Generational Blessings, Happy Birthday to My Father-In-Law!
It’s my wonderful father-in-law’s 80th birthday this weekend. During this quarantine season, we are sad we can’t gather around as a family to celebrate this great man as we originally planned, so I wanted to write a tribute to him for this milestone birthday.
“Know therefore that the Lord your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands.” Deuteronomy 7:9
When I reflect on my father-in-law’s life and my family’s lives, I see the evidence of God’s hand and faithfulness upon us. My father-in-law endured much hardship as a child, fleeing during the Korean War to the South. He faced many obstacles including extreme poverty, hunger, fear, danger, and uncertainty. I often think about Chris’ grandmother and the supernatural courage it must have taken her, as a single mother of many children to have the bravery to flee to South Korea with a dream in her heart for a better life for her family. I am eternally grateful to her and deeply thankful for the generational blessings that I see from her sacrifices.
My father-in-law overcame many obstacles in his young life and studied incredibly hard to become an excellent student. He was such an outstanding student that he attended the top university in South Korea. After he immigrated to the US, he continued to work diligently and sacrifice to give his family a better life here. He and my mother-in-law are both brilliant people and are fluent in English and Korean, which is a huge accomplishment for immigrants in their generation.
In a Korean family, the son is often highly valued, sometimes to the detriment of the incoming daughter-in-law. I have definitely seen some real life nightmare stories of how daughter-in-laws can be treated in some families, which growing up always put a hesitation in me of marrying into a Korean-American family. From the first day of nervously meeting my in-laws, they have always accepted me with incredible love and kindness. My father-in-law and mother-in-law’s unusual, unconditional love and acceptance for me and my family is something that has brought tremendous healing to my life.
By the grace of God, all of the the hardship and the toil that my father-in-law endured in his early life did not harden his heart, rather it gave him great love and compassion for people. The generosity, kindness, and love I have always seen in my father-in-law and mother-in-law is such an inspiration to me and others around them.
❤️❤️
Dad and Mom, when I look upon our family, I am so grateful to God that He brought me to Chris and to your family. You both have taught me to love God more and to not hold onto offenses in life, but to live life joyfully, thankfully, generously, and fully everyday. Happy Birthday Dad! I am honored to be a loved daughter in your family. I am thankful that my kids have such loving, kind, and faithful footsteps to follow in.
Love,
Eunice
