Life is a blessing and everyday life is a miracle.

Resist all forces that make life a curse and everyday life a grave.

And wake up to the miracles and mysteries unfolding before you every day.
I pray that you will receive this grace and blessing.

Because that is the true power that overcomes, transcends, and transforms the painful problems of our time.


How should we view the challenges of life—depression, suicide, loss, grief, and suffering—that pervade Korean society today, often described as a "rage society" or a "hyper-personalized society"? The author argues, "Life is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be embraced." He compiles ten essays on this topic, offering a message of comfort, hope, and courage to modern people.
It not only tells us about the source of true self-esteem and how to live with wounded people in a broken world, but also preaches about a life that looks toward the kingdom of God.
In particular, the author's autobiographical stories, rather than didactic teachings, are included throughout the book, which is enough to evoke empathy.

There is no one who does not get sick.
So first of all, you need to be honest about your own wounds.
When you need to be weak, be weak; when you need to break, break; when you need to cry, cry.
We must not hesitate to lay our weaknesses before God and our brothers and sisters in the faith.
When you do that, you will understand what the Apostle Paul meant when he said, “If I must boast, I will boast about my weaknesses” (2 Corinthians 11:30).
At such times, we can accept the inevitable wounds we face as we journey through life and also receive healing from them.
At that time, rather than transferring my wounds to others, I can stop the chain of wounds from connecting with me.
And it can accommodate more people.
---From "Chapter 1 Everyone Hurts"

A life exists only in relationship with other lives.
Life exists only in relationships where we receive help from other life and help other life.
The principle of life is that everyone is happy because we exist for each other.
This principle of life is most evident among those who love.
Love heals the diseases that arise from self-centeredness.
The heart that was only directed towards oneself turns towards the person one loves.
Find fulfillment and joy in sacrificing for your loved ones.
…Therefore, we must always keep these two thoughts in mind and live our lives.
One is 'how many people do I benefit from in my life', and the other is 'how many people do I need?'
If you remember the former fact, you will always live with a grateful heart, and if you remember the latter fact, you will feel a sense of responsibility.
The 'grace' I receive from others and the 'responsibility' I have for others are enough reasons for me to live.
---From "Chapter 2 Reasons to Live"

Remember.
You are 'God's beloved'.
You are in His eternal love, even though you are not worthy of it at all.
No matter how you see yourself or how others perceive you, remember that you are unconditionally loved by God.
Also remember:
The person next to you is also ‘one loved by God.’
The person who hurt you, the person you hurt, and even the person who is sometimes like an enemy are all 'beloved by God.'

---From "Chapter 3: Love is the Way"

We are becoming more and more unapologetic.
I think it's a good thing to do something wrong and not apologize, or to shift the blame onto the other person with sophistry.
I think that looking back on one's mistakes and admitting them is evidence of weakness.
I don't think you can win and succeed in this world if you're that weak.
I think that constantly defending yourself and attacking others is the way to be strong and successful.
That's why wounds are becoming more common and deeper, and they are getting deeper without being healed.

---From "Chapter 4: Things Harder Than Forgiveness"

To believe is to face the reality of a tilted playing field on the one hand, and to look forward to a new heaven and a new earth where we will participate in an eternal dance on a level playing field on the other.
Believers are called to strive to live righteously on the tilted playing field on which they now stand until the new heavens and new earth come.
We should strive to repair tilted playing fields as best we can, and if that is not possible, we should comfort and help those who are victims and fall behind because of the tilted playing field.
---From "Chapter 5, On the Tilted Playground"

Some chaebols live their lives wasting their lives as if the world were theirs with the wealth they inherited from their parents, some politicians act arrogantly as if the power entrusted to them is theirs, some celebrities hide their hellish private lives and put on a glamorous front whenever they appear in public…
If you don't see the spiritual side, you may become envious of these people and even become angry.
But if you know the Kingdom of God, you can see the truth behind their reality.
---From "Chapter 6: Truth Beyond Reality"

The reason we feel unhappy is not because we lack something.
God has already created everything we need and has entrusted everything to us.
The reason we gather together to worship is to remember, proclaim, and confirm this truth.
When we do so, we are freed from the consciousness of lack and restored to the consciousness of fulfillment.
…As a member of the older generation who brought our society to this point, I bow my head deeply to those struggling in such situations.
… Finding rest and contentment in God does not mean ignoring these social realities.
Rather, it is because the social reality is so distorted that we must seek God even more.
Because in order to gain the strength to endure in this distorted world, to gain the perspective to see it correctly, and to find the direction to move forward, we must rediscover ourselves in God.

---From “Chapter 7 God is Sufficient”

Faith is not an effort to eliminate suffering.
Jesus never promised that.
…believing does not mean that we should seek only respect, praise, and reward, free from insults, persecution, and condemnation.
Even for believers, there are sufferings that everyone must endure, and going one step further, there are sufferings that are brought upon themselves because of their faith.
As you can see, faith leads to more suffering.
If you do not know this fact in advance and keep it in your heart, you may stumble greatly on the path of faith, and sometimes even leave the path of faith midway.
… Therefore, before the difficult days of life come, let us strengthen our faith.
So that when we face unavoidable suffering, we can easily overcome it with the power of the grace we have already received from God, and, going one step further, so that we can participate in the remaining sufferings of Christ for the sake of the kingdom of God, for lost souls, and for the church.
Then we can live a life of constant joy, and we will become instruments through which others, seeing us, encounter the presence of God.
---From "Chapter 8 Reasons for Boasting Weakness"

Faith is not an effort to eliminate suffering.
Jesus never promised that.
…believing does not mean that we should seek only respect, praise, and reward, free from insults, persecution, and condemnation.
Even for believers, there are sufferings that everyone must endure, and going one step further, there are sufferings that are brought upon themselves because of their faith.
As you can see, faith leads to more suffering.
If you do not know this fact in advance and keep it in your heart, you may stumble greatly on the path of faith, and sometimes even leave the path of faith midway.
… Therefore, before the difficult days of life come, let us strengthen our faith.
So that when we face unavoidable suffering, we can easily overcome it with the power of the grace we have already received from God, and, going one step further, so that we can participate in the remaining sufferings of Christ for the sake of the kingdom of God, for lost souls, and for the church.
Then we can live a life of constant joy, and we will become instruments through which others, seeing us, encounter the presence of God.

Life is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be embraced.
No one who has ever thought of life as a 'problem to be solved' has ever found the answer to that problem.
We face death with countless unanswered questions.
On the other hand, people who live their lives thinking that it is a 'mystery that must be embraced' live with a smile on their face even when things seem absurd and unfair at times.
As life is, so is death.
…we can only see this world.
We don't know what lies beyond the tunnel of death.
So death appears to be a problem, a misfortune, and a despair.
But God sees a world we cannot see.
You know that death is not the end.
It is the birth of a new world.
That is why he cherishes death.
---From Chapter 9, “Death is Precious”

God gave humans “a heart that longs for eternity” or “a sense of thinking about the past and the future.”
That is why there is religiosity in every human being.
Because of this, all people come to seek God and turn toward God.
But we cannot know in advance everything God does.
The difference between man and God is so great that we dare not know it.
If it's true that a young child doesn't fully understand his father's thoughts, how much greater must be the gap between God and humanity? Therefore, rather than trying to figure out what the future holds, we should live our lives entrusting ourselves to the hands of God, who rules the future and rules all things in their proper time.
As long as we are in Him, everything that happens to us is neither too early nor too late, but in its own time and becomes the most beautiful thing.
For those who abide in Him, all times are good, and all things are good.

---From "Chapter 10: Anytime is Good!"