Growing up, I took for granted the gifts that God had graciously given me: my parents, my friends, my church leaders, my clothes, my education, my food... I could go on forever.
But one of the most important and special things I took for granted was my church family.
On December, 2010, I started visiting the Atlanta Korean SDA Church, and I was introduced to a group of people that were talkative, rambunctious, crazy, and much, much, more. From the outside, they were just another group of kids that I could socialize with, and then forget for the other six days of the week. Little did I know, I found a family that would accept me and love me for who I am, and I wouldn't abandon them for the world.
On March 12, 2016, I ventured with my Adventist brothers and sisters to Ellijay, Georgia for a weekend-long retreat just for the youth group, a.k.a, my family. We prayed together and for each other, we sang songs of praise together, and we ate scrumptious food together (s'mores, s'mores, and some-mores). At one point during the day, we all reluctantly hiked to a waterfall (which felt like an eternity) where we took plenty of pictures and splashed around in the icy cold water (I know it was icy cold because I slipped and fell into the water while everyone laughed). We learned about the faith we need to fight our Goliaths, the hope we need to keep until Jesus comes back, and the love we need to uplift each other in times of distress. I made some new friends, and dare I say we adopted a few more people into our big, happy family.
In Matthew 12:49-50, Jesus says, " 'Here are my mother and my brothers! For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother.' " Up until this past retreat, I gradually forgot what a family truly meant.
But now I remember.
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