Wife of Pastor Hyeon Soo Lim Shares Thoughts and Emotions Regarding His Detainment for the First Time Through Letter

Hyeon Soo Lim
Pastor Hyeon Soo Lim of Light Presbyterian Church was detained after traveling into North Korea on January 30. |

Hyeon Soo Lim
(Photo : Christianity Daily)
Pastor Hyeon Soo Lim of Light Presbyterian Church was detained after traveling into North Korea on January 30.

For the first time since Korean Canadian Rev. Hyeon Soo Lim has been detained in North Korea, his wife, Geum Young Lim, has shared her emotions and thoughts regarding the situation through a letter.

In the letter, which is addressed to Light Presbyterian Church where Rev. Lim used to serve as the senior pastor previous to his detainment, Mrs. Lim shares that she is thankful that churches all over the world have been praying for Rev. Lim, and asks for prayers that he would continue to seek only God and be a light in a dark land as he endures through the pain until the end.

Rather than asking for prayers for his release, she asks for prayers that "he would be a pastor who puts his life on the line to embrace and pray with tears for the souls in that land," and that "he would take time to be thankful and seek only the Lord."

Mrs. Lim shares that after hearing a word from God, she has been thankful rather than fearful or angry.

"Early in the morning the day that it became a week since Rev. Lim was detained, God spoke to me clearly. He said, "I sent your husband to North Korea. Do not worry. I am with him,'" Mrs. Lim writes. "At that word, I was so thankful that I just wept and wept for a while. And since then, an indescribable sense of gratefulness granted from above has been pouring into my heart. And since then until now, I have never worried or been anxious, and have been thankful to the point that I would comfort the people that I meet."

"God is truly precise and does not make mistakes," she adds.

Mrs. Lim also reminds the reader, "We live one life."

"I want to bless you with my whole heart, and encourage you to be the church that puts your lives on the line to pray for His kingdom to come, to share the gospel, and to love others," she writes.

Rev. Hyeon Soo Lim has visited North Korea over 100 times, according to sources, but was detained during his last visit to the country in late January of 2015. He was then found guilty for trying to subvert the government by the North Korean Supreme Court, and was sentenced to life in prison in December.

The following is the full letter from Mrs. Lim:

To the members of Light Presbyterian Church, whom I dearly love,

I send you my greetings for the first time in a long while, from a place far away.

I miss you, and want to see you and cry with you. I can't express how I feel.

My body is here but my heart is always in Toronto. I believe that Reverend Lim is a man who is truly blessed. I'm so thankful that Christians all over the world, and even people who do not believe in Christ, are praying for him. As people all over the world have been learning about his situation, I realized that this is truly a work that God has been doing, and that this is not the time for me to just dwell in my pain and suffering. After Rev. Lim was detained, I was able to reflect a lot upon myself. To be honest, I was so frustrated, upset, and angry, but with the faith that God has granted me, I now have a heart that is able to be thankful. I'm also so thankful for our church.

I was so thankful that our church members have been gathering together to intercede in prayer. Early in the morning the day that it became a week since Rev. Lim was detained, God spoke to me clearly. He said, "I sent your husband to North Korea. Do not worry. I am with him." At that word, I was so thankful that I just wept and wept for a while. And since then, an indescribable sense of gratefulness granted from above has been pouring into my heart. And since then until now, I have never worried or been anxious, and have been thankful to the point that I would comfort the people that I meet. I am doing well. God is truly precise and does not make mistakes. And He is faithful. It's something that I've known so well, but after these things have happened to our family, I have been thankful beyond words.

I am thankful that God has allowed Rev. Lim to be detained at the most precise time. When I observe the current situation in North and South Korea, it is truly and fearfully chaotic. But when I think about the souls in that land, there has to be someone who is willing to be the kernel of wheat that falls and produces many seeds, and I am again thankful when I realize that that person is our Rev. Lim. God is not one to suffer losses"¦ Who else would take responsibility for the souls in that land?

When Rev. Lim received the sentence for life in prison, I personally prayed a prayer of thanksgiving that God has again saved his life and expressing my belief that there is definitely a calling and a mission behind all of this. And I wept and wept when I heard that our church came together to pray for him that day. I was so proud and thankful that our church is doing what is pleasing to the Lord.

North Korea has launched a rocket and the world has been in chaos recently, but it is through more events like this that God will work even more greatly. So do not be anxious but I encourage you to focus more on gathering your hearts together in prayer and thinking about what God would do in this situation. And please pray that God would grant Rev. Lim His heart which considers one soul more precious than the entire world.

I had no choice but to submit to God in obedience at the fact that God is urgent in his work of saving souls, to the point that Rev. Lim was compelled to be in that land. And I surrendered to Him once again when I heard that our church members gathered in the midst of the fierce cold to go to Ottawa and pray. I am so thankful and proud, and I thought again about how great our church is.

I also wanted to be there, but to be honest, my heart was not ready to meet you"¦ I thought I would cry if I see you and couldn't be confident that I could hold it together, so I could not attend. I hope you understand.

We live one life. I want to bless you with my whole heart, and encourage you to be the church that puts your lives on the line to pray for His kingdom to come, to share the gospel, and to love others.

Please pray about the following for Reverend Lim.

That he would be a light in the midst of a dark land,

That he would take time to be thankful and seek only the Lord,

That God would grant more of his heart to him,

That he would be a pastor who puts his life on the line to embrace and pray with tears for the souls in that land,

That he would be able to endure through this blessing in disguise,

That he would only glorify God until the end,

That he would not be lonely and that he would be able to endure until the end.

Thank you.

I pray for peace in our Lord over all of our church members, and I will greet you in person when I visit Canada in April.

This letter was translated from the letter that appeared in Korean in Christianity Daily's Korean edition. For the original, visit kr.christianitydaily.com.