Kim graduated from UCLA in 2015 and is currently serving on staff at GOC. She works as a tax accountant, and enjoys coffee, reading, and basketball (watching and playing).
I did not grow up in a Christian family, but my parents sent me and my sister to a Christian school from Kindergarten through high school. I never went to church, but I heard about Christianity and parts of the Gospel throughout my time in school. I began to call myself a Christian in junior high – mainly because all my friends also said they were Christians. I did not doubt the existence of God and I believed a vague notion that “Jesus died for my sins”, but I never truly understood what it meant to be a Christian or what the Gospel was. Although I grew up at a Christian school, I never really got the full Gospel and its implications.
It was my senior year in high school during a discussion about Christianity and faith when I realized that I had never really understood what it meant to be a Christian and that I wasn’t truly saved. By then, I had slipped into the belief that I was better than a lot of my fellow classmates because I was a “good kid.” I stayed out of trouble, I got good grades and I was generally liked by the people around me including the faculty and administration at my school. I thought I was better than a lot of the people who claimed to be Christians, so I thought I was good enough and there was nothing that I need to be saved from. I didn’t care that I wasn’t a Christian. My pride prevented me from seeing myself in the light of Christ and His perfect righteousness.
By God’s grace, I met a friend who brought me to Grace on Campus at UCLA. Going to GOC and to church, I heard the Gospel in every sermon preached. Thanks to the faithful preaching of God’s Word and constant ministering from small group and those around me, it hit me that it is not about how I measured up to other people, but how I measured up to Christ and His perfection. And I fell short by a longshot. Romans 3:10 “no one is righteous, no, not one” and Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” are verses that stood out to me. As I realized that I was a sinner running towards hell, I began to understand the importance and the necessity of a Savior. I finally understood what it had meant when I was told that Jesus died on the cross for my sins – He paid the price that I deserved for my rebellion against God. Not only did He take the punishment I deserved, He also reconciled me to God that I may know, serve, and worship Him. I am thankful that in His grace and sovereignty, He led this apathetic, wayward sinner to Himself. Ever since, God has been growing me and sanctifying me in more ways than I could expect. He has been gracious towards me and has given me more than I deserve.
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