Family story:

“Forgiving is powerful”

August 9, 2009, Sunday.

In this Sunday morning, I heard a little child crying out loud in the church when I was in my church office.

When I listen to the child’s crying carefully, it was the sound of my first daughter.

I never heard her crying that sad.

I didn’t know what happened and why she cried that sad in the church restroom after she locked the door when she came to church 5 minutes ago.

As I was listening to my beloved daughter’s crying I wanted to go to her.

But I waited because her church teacher was in front of the bathroom and was calling my daughter.

A little later, I heard the voice of my wife.

I think my wife was asking our daughter to open the door.

But my daughter was kept on crying for a while and maybe after 2 or 3 minutes she opened the door.

Then, without knowing what happened, I had to go into the main sanctuary to have an intercessory prayer time with the church members.

After intercessory prayer time, Korean worship, lunch, English worship, teacher Bible study, and pastor meetings,

when the congregation members were almost gone, I called my daughter and went into my office with her.

And I asked her what happened why she cried.

She told me what happened to her without telling me the name by using the words 'this person' and 'another person'.

So when I heard everything, I asked her, "Are you okay now?"

And she said "I am okay".

Then she said she asked that person for forgiveness, but that person didn’t her for forgiveness.

So I sincerely praised my daughter and told her that she did a good job.

I told her that she did the good job in asking that person for forgiveness (even though I think she didn’t do anything wrong).

When we were finishing talking, she told me to talk to my wife because she told everything to her.

So later, I talked to my wife and heard everything what happened.

And I could guess roughly what happened.

Then, after a few hours, I came into my house and saw that my wife and our youngest daughter were in the kitchen and our son was brushing his teeth in the bathroom.

But I didn’t see my first daughter.

So I thought she probably was somewhere in the house and I went into my room to change clothes.

And my first daughter was hiding there and she surprised me.  Haha.

So I asked her to sit next to me on the bed and I briefly shared my thoughts about what happened today.

In a word, I told her "Forgiving is powerful" and "I am proud of you".

Then, after a while, when my wife and three children were in the kitchen, I told them to sit down because I had something important to say.

When everyone sat down quietly, I told my wife and the kids again that "Forgiving is powerful” and ‘I am proud of my first daughter.

And I gave my kids an example.

I told them if I fight with mommy and if I hate her in my heart, then Satan will like it.

But if daddy and mommy forgive each other, then God will like it.

Then I told my wife that if she had anything to say to the kids go ahead and say.

My wife was also thankful to God and rejoiced because she how God was raising our first daughter.

And my wife was looking at the things that happened in the church this morning from a spiritual point of view, so

she would be proud to see her win by God's help in that spiritual battle.

I told my children that if we forgive someone unconditionally even though we may feel unfair to do so,

the forgiveness is powerful.

When I said that to my kids, I rededicate my life once again to live such a life.

Looking at my daughter who is better than me, tonight I think I can sleep with gratitude and joy.