray that the rock-soiid foundation they built upon may be the same foundation that we continue to build on as we depend wholeheartedly on our Heavenly Father.
Cathy Chung lives in Dalton, GA and is a member of Collegedale Korean SDA Church. She is married to Billy Chung and has 4 children. Her parents, Pastor & Mrs, Hyeongchong Pak live in Ooltewah, TN and attend church at Collegedale. Her parents-in-law are Pastor & Mrs. Suk Woo Chung who live in Anaheim, CA and attend Garden Grove Korean SDA Church.