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BY THE GRACE OF GOD I AM WHAT I AM

Hello! I am Shepherd Joshua Lee from Daejun center. I feel guilty being retired when I see Mother Barry and Dr. John John who are still working hard. It is a great honor for me to share my life testimony with you. The key verse for my life testimony is 1 Corinthians 15:10, "But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me." Apostle Paul confessed that by the grace of God he was saved and became an apostle and worked harder than all of apostles. I was born in Haenam, the southern part of the Korean Peninsula in 1939 as the youngest among three siblings. I was raised under a strict Confucius father. I wandered a lot, not knowing the true meaning and purpose of my life. It was only by the one-sided grace of God that I was saved, called to be a shepherd used by God to this day.

1.God’s calling

I began to seriously think about the meaning of my life from 1961 when I was in the military service after my first year in college. I wandered around not knowing the purpose and direction of my life. My senior in the army who saw me struggling spiritually shared his life testimony as a Buddhist and recommended me to believe in Buddha. I was moved by his testimony but it was not practically possible to spend my whole life in the Buddhist temple. After finishing my military duty, I returned to my hometown where my friend who was my junior introduced me to Christianity and gave me one small book called, "The Basics of Christianity" I was moved by the book. I realized that God is omniscient, omnipotent and omnipresent and that he hears our prayers and give peace in our hearts. At that time, I used to climb up a small mountain that was in back of my house and practiced "Gum-Do" the Japanese way of fencing and meditation. While staying on the mountain, I thought "If surely God exists, He must be here too because he is omnipresent." I began to pray to God kneeling down since there was no one around me. I offered up a selfish prayer, saying, "O, God, if you really exist, please, give me faith to have peace in my heart and let me succeed in my school study and live a prosperous life in the future." I prayed like this everyday and went to Gwang ju to resume campus life. One day after, on Nov, 30th, 1963, I was fished by Dr. John Jun in the library and began to come to UBF. Through Bible study, I came to realize that God is living and that I was a terrible sinner before God. By God's grace, I accepted Jesus who died on the cross for my sins, especially my fatalism due to poverty and lack of life direction.

In the next year as a sophmore, I began my shepherd life pioneering Chun Nam University's engineering department. After two years of shepherd life, God granted me 30 sheep from the engineering department. When I was a senior in 1966, Dr. Samuel Lee and Mother Sarah Barry came down from Seoul and called us to have a weekend Bible conference. The conference was at Mudeung Mountain Prayer House, and the theme was "Here am I. Send me!" The main purpose of this conference was to raise one shepherd to succeed Dr Samuel Lee. Even if I was not to be picked, I would not be bothered at all because deep down in my heart I knew how much I was not qualified for this calling. But the next morning Msn Sarah Barry said in her message, "God wants those who are willing to give their lives!" Then I remembered I almost died twice because of some accidents, but God had mercifully spared my life. I also realized that I was a great debtor to God who gave me his precious gift, eternal life. After the conference, several co-workers took me outside of the house and urged me to become a staff shepherd. Joseph Chung, who was a senior in medical school, also told me, "Brother Namkyun, let’s become staff shepherds." In this way I half-heartedly decided to become a staff shepherd. On that night Joseph Chung and I visited Dr Lee. We knelt down before him and said, "We want to be staff shepherds". Then Dr Lee stared us for a while and gave us direction, "Joseph, you become a doctor, and Joshua, you become a staff shepherd." In this way I received God's calling to be a staff shepherd.

2.Early shepherd’s training

One day in 1966, the year I accepted God's calling, I was running here and there to prepare Christmas worship service. Dr. Samuel Lee came from Seoul three days before the Christmas worship service and unexpectedly asked me to write the Christmas message based on Luke 2. I had been relaxed, believing that Dr. Lee would deliver the message. Even though I struggled hard with the word of God, by the time I stood at the podium I was not fully prepared. The hall was packed with 300 attendants. My mind blanked and I could not remember anything. I only repeated these words, "Truly, truly, this great great God" and messed up the whole message. I wanted to hide myself even into a mice hole if possible. However, Dr. Lee didn't rebuke or say anything bad to me. But he called me, "Truly, truly, great great shepherd." In only one day, I had become a great shepherd.

Even though I became a staff shepherd, I still needed much training because I was not changed and immature. From 1967 to June 1976, about ten years, was the period of shepherd’s training. For 10 years, I was sent to serve four different chapters. After serving two years in Kwangju, I served Chunju for two years. God used this unworthy man to increase Chunju ministry. Especially there was the work of the Holy Spirit in Chunju Nursing School and 20 students were raised. Among them, M. Deborah Kim and M. Rebekah Chung who is now my daughter-in-law's mother, were raised.

