THE KUKMIN DAILY

There are 12 churches within one church. Every Sunday at each church, parents and their children attend worship together. The pastors of the various churches lead services in various formats according to their particular spiritual leadership or strengths. The churches have small groups called “vineyards,” in which all family members gather, worship and share snacks, just like Thanksgiving or New Year’s holidays. Two years ago, the original church closed its young adult department, split up the young members and sent them to the 12 different churches. There they attend worship services and vineyard gatherings, and witness healthy images of marriage and family. Their parents are Sunday School teachers. There is only “our generation,” with no division between the younger and the older generations. This is the Sunday scene from Wonchon Baptist Church (Rev. Kim Yo-seb) in Yeongtong-gu, Suweon, Gyeonggi-do.

At his church on September 22, Rev. Kim Yo-seb (54, photo) said, “For each and every gathering our church considers all the generations. For the past 20 years, we have strived to make our church like a family get-together on the holidays.” Rev. Kim will be one of the keynote speakers for the 27th anniversary conference “Next Generation: Our Hope, Our Worry,” organized by Kukmin Daily and taking place October 9. He will speak about the image of the healthy church for the next generation.

He said the next generation is like the windshield of a vehicle. The windshield is necessary for drivers, but they cannot drive while looking at the glass. They need to look at what is beyond the windshield. When you drive, the scene should be the same as what you see through the glass. The two are not separable. The same is true when we consider ministry with young people. If we emphasize the next generation too much, we cannot see all the generations, and we may lose all of them. Kim said that we need to find something all generations share.

“The Bible is one story and one message. There is no verse just for the next generation. What the church has to restore is the entire drama of the Gospel, not a methodology or a program.”

Rev. Kim quoted from the Bible, Hebrews chapter 11. “Look. Isaac and Jacob, the heirs of the same promise, lived together in tents with Abraham (verse 9), and by faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau for their future (verse 20). This shows an integrity among the generations. It was an act of faith for the grandfather, son and grandchildren to live all together in their tents. Aren’t we missing out on this?”

He said that for all generations to be able to share one message, we need to choose sincerity over success, and inconvenience over efficiency. Our pursuit of success and efficiency has resulted in adults and children being separated at church, and parents handing over the responsibility for faith education to the Sunday schools.

“Ministry should change. Instead of pursuing a successful mega-church like a department store, it is sufficient for a church to cook good ramen or to harvest specialty fruits that other churches do not have. Then a church with just 50 members is a healthy one. How can a trend in ministry at one particular church be applied to all churches? Churches are not fast-food chains. What is important is whether you have a friend, a comrade in prayers, in the church, overcoming the generation gap.”

His solution for the next generation was simple. “Kids don’t get excited about their church’s following top trends or its opening an astonishing event. They only pay attention to whether the church members are interested in them as persons. One person who embraces one soul with a sincere heart! That person is the hope for the next generation." (Conference inquiries: 02-781-9809·9822)

Reporter Sangmok Shin (smshin@kmib.co.kr), from Suwon, with Yeara Ahn-Park (yap@kmib.co.kr)
Photo by senior reporter Kang Min Seok, from Suwon


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