Brother, Do You Have a Father?

When I was receiving spiritual training under Missionary Dick York, we were not allowed to ask for anything we needed from people, but only from God. During that time, our country was in poverty and starvation. Missionary York would not have gone through such hardships if he had sent at least a single letter to America, but he only relied on God as he starved and shivered in his cold room. We, too, often starved when the food ran out, and many days, we were gathered around drinking hot water for breakfast because the food had depleted. The missionary called us for one on one counseling. It was my turn.

“Did you eat breakfast?”

“No, I starved.”

“Why did you starve?

“I starved because there is no food.”

How could it be my fault for starving when there is no food?

“Why is there no food?”

I couldn’t understand why he was asking these questions, when he knew that it was because we had no money to buy food. So, I was sitting still without an answer, when he asked again,

“Brother Ock Soo Park, do you have a father?”

Since I had both a biological father and Father God, I answered, “Yes, I do.”

“If you ask your father for food, does he provide it to you, or not?”

“Sure, the Bible says whatever you shall seek, you shall receive, but that is not always true, is it?” I thought to myself.

Although I professed to believe in God, the words were true to a certain point, and it did not have much to do with my life. The counseling I had on that day was unforgettable.

Whenever I preached the Bible that the Lord washed all our sins, I could see most people continued to have sin in their hearts because the truth had not reached their hearts.

Regardless of how well we know the Bible, if our sins are not washed, then that knowledge becomes a theory and not faith. The Bible is not a theory, but it is the power of the living God. Do I truly believe in God, who is working in my life? Is it truly the powerful Word that is manifested in my life? We can only use humanistic methods by seeking help from people if we do not believe God will aid us. From that moment, I learned how to live spiritual life and work for the Gospel by relying on God alone.