In October 1970, I moved back to Kwangju. On July 2, 1971, at the age of 33, Sheps Yon Ok and I established a house church. One day Dr Lee called me to Seoul and told me to propose to a woman whom I had never met before. After one week, we got married on early Saturday at 7 am. My wife is very faithful and quiet. She has strong faith to overcome many hardships. And she is also a woman of prayer. When I received many difficult trainings, she overcame all hardships and became a suitable helper. She raised three children: Anna, Joshua and Ezra. Even though we often fought because of our strong personalities, I believe one of the greatest accomplishments in my life was to marry my wife.

On March 4, 1973, I was sent to pioneer Jeju. Without any coworkers there, I had to pioneer Jeju Univ. and the College of Education all by myself. My human faithfulness and will power ran out, and I only had to depend on God. In Jeju, God granted me two sons, Joshua and Ezra as a sign of God’s blessing and comfort. The most difficult training was to endure poverty. I could not even afford to buy milk or baby food. But when I looked up at God who was the benefactor of great reward in heaven, I could give thanks to God and serve him joyfully. During this period my spirit was recharged through deep Bible study and reading many books. Then God changed one person, sister Song Yun Ok from the College of Education. Then God sent many students from the College of Education through her and blessed them with words of God.

3. Spiritual growth and revival of Kwangju chapter

From July 1976 to May 9^th 2001 I returned to Gwangju for the third time and served Kwangju ministry for 24 years as a staff shepherd. Before moving back to Kwangju from Jeju, I went to Seoul to say hello to Dr. Lee. On the way to the train station in a taxi, he told me, "It seems that God has established you as a shepherd of Kwangju". For the following 10 years since Dr. Lee moved to Seoul, the staff shepherds in Kwangju had changed five times. It was an unstable transitional period. Dr. Lee believed that ultimately, God established me to be a shepherd of Kwangju. As a result of the 1976 senior staff event, many sheep scattered and only 30 members came to Sunday worship service. By faith I did my best, only trusting in God. God restored Kwangju ministry rapidly. During the Spring Conference held on Mudeung Mt. in 1980, we had crying out repentant prayer that echoed through the valley of the mountain. In the summer of the same year there was a great work of the Holy Spirit and repentance. After the conference the Sunday service number had increased to 120. In four years the number increased four times.

Because the members had increased a lot, the center became too small. The landlord increased the rent every year. The coworkers decided to build a 20^th year memorial Zion Kwangju center. Through Haggai Bible study many brothers and sisters were moved by the word of God. At that time there was only 9 families. Some of them sold their houses and some of them moved from expensive rental housing to a lower costing one to give offerings. Some others borrowed money from the bank. Many brothers and sisters offered money sacrificially with much prayer. God blessed their prayer and sacrifice and granted us beautiful 7200 square feet two story building with full basement. God was pleased with our building construction and blessed us abundantly. From 1986 there was a great work of God with many sheep coming to Bible study. In the summer Bible conference in that year, many sheep accepted Jesus with tears of repentance, touched by the messages and testimonies.

In 1987 we began to pioneer Chosun Univ chapter II and hold separate worship services for Chosun and Chonnam universities. In 1988, God blessed our discipleship ministry abundantly with 310 Sunday worship attendants. In September we began to pioneer a third chapter with members from the medical, dental and pharmacy school. Because of the growing ministry, we needed a new center for Chosun Univ. We rented a new center near Chosun Univ. and Chosun chapter II, III moved to a new building. Chosun chapter II, III ministry had grown steadily and by 1990 the center became too small. Sometimes students had to wait in line to enter a prayer room. So, coworkers from Chunnam and Chosun decided to build a new center for Chosun Univ. pioneering. Through 1 Chronicle 29 study, they received much grace and began a building project. Finally we completed a beautiful 12600 square feet three story building with a full basement. The cost was almost $1,000,000 five times higher than Chunnam center. All coworkers from Chunnam and Chosun offered money sacrificially and joyfully. Through this project they began to have beautiful co-working relationship among Chunnam and Chosun coworkers and this tradition has been going on continually until now. Based on the Chosun center construction, Chosun ministry continued to grow to send out chapter 5 pioneering Honam Univ. in 1992 and chapter 7 was pioneered in 2002 also. The construction work of two Bible centers laid the firm foundation of Kwangju ministry.

