Strength from the Living Vine
To view the full interview, go here.
I had the privilege of speaking to a group of young adults regarding their experiences and thoughts about the pandemic. My interview proved that knowing God has made the experience of going through the pandemic as one of blessing rather than a curse for these young people.
The following people have been interviewed: Bonnie Im, a physical therapist from Washington Spencerville Church, Brian Park, a packaging engineer at Unilever who attends Westchester Seventh-day Adventist Church (WKSDA), Matthew Perez (also from WKSDA), who plays piano and organ for a Baptist Church, and Robin and Randall Atwell who are freelancers who attend the Kliptown SDA Church in South Africa. Robin was a Bible worker for WKSDA a few years ago.
When asked about the purported difficulty in churches making connection with many of their peers during this pandemic, these were their observations. Brian Park, speaking from his own experience, related how many professionals were fatigued from being on the computer for so many hours in the day. Because of the pandemic, many young professionals had to take on extra hours to make up for people that had been laid off. At the end of the day, Brian feels like he wants to take a break from the computer and wants to spend time with non-internet activities. Even connecting with God is something that he would rather do without the computer.
For Bonnie, her church services are streamed live so there is very little interaction. She found that she craved social interaction that came with going to church. And she observed that there’s little accountability in streamed services, so when people start skipping services that it’s easy to continue doing so.
Randall observed that this lockdown period was a catalyst for many young people, and that the pandemic just emphasized people’s priorities. Those who already had a penchant for watching Netflix and gaming got more immersed in those entertainments while those like Daniel and his three friends in the time of exile grew stronger in faith.
I questioned whether young adults have more anxiety and fear for their future because of the pandemic. Bonnie said that some people in FAYA (Fellowship of Adventist Young Adults) have shared that they are stressed over their jobs and that it is difficult to move jobs because of the pandemic. Brian said that depression is a growing issue for many of his peers and that Unilever has enacted peer advocacy groups or “mental health champions” to combat depression.
For others though, these times have also made opportunities for people to be more open to the gospel. Robin shared that although people have great anxiety over their livelihoods and careers, that for the faithful who reach out to God, miraculous manifestations have been made. Matthew observed that this period makes some people realize that Jesus is coming soon and has made them put things into the correct perspective. Brian joked that even though people are not using as much deodorant (a product that his company makes), his job has never been better, that he even got promoted during this time. More importantly, he sees that there are many opportunities to minister to fellow employees during this stressful time.
It is no surprise that each of the young adults that I interviewed were involved with some sort of ministry. Robin and Randall are ministering to a family by giving Bible studies to them. They were very excited to report that some of the children of that family wanted to be baptized.
Matthew Perez was instrumental in starting the food pantry ministry at WKSDA during the pandemic and reported that through the food pantry, he and fellow church members were able to make a lot of connections with the local community. He praises the Lord for being able to feed the community with physical and spiritual food. He shared a story about how one neighbor was really touched that they came by to see her. She felt encouraged and affirmed by the fact that they visited her after sharing the food the previous day and professed a desire to visit the church where they have such caring members.
He also started another personal ministry called Second Advent Ministry https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOrA5EeN6qg5I77g_V1v-lg , a Youtube channel where a daily devotional of Maranatha, an Ellen White devotional, is read. Matthew reads the selection in English and prays and his wife, Katelyn, does the same in Korean.
Brian Park started a ministry at his own workplace at Unilever by having Bible studies with his coworkers. It started about a year and half ago and Brian reports that it’s been a real blessing to him even though it is challenging to keep it going when he has such a busy work schedule. Brian shared that when he was discouraged that the number of participants wasn’t growing, one participant took him aside and told him that he shouldn’t worry about the numbers because the Bible study made a difference in his life. Brian was really touched by this participant’s statement and he took it as an encouragement from God.
The ministry that Bonnie is working on is called FAYA. It started four years ago as the brainchild of Daniel (Gonzoine) Kim. He was inspired by the camaraderie that was built among the young adults during ECKCM, and wanted to continue the fellowship during the year. Even though he has passed away, his dream is carried on by Bonnie and others. Throughout the year they have been having weekly Bible studies, online game nights, book clubs, even exercise clubs! Bonnie is excited that they will be having a virtual FAYA conference in March, and Brian Park will be giving a testimony at the conference.
When asked about what the silver linings of the pandemic were, Robin replied that one of the biggest blessings was to be able to have her wedding last year. They were saving up money for a small wedding but ended up having a much bigger, grander wedding and even got back all the money they put into the wedding in gifts. God has really blessed their new marriage by allowing them to live in a house with a big yard where they could raise dogs, and be in nature.
Brian Park’s work from home mandate became a big blessing in his life during the pandemic when he moved into the church parsonage. He got to bond with Christian Chung, a Bible worker for WKSDA at the time, spending much time in fellowship and communion. Even when Christian moved out, the parsonage was filled with other young people who loved the Lord. So he feels really blessed to be living in a warm, christian community during this time. Also, Brian feels blessed to have more time to spend with God as he doesn’t need to get ready and drive to work.
Matthew Perez can count many silver linings during the pandemic. Although he was not able to continue with giving piano lessons, he was able to get a new job giving online English lessons to children in China. His wife also got some more part time jobs and they were even able to pay off their student debts. It was much earlier than they had thought and they really praise God for giving them financial freedom from debt. He also had the additional blessing of reconnecting with his brother through biweekly telephone calls. And even though he doesn't teach the early morning English lessons to Chinese children anymore, he has gotten in the habit of waking up early and spends that time in sweet devotion with God.
Family togetherness is the silver lining for Bonnie Im. Pre-covid, Sabbaths used to be very busy with the whole family doing different things in church. But now, without in-person services, the pace is much more relaxed, where they can enjoy family meals cooked by Mrs. Im. This setting allowed Bonnie and her parents to bond more with her brother who was not attending church.
The last question I asked was if they have learned anything new about themselves, God or humanity through these times. Randall thought that it has been a training ground for the end time events. Bonnie was surprised how people quickly adapted to the “new normal” of wearing masks and social distancing. She was also surprised at how God has helped her to be stretched and challenged during these times. Brian remarked that at the beginning of the pandemic we saw the ugliness of humanity with the hoarding of supplies but also saw the generosity of humanity also. His company initiated a lot of charitable giving because of the Covid-19 crisis. Matthew saw the ugliness in himself as he spent a lot of time in isolation, that he was selfish and impatient. He saw God’s goodness in how He was so kind and forgiving to him. Matthew also saw how quickly people settled into accepting the situation from crisis mode, that it was a sign of how people will grow insensitive to the Three Angels’ messages, that our time is short to wake up our friends and neighbors to Christ's second coming.
Brian remarked that in the Bible it says, “As your days, so shall your strength be.” Deuteronomy 33:25. These young adults have shown that whether we cower in fear for the future, or live a life of freedom from anxiety depends on your relationship with God. May each day draw us closer to God no matter what circumstance we find ourselves, that our strength may come from the Living Vine.