back to index2022-01-09 Enoch Kwon Baptism Testimony
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For once, I'm not an undergrad computer science major at UC Irvine, so I'm sorry to disappoint 00:00:18.320 |
My name is Enoch, and to start things off, I would just like to say that growing up during 00:00:22.360 |
my younger years, I absolutely hated my name. 00:00:24.880 |
I know there's one other Enoch somewhere in this church. 00:00:27.440 |
I'm not sure if he feels the same way or if he's braver than I am, who knows? 00:00:33.960 |
But I would have countless nicknames like Enoch, Eggnog, and my personal favorite, Enush. 00:00:42.680 |
So as a chubby Korean 14-year-old boy, I didn't dare correct my massive ex-NFL player of a 00:00:49.840 |
So for three years, I was formally Enush, right, growing up. 00:00:53.640 |
But at least my wrestling coach got it right, so I stuck with that sport a little longer. 00:00:57.520 |
Anyhoo, without digressing too much, like many other Korean Americans, I grew up in 00:01:03.720 |
So specifically as a pastor's kid, as I got older, I really began to understand why I 00:01:10.080 |
However, as I previously stated, I honestly did not like my name, nor did I really want 00:01:16.940 |
So once again, growing up, I was more afraid of people mispronouncing my name at the local 00:01:21.280 |
Starbucks rather than understanding the strong Christian roots from which it was derived. 00:01:27.240 |
So I'm sure as you all know, there's a common stereotype that pastor's kids go one of two 00:01:32.560 |
They're either very good or terrible and rebellious. 00:01:35.820 |
So if I told you that my brother was perhaps the most innocent, mission trip volunteering, 00:01:40.880 |
praise leader, goody two-shoes, you can easily guess where that puts me. 00:01:45.200 |
So to be frank, I can truthfully admit that I was not a Christian growing up. 00:01:49.800 |
Oftentimes I would catch myself leaning towards more agnostic beliefs, especially as I saw 00:01:54.760 |
the sinful nature of the so-called Christians within the church. 00:01:59.640 |
So to really put things into perspective, I had to ask my dad, my pastor, my father, 00:02:07.360 |
So apparently within the Presbyterian church, once you're sprinkled as an infant, you eventually 00:02:12.080 |
go through a confirmation process at the ripe age of 18. 00:02:15.720 |
So I have zero recollection of going through that confirmation process. 00:02:18.720 |
So this really has to be the epitome of going through the motions to appease my parents, 00:02:28.640 |
So I'm actually someone who unfortunately always learns the hard way. 00:02:31.760 |
And it was only until the very recent year of 2019 that I went through personal hardships 00:02:36.080 |
beyond what I could have imagined, whatever happened to me. 00:02:39.320 |
So I've always thought of myself as tough, you know, as a tough, resilient person who 00:02:44.520 |
could not really be easily broken, but I was proven very wrong. 00:02:48.280 |
So lying alone in the hospital bed of the emergency room on multiple occasions really 00:02:55.440 |
And honestly, up until that point, I was extremely comfortable constantly giving in to my personal 00:03:02.320 |
So ultimately, this was due to the fact that I was never essentially penalized for my moral 00:03:10.480 |
And once again, ultimately, my sense of morality and faith in God quickly diminished. 00:03:15.920 |
So hitting rock bottom made me realize how insufficient I am on my own. 00:03:19.560 |
And I've since accepted Christ into my life to be my Lord and Savior. 00:03:23.040 |
I was essentially able to recover by his grace, and I was healed mentally, physically, emotionally, 00:03:29.760 |
and spiritually by admitting my weaknesses and confessing my sins before God. 00:03:34.240 |
However, the primary and most important difference this time around was that I found Christ for 00:03:42.520 |
I'm very grateful to have taken the chance to come out to Bahrain Community Church. 00:03:46.400 |
For once, I can say that I'm surrounded by a genuine community of Christ-loving individuals. 00:03:51.240 |
And even after such a short time at the church, I definitely feel supported by my fellow brothers 00:03:55.780 |
and sisters in Christ, as well as the excellent leadership team at this church. 00:04:00.520 |
I just want to thank everyone here for your patience as my walk with Christ is still relatively 00:04:05.480 |
new, and I will undoubtedly stumble here and there. 00:04:08.280 |
So thank you for joining me today on such a huge milestone in my life, and hopefully