June 11. I. Devotion

Today is my birthday. I just become 29 year-old man. I am so old! However, my passion should not be old, should be even younger. The funny thing is that I am always hungry, but at the same time, I always forget to eat. I forgot there was a free breakfast between 7am to 11am. I went out at 7:50am to wait for the World Vision bus that would arrive at 8am, and I just realized I could eat breakfast for 10 minutes. So I ate it in a hurry.

The way to the office was not smooth due to the traffic jam. There was no traffic light and police officer control vehicles. I did want to get there before 8:30am to attend the devotion. Luckily, I was not too late; people were singing a hymn, and sermon had not started yet. Pastor Israel told us to open <Peter second letter>. ‘Where is Peter chapter?’ I was embarrassed and could not find it. Then, pastor Israel kindly gave me an English bible and pointed out where we were going to share devotion. Peter 2 was <베드로후서>. I wished I also should have attended English spoken church to read English bible and speak in English. I realized that expressing what I have in mind in English is essential to propagate Christianity. A sermon was from <Peter 2 1:1-11> and a few people shared their story based on the phrase from the bible.

In the 1:5-7, it said “For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; severance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love.” I have asked God whether coming to Sierra Leone is the right decision for me. There was a conflict between my will and reality. “How can we save the lives of others if we cannot save the lives of our own? – Unicef” vs. “I should be a brave public health professional who can fight with Ebola virus.” I did not delay, I did not cancel, and I just came here in Freetown, Sierra Leone. Most of my public health encouraged me to come to Sierra Leone. I asked whoever I saw at school, “If you were me, would you willing to go to Sierra Leone?” Someone explained scientifically how Ebola is transmitted to another human, and some others even said it should be exciting. Since most of them said “Yes,” I got confidence to get here. 

I have a strong feeling that God sent me here for a clear reason; God may be testing me how much I believe him, or God may give me a unique opportunity that nobody can do well. This is the biggest reason why I came here. Sierra Leone suffered from brutal Civil War (1991-2002), as we were more familiar with "Blood Diamond." The country has recently established democracy and become peaceful, but it undergoes another hardship right now, Ebola. Sierra Leoneans are dying of Ebola in Kailahun District, a total of 17 deaths were confirmed as of today, because of Ebola. No matter what the situation is, I believe that I have to do my best to strengthen my belief toward God to overcome any difficulties, and I will be much stronger by the time I finish this internship project.