In the 1980’s, Chosun Univ. campus was in the whirlwind because of student demonstration and ideological confusion. In the midst of demonstrations and confusion, the Chosun campus ministry was blossoming. And in the 1990’s, the spiritual revival was in full blossom in Chunnam Univ. From the winter of 1991, the leaders gathered together for 40 days’ prayer meeting for incoming freshmen. When the students came to the campus for college application, leaders went to the campus for fishing all day long, even in the midst of snow storm. They invited many freshmen to the winter school with letters and phone calls until late at night. 200 students came. United testimony sharing meetings were always filled with sheep. More than 10 students shared their testimonies so that shepherds had to stay up until late night to listen to all their testimonies. In this way God blessed the discipleship ministry abundantly. During the Thanksgiving worship service, 30-40 students were raised as new student shepherds. This revival in Kwangju chapter one based on Chonnam Univ. enabled them to pioneer chapters 4 and 6. In this way, chapters I to VII from Kwangju Center were pioneered. In the late 1990’s there were about 700 people in Sunday worship service in all Kwangju chapters. About 820 people attended the summer Bible conference. There was a great revival with 1,000 people attending the Kwangju Christmas worship service. God helped us to pioneer other provinces around the country. Shepherd Ok Kee Lee (Moses Lee) was sent to Chongro chapter III as an Intern shepherd on Feb. 1982. Jeju, Mokpo and Soonchun chapters were also pioneered. God also blessed world mission ministry by sending out 60 missionaries until 1980’s and 90 missionaries in 1990’s in the wake of world globalization.

God accepted Kwangju coworkers’ prayer and whole hearted dedication, and blessed the ministry abundantly. Behind the spiritual growth and revival there were several beautiful stories. First, there was beautiful co-working between me and sacrificial graduate shepherd families. Second, there was 30 faithful full time shepherds’ prayer and dedication. God established 9 dedicated senior house churches. They were the stewards and owners of Kwangju ministry. Through beautiful co-working between me and these shepherds, God enabled us to build two centers in Chunnam and Chosun Univ. Dr. David Park among them is a professor of the Dept. of Pediatrics of Chosun Univ. He pioneered Kwangju chapter 3 with 45 members and now it has grown into 120 members. Dr. Luke Song is also a professor of the Dept. of OB-GYN of Chosun Univ. He was sent out from Kwangju chapter II to pioneer chapter VII with 20 members for medical school pioneering.

On May 9, 2001 I left Kwangju after serving the ministry for 24 years. God appointed S Nehemiah Kim to take care of Chunnam chapters I and VI. S Nehemiah Kim came to UBF when he was a high school student. During college he was trained under S Mark Yang in Anam chapter. While he was serving Anam chapter VII, he was called to serve Kwangju chapter I and VI. In 2006, God blessed him to build a big and beautiful new center, 15,840 square feet four story building with full basement near the campus of Chunnam Univ. and move there after selling the previous center building. His chapter has about 160 members. Chosun chapter 2 ministry was succeeded by S John Park who was serving as an Intern shepherd after graduation from Chosun Univ. Law school. He serves Kwangju chapter II with 110 members. As for me, at my age of 60’s I began new pioneering work in Daejun.

4. Daejun pioneering

From 1999 to 2001, it was a painful period of UBF because of a group of people left UBF to form a new group, CMI. On Jan. 1, 2002, I called Dr. Lee to say, "Happy New Year". He gave me a direction to pioneer ten chapters in Daejun. After one week he went to heaven. On March 17, 2002, I had the first worship service in Daejun and served the pioneering work of Choongnam Univ. and Kaist for the last 10 years. God sent about 30 people. There are 9 house churches and about 10 sheep are growing. God answered my prayer and sent S. Caleb Choi as a successor, who received training under S. Moses Lee from Sungdong center. I entrusted my staff position to him, and on December 12, 2010 I retired.

I am a great sinner who failed to bear God’s grace and blessing. I thank and praise God who forgave all my sins and used me for both campus and world mission for the last 45 years. Thank God for the late Dr Samuel Lee who called this unworthy sinner to be a shepherd and trained me with love and patience. I give thanks to M Sarah Barry, M Grace A Lee and Dr John Jun who comforted me and served me with prayer and the word of God in times of difficult training. I give thanks to the Kwangju senior and junior shepherds for their beautiful co-working and dedication as well. O, Lord who gave me grace upon grace, above all I give thanks to God who saved me, called me to be a staff shepherd, trained me and used me in the pioneering work in Kwangju, Chunju, Jeju and Daejun for the last 45 years.