💌 473. Kneeling Before Mother-in-law's Creditors

With the parlor cluttered with the scattered items, the creditors were breathing heavily in anger, these actions astonished both hairdressers and customers. As I stood in the midst of it, overwhelmed by a mix of complex emotions. How embarrassed I was before the customers! Since getting married until then, I had never received any help from my in-laws or husband. Solely with my mother’s assistance, I had navigated through the rugged path of my life, initiating and resolving everything.

And with my mother’s help, I supported my in-laws. Employing every means and method, I tried my best with love and devotion and repaid all the debts that she had asked me to repay, even if it meant my starving, falling ill and dying. But as I faced a situation this dire, it felt like the sky was collapsing. My mother-in-law would help not only her other children but also strangers with her whole heart both materially and emotionally, generously spending her money and many other things for them.

However, instead of giving us any help, a single penny of worth at least, my mother-in-law consistently stirred up significant trouble, leaving all the aftermaths to me, saying that I should handle it as the eldest daughter-in-law. How could I articulate all the issues of the long years in my-law’s family since I had gotten married that I would offer up with Semchigo as if I had received love from my mother-in-law. This incident added much more pain to my heart which had already ached. I pondered, “Yes. How was Jesus, who laid down everything, pouring out His blood and water for the children of this world!

Even at this very moment, Jesus is shedding His blood due to my sins and the sins of the children of the world. So, is it not this truly God's immense love which allows me to participate in the pain of the Sacred Heart of Jesus?” So, I generously handed over all the money earned that day to the creditors, practicing Semchigo as if I had given haircuts and perms to the lepers living in Sorokdo island whom I missed so much.

With the heart of a sinner participating in the sufferings of Jesus, I knelt down in front of them, pleaded with them, managed to soothe them, and finally sent them away. It was also my fault that they caused such commotion, for I was running the parlor. After sorting out the ordeal, the journey back home felt endlessly long and arduous.

I was as exhausted as I could ever be, feeling small and tears flowed relentlessly from my eyes, contrary to my heart. Nevertheless, I wiped them away and prayed the Prayers of Life with a heart of uniting even my single tear to the tears that Jesus shed for our sake. Additionally, I offered it up with Semchigo as if I had received plenty of love from my mother-in-law. Then, at some point, my steps became lighter.

Upon entering the house, I searched for my mother-in-law, thinking, 'Is she here by any chance?' But she was not around. I asked my mother, “Did my mother-in-law come?” She responded, “No, she did not.” It turned out that my mother-in-law, who had said that she was coming to my home, had never come. ‘She deliberately led the creditors to Naju to make me pay off the debt she owed.’ It became clear that everything she did was intentional.

As I looked at my husband, who knew nothing about it, I felt so sorry and pitiful and pathetic for my husband. I embraced him, saying, “Oh, honey, you are endlessly lonely even if you have many siblings!” Tears poured down uncontrollably. With a bewildered look on his face, my husband who knew nothing asked, “Honey, is there something wrong with you? Why are you doing this all of a sudden?”

However, in order to prevent my husband, who had hypertension, from being shocked, I did not mention what had happened that day. I simply said, “Something in the past crossed my mind suddenly, making me shed tears. I am sorry you had to see this.” I carefully avoided sharing the details of the commotion with my husband. Eventually, I paid off all the debts that my mother-in-law owed to the creditors. In fact, even after that, my mother-in-law continued to demand money.

With the help of the Lord, the hair salon, which I started by borrowing money with difficulty, flourished. However, I was on a tight budget, and new challenges kept arising. On top of it, I had to repay other people's debts, which made me financially strapped. After about a year since I opened the salon by borrowing money. My mother-in-law came again and demanded as much as 13 million won, which was, back then, an unbelievably large amount of money.

Upon hearing that, my little aunt was worried much about me who was at a loss for what to do. “Oh dear, what are you going to do about that? How can you possibly manage to prepare such a large sum of money?” However, I replied, “There must be a good reason for my mother-in-law. Even so, I have no choice but to fulfill her wish somehow.” My aunt was so surprised that she stared at me blankly for a while.

At that time, one million won was a significant amount enough to buy one single-family home in Naju. I managed to pay off the 13 million won as well as numerous other debts incurred by her. There were various hardships beyond words that I had to go through because of that, as soon as I was healed of terminal cancer. However, I thought that all these events occurred because I was receiving God's love. As I offered it up with Semchigo as if I had received plenty of love from my mother-in-law, I did not harbor any resentment towards her. Rather I resolved to serve her even better.

My personal reflection note with Mama Julia🌹💗 

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