L'Abri Newsletter, June 2011

June 15, 2011

Dear Praying Family,

We send you greetings with love. After a long and cold winter, spring endowed us beautiful rural scenery. Spring was short lived as June marched in with summer. Tomatoes, chilies, green leaves, and corns are growing in the fields of workers. Strawberries in the front yard are cautiously bearing their fruits. It was an amazing and interesting experience for us to plant chili seedlings and till the land. It was a marvelous sight to behold seedlings root down and grow up to show their lively face out of what seemed to be dead, dark, and damp soil. It reminds me that life’s attribute lies in the growth and makes me wonder how God’s word full of life is doing the same in us.

We had many short and long term visitors this semester. Pastor SangIn and InBum stayed with us. BoKyung, a college student from Beijing, stayed for two weeks on the issue of future path. JiEun came for the first time for 2 nights by a friend. She promised to come again to tackle with her questions and future for longer term. EunHo visited us again on the weekend of Patriot Holiday. We had many visitors including Elder JungGu Lee’s family, Pastor ChoonTae Lee and his church members, Songmi’s couple, JooSeung’s couple, Hyungsun, EunJoo’s couple, and SeungHoon and MiYeon couple. We also received people who left home to solve psychological problems and people who were concerned with their future career paths according to God’s will. We pray for both short and long term visitors to meet with God.

We also had exciting events. Deacon JiIn Jung, who offered to build a tree house, came to spot an appropriate place to build one. He suggested the building project begin in mid-September. We are so grateful to God and Deacon Jung for his faithful commitment in carrying out his promise without seeking a reward in return. We are already full of joy to imagine how visitors would enjoy and create memorable experience with the new tree house.

Participants at the Leaders’ Meeting have written papers; MoKyung wrote about “intimacy” and presented it. JoonWon is writing an English paper on “dualism in business practice”, JiMi on “spirituality and private education”, and HyunJoo on “coffee and politics”. SooYeon has researched and made comparison on “Humanists Manifesto I, II, and III”, one of the study subjects at the Meeting. She analyzed and presented how these manifestos evolved over time, destroyed true Christian humanism, and influenced the social norms today. Her presentation engraved in our hearts with Romans 12:2 “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

We are having a break from June 18th until July 1st. We are expecting many visitors from all over the world this summer. We ask you to remember us in your prayer to serve the busiest summer semester without getting tired. Narnia Room will be under repair for installing a new boiler and floor heating system during the break. We ask you to pray for the repair period, workers, and finance.

EunChol and EunHa are continuously praying and waiting for the new mission field that God has prepared for them. We are all praying for EunChol and EunHa that God will lead them to a place where He may use their precious talents willingly. Please pray for them that they don’t get exhausted in waiting.

ChunSung is busy with miscellaneous tasks including house repair and gardening. SooYeon is beautifully managing her roles as a teacher, a mother of JiHo and JiMin and a part-time worker in L’Abri. Please pray for ChunSung and SooYeon’s family.

MoKyung, thanks to your prayers, has survived without getting sick this semester. We are amazed how she serves visitors on top of various administration and finance work. Please pray for her health so that she may do many tasks with joy.

InKyung, as I am writing this letter, is out to lecture in Seoul and Incheon. Due to limited public transportations in the area, he is constantly behind wheels. We are worried as his car is quite worn out with problematic brake system. KyungOk is incessantly performing the whole L’Abri housekeeping job as a swan constantly paddles underwater to keep an elegant appearance above. She needs your prayers for her spiritual and physical health in creating a welcoming atmosphere and clean environment for visitors. Especially, please pray for InKyung and KyungOk’s daughter, HaeJin, as she needs annual tuition fee of USD 25,000 to extend her student visa in Canada.

Finally, here come my personal prayer requests. My husband and I (as Helpers) came with a hope to experience the living God in our daily lives. As new comers to this community, we are wanting in skills. Instead of serving others, we have been served by L’Abri workers and neighbors so far. Please pray for us so that we may not forget we are called by God “at 5 o’clock” by His grace and be thankful for His calling to serve others. It is a new environment for my daughter, HaEun who just returned from the US. It is our hope for HaEun to get accustomed to new surroundings and for soy bean sauce and paste that we made last winter to ferment in best condition.

Recently, a certain verse stays in my mind; “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”(Galatians 5:22-23) Out these many fruits, “faithfulness” stands out in my heart. We pray that all L’Abri workers live as faithful servants to God and people under any circumstances. We also lift up your faithfulness in prayer, donation and commitment for L’Abri to God by thanks and prayer.

With Love,

MinHyun and Bokyung Paik

Translated by MoKyung Choi