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1 Praise ye the LORD. Blessed is
the man that feareth the LORD, that delighteth greatly in his commandments. 2 His seed shall be mighty upon
earth: the generation of the upright shall be blessed. 3 Wealth and riches shall be in
his house: and his righteousness endureth for ever. 4 Unto the upright there ariseth
light in the darkness: he is gracious, and full of compassion, and righteous. 5 A good man sheweth favour, and
lendeth: he will guide his affairs with discretion. (Psalm
112:1-5)
8 The wind bloweth
where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence
it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. (John
3:8)
Owing to the fact Thanksgiving Day is to be celebrated in
America on this coming Thursday, I have decided to go outside the box a bit and
write about one of my favorite Korean hymns (English edition). The author of
the lyrics Young Taek Chun, and the music is composed by Doo Hoe Koo. The
English translation is by the great Presbyterian missionary to Korea, John
Underwood, who gave his life in saving a Korean mother and her child from
drowning in the turbulent Han River waters.
사 철 에 봄 바 람 불 어 잇고
All
Year in Our Home the Spring Breezes Blow
All year in our home the spring
breezes blow,
Since God our Father abides with us
here.
Firm faith the bedrock unshaken
below,
Our home's a garden of gladness all
year.
Refrain
How we thank Him, Immanuel!
Our Home His, His, to serve Christ
always!
Such joy and blessedness, day upon
day?
Our parents, gentle with strong,
tender care!
Brother and sister, love-link'd from
our youth!
Here where all grieving and gladness
we share,
Our thatch-roof room, and it's
heaven in truth.
Refrain
One house-hold, working till all
work is done,
Morning and ev'ning in love and good
cheer;
One table, with food and drink
shar'd as one
This is our Garden of Eden right
here!
Refrain
All
year in our home the spring breezes blow, Since God our Father abide with us
here. Firm faith the bedrock unshaken below, Our home's a garden of gladness
all year. John Howard Payne, a family friend of
my great, great, great, grandfather, wrote a song entitled “Home Sweet Home” in
1823. That song has pulled the heartstrings of every generation since its
writing because its subject is near and dear to the hearts of every kindly
disposed man and woman of every age. There may have been incidents that
occurred at home which were very painful at the time, and there were many that
were writing with joy on our memories; but all of the sad memories evaporate
with time and the happy moments burn more brightly than ever with the passing
of time. It is true that during Winter, Spring, Summer, and Fall the Spring
winds continue to blow through the home of our present life and that of our
remote past. The great Russian writer, Leo Tolstoy, wrote in his short story,
Martin the Cobbler, “Where Love Is, There God Is Also."
That is the whole plot of his story, and it is a very true principle to
be believed. If God abides in our homes, those homes will never fail of joy.
Where God makes His home in the heart, there is joy untold. The home is the ark
of safety, love, and provision if God is in that Ark. Home is, as saith
Solomon, A garden inclosed is my sister, my spouse; a spring shut up, a
fountain sealed. (Song 4:12) This
makes euphemistic reference to Christ abiding with His Church in the Garden of
Peace.
Refrain
How we thank Him, Immanuel! Our Home
His, His, to serve Christ always! How we thank Him, Immanuel! Such joy and
blessedness, day upon day? Gratitude to the Master of our House
which is Christ if we believe is the prime principle. He is Immanuel – God with
us! Not only was Zacchaeus saved, but his whole house with him, for it became a
place of service to the Lord. Every day is a blessing in the Godly Home. This
is more a truth in the Christian homes of Korea for they are dedicated more to
the family plan of God than most cultures by nature.
Our
parents, gentle with strong, tender care! Brother and sister, love-link'd from
our youth! Here where all grieving and gladness we share, Our thatch-roof room,
and it's heaven in truth. It is a natural characteristic of
the Korean parents to place the needs of their sons and daughters above every
other consideration. The parents will bear any burden if it will advantage his
or her child. They burn their energies in providing the best possible hope for
the children. The child of the Korean family is the family’s token and trophy
of pride, joy, and loving constancy. It is not unusual for a Korean family to
sleep together in one room with the baby as well as the ten, and they ALWAYS
eat meals together. The Korean meal, like Holy Communion, is a time of sharing
the joy of love and sacrifice one for the other. In old Korean, as in old
Europe, the homes were covered with thatch. But the meager provision of the
house does not define the joy and pleasures of the heart that abide within.
Home can be, and truly is in the hearts of Christians, Heaven on earth.
One
house-hold, working till all work is done, Morning and ev'ning in love and good
cheer; One table, with food and drink shar'd as one This is our Garden of Eden
right here! Every member of the Korean family is important in
contributing to the needs of the home. The children work alongside the father
and mother to accomplish the objectives of the family. The sister may labor to
send her older brother off to college, and vice versa. Actually, we in
the west could learn much from the Korean model for home and family – things
that we have forgotten with the coming of opulence and technical advancement.
The more labor-saving devices we acquire, the less time seems available for
home and family. But the family and marriage is God’s first institution, and
critically important to healthy character and wholeness. It is even more
important when we consider that the Lord intended the family to be a foreshadow
and type of His Bride, the Church. When we eat and fellowship closely together
in love, we are more likely to share love abroad beyond the walls of the home.
The same is true of the Church. When we of the Church have become One with
Christ, we will also become one with each other, and there is no cause for
contention and disunity. The same tranquility that existed in Eden may be
restored to our souls in a loving home. We do, in Church as in family, eat from
the same Table (the Table of the Lord). We do in the Church as in the home,
drink from the same Cup (that Cup of the Lord’s suffering) 1 Cor 11:26.
Postscript
I do not believe any would disagree something very serious and very unfortunate
has happened to the families of America – not all, but most. Children eat on
the run and do not linger for paternal or maternal counsel and conversation.
Children are seen less at home than at other social gatherings each day.
The teaching of wisdom at home has been replaced by the institutional
indoctrination of the labor-union-oriented teaching of the public schools.
Every divisive principle against the teaching of the parents is taught at the
public arena and that of the parents is proclaimed to be foolishness and out
dated. So are we surprised that our youth have gone astray from the of their
fathers? Should we be surprised drug addiction has replaced familial love; that
strange and perverse sex has replaced the God-ordained plan of God for the
marriage banns and wedding service? Our youth can no longer compete in the
sciences, technology, or literary accomplishments of their peers in competing
industrial nations – perhaps that is why we have, in the United States, become
a post-industrial nation. Wisdom and prudence have evaporated from youthful
society. Deception is not only possible, but certain, when a generation of
youth has grown up without teachings in wisdom, logic, reason, civics, and,
most importantly, the importance of knowing and following God’s Word.
May God restore the home in America
to its rightful place of supremacy for the family.
