August 2025

Pastor Message: 

Thanks for sharing your family

“Thanks for sharing your family,” many of you said to me. That phrase lingered in my mind. Honestly, I hadn’t thought of it that way. They’re not something I share—they’re mine!!... My beloved ones. In truth, it was you who shared more. You shared your time, your meals, your care, and your suggestions for family time. You showed my family beautiful places, offered thoughtful gifts, and extended such heartfelt hospitality. Meanwhile, I was worried if I was giving enough care for my family and was preoccupied with whether they were using too much water or electricity at the parsonage. But then I looked back at the photos and saw something I hadn’t noticed in the moment: a deep, genuine smile on my face. A glimpse of joy I had lived—without realizing just how precious it was.

A Korean poet once wrote that family is a community of joy, but also a community of farewell. We assume our families will always be together. But in truth, they grow, they change, and often, they part. That’s why the time we do have together is a mysterious gift—one where joy and sorrow are quietly interwoven.

As I said goodbye to my family at the airport, I found myself thinking of many of you—members of my congregation—who have also said painful goodbyes to those you love. I carry your faces and stories in my prayers. I also couldn’t help but think of other families being separated around the world: families torn apart by the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, by broken immigration system and policies, and even by theologies that misrepresent Christ and create distance between siblings, parents, and children because of their identities or beliefs. So many human-made walls. So many broken circles.

Then I remembered Jesus’s words: “Whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” Jesus redefined what it means to be family—not limited by blood, nationality, or even religion, but bound together by love. I think I understand that more now. You are my family too as you are the ones who do the will of God. The church is the ones who practice God’s love.

Ten years ago, when I left Korea, I posted a photo of my family and wrote: “This is the day I leave my family behind.” Someone recently commented, “That was the day your family began to expand.” Only now do I fully grasp what they meant. To those of you who became family to me—and to my Korean family: Thank you. Thank you for the sacred sense of belonging we've created together—a sacramental family united in Christ.

In Christ,

Rev. Hyunwoong Hwang