Her Heart's Cry

Feb 2, 2025 | by The Fellowship

The devastation in California from the horrific fires as shown on TV prompts me continually to ask our Lord to pour out His grace and mercy on every single person who has been affected by the ongoing tragedy.  Reading a blog recently from Bible Study Fellowship (BSF -an in depth approach to learning and personally applying the truths in God’s Word), I rejoiced to see how God was working in the life of one woman there.

This woman came to the United States from Korea about 27 years ago.  Her first months were spent with a Christian family who taught her about life in the United States.  They also invited her to their church where she attended weekly.  It was the hymn “Amazing Grace” that the Lord used to transform her life.  Though her English was limited, she understood “I once was lost” and “I once was blind,” words that convicted her of her own spiritual state.  The salvation that the Lord Jesus Christ offers was a free gift that she gladly accepted.

More than a decade later, she joined BSF and began to grow deeper in her faith through daily time in the Scriptures and committing Bible verses to memory.  During hard times, she found that the Lord would bring verses to mind that gave her peace and comfort and she would repeat them again and again.

From the moment she became a Christian during her first year in this country, the salvation of her family became her heart’s cry to the Lord.  When she shared the gospel with her younger sister, her sibling also became part of God’s forever family.  But her mother was an active Buddhist and rejected the good news that Jesus brings.  Each time this committed believer tried to share about her life in Christ, the mother was not interested.  Over time, however, her mother discontinued the ritual of going to the temple of Buddha. The prayers of her daughter in America for the Lord to save her mother never stopped.

Then the wildfires erupted in the area of California where this woman lives.  Not aware that the fires were approaching her subdivision, in early January the woman was startled by a knock on her door.  It was her neighbor saying that they were evacuating.  Seeing an orange glow outlining a nearby mountain, she quickly gathered a few things and also left.  Her plan was to return the next morning.

Early the following day as she drove toward her home in the darkness, flames became visible in the distance.  With horror she saw embers floating in the air and houses burning.  Still a distance from her street, she turned around and got away as fast as she could.

 All the homes on her street except hers and a neighbor’s burned to the ground.  But even when she will be able gain access to her home, this woman has no idea what comes next.  The hope that sustains her is coming from the Word of God.

As soon as the crisis became personal, she contacted her mother to tell her about fleeing and getting to a safe place because of the mercy of God.  That is when the very emotional mother asked to go to church with her when she next visits Korea.  This woman could not believe what she was hearing.  She also began crying while silently praising God.  Her newest prayer is for her mom to believe in and give her life to Jesus … even before this daughter gets there!

She also said the loss of everything, if that happens, is worth it to bring her mother to saving faith in the Lord … salvation is the most valuable thing in this life and the only thing that can never be lost.

For the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous
and his ears are attentive to their prayer …
1 Peter 3:12