Where Am I? - My GA Experience as a First-Timer
By Christopher Y. Kim
This is the third installment of a series of reflections from the 51st PCA General Assembly 2024. Our goal is to serve the greater PCA by highlighting our stories and by platforming the abundance of talent we have among the KALI community. In this reflection, Christopher Y. Kim (TE - Korean Southwest Orange County) shares his thoughts and experiences from his time in Richmond, VA.
“Richmond? Where’s that?” That was the first question my wife asked when we were discussing whether I should attend the PCA General Assembly. My wife came to the United States when she was twenty years old. As a Korean immigrant, states outside of California might as well be on another planet to her.
On Tuesday afternoon, as I walked into my first General Assembly, I found myself wondering if I was on another planet.
Growing up in Los Angeles, California, it felt surreal seeing men in cuff-linked shirts and bow ties with strong Southern accents, towering over me. “Are all Presbyterians this tall?” I thought. “This is foreign to me. I feel like I don’t belong. I feel like an immigrant.” The words of my wife echoed in my mind. “Richmond? Where’s that?”
As worship began, those questions were placed on pause. We sang hymns with men and women, children and elderly—all joining to worship our God. Awesome. We took the Lord’s Supper together. Beautiful. But as the business started, those questions began crawling back: Where am I?
Throughout my experience at the General Assembly, that question never left my mind.
On Wednesday I attended a luncheon for alumni and friends of Westminster Seminary California. It was exciting to see old seminary classmates and friends. During a conversation with a friend, another brother interrupted us to speak with him. No introduction, no apology, no acknowledgement of my presence. He didn’t even look at me, just began talking as if I wasn’t even there. I stood there for a few minutes, trying to join the conversation, or at least introduce myself. But he left right away. I wasn’t sure how to process it. I returned to my table, reflecting on the experience. On one hand, I was among the seminary community that I cherished, yet the question persisted: Where am I?
On Tuesday afternoon, as I walked into my first General Assembly,
I found myself wondering if I was on another planet.
Thursday night was the peak of this tension. Walking to the General Assembly Hall for the final night of worship, like many Korean American brothers, I was nervous. The group I was with joked around and made bets. “How many from the GA do you think will be at worship?”
“20 percent,” one brother said. “No way. That’s too little.”
“50 percent,” said another. I thought, “Maybe. I can imagine half of the people there.”
“More than half, if not most of them,” said another. “That’s a crazy thing to say.”
I walked in. My fears were confirmed. The hall was nearly empty toward the back.
Sitting towards the front, disappointed and cynical, I waited for the praise team to start.
By the second song, I was in tears. I looked back and saw a nearly-filled hall. I’m not exactly sure what percentage of the GA was at the service, but what I saw was Korean elders, non-Korean elders, their families, all singing in both Korean and English: “Name above all names, worthy of all praise. And my heart will sing, how great is our God.”
In tears, I asked: Where am I?
Many Korean-Americans have gone through an immigrant experience—coming to the United States to seek a better life. Our household was no exception, and we went through our fair share of hardships.
I was bullied for being “too Asian.” My parents discouraged me from applying to a four-year university due to our immigration status and financial situation.
I remember yelling at them, “Why did we come here to struggle like this?”
“If you were in Korea, you’d be miserable,” was the refrain I heard from my parents over and over again.
“In Korea, it’s a dog-eat-dog world.”
“We can’t afford Korean hagwon, and you’d fall behind.”
“In Korea, we’d be poor.”
Yet the reality was that our lives in the U.S. were not much different.
As immigrants, my parents encouraged me, time and time again, to assimilate and be acculturated to the majority culture. However, what I’m learning is that the Christian life teaches us to not assimilate, but to embrace our immigrant identity as sojourners in this world. In fact that’s how the Bible describes the Christian life; we are all immigrants, for this world is not our home and our citizenship belongs in heaven. That’s what I saw in that bilingual worship service on Thursday night: a room filled with immigrants. In one way or another, we are all sojourners and nomads — pilgrims. In the grand scheme of things, we should all ask ourselves: Where are we?
Where are we in the PCA? Where is the PCA heading?
We may not know the answers to these questions, but I wonder if that is part of the immigrant experience, too? An experience that forces us to constantly ask ourselves: Where are we?
In Psalm 126, the Psalmist recounts God’s goodness and looks forward in hope. But the Psalmist does this in the midst of great sorrow. Yet, he confesses: “The LORD has done great things for us; we are glad.”
I don’t know the future of the PCA. I’m not even entirely sure of how I fit into the PCA. But this General Assembly was a deep reminder of how God has done great things and how we can look forward in hope.
As I reflect on my first-time GA experience, I am encouraged by the PCA. The connections, the worship, and even the moments of feeling out of place, strangely enough, make me look forward to the next GA. Even though I’m sure the question “Chattanooga, where’s that?” will come up again, I am excited to see what God will continue to do in the PCA.
Where am I?
Where I am is where God has placed me to serve my church, my presbytery, and my denomination.
Where I am is the PCA as a Korean American Teaching Elder.
Where I am is exactly where God wants me to be.
Christopher Y. Kim is a Teaching Elder in Korean Southwest Orange County Presbytery of the PCA and is currently serving as the Pastor of Community Life at the English Ministry of Inland Church in Pomona, CA. Christopher has an M.Div from Westminster Seminary California and is married to Emily. In his free time, he enjoys watching the Dodgers. You can find him here.
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