Praise God, Ignore Division

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Things that disturb me about UBF: a tendency to rewrite history to be only positive; a tendency to focus on individual and communal praise of God while ignoring the reality of painful divisions and disunity.

A recent report on the history of Asia pioneering is a clear example of what I’m talking about. Here is an excerpt for the positive-only UBF report:

“She offered her five loaves and two fish for HK pioneering mission. As a result, HK UBF has grown rapidly by raising 6 native Sunday messengers and more than 115 Sunday worshipers. Now 5 chapters are having worship service independently and 6 Korean missionaries are co-working together. We thank and praise God for using M. Angela so preciously as a mother of prayer for HK campus souls.” (source)

However, in spite of the rosy picture painted by the UBF report, the reality is very different from their perception. Clearly there has been an ongoing exodus of leaders in Hong Kong UBF. The report also includes glorious-sounding words about India UBF, completely glossing over the exodus of leaders that happened there recently.

The UBF reporter and those who posted the report and those who approved the report all know about the painful reality going on for more than a decade in Hong Kong. Yet the UBF report focuses on the sacrificial life of one missionary and ignores the division completely, just as the majority of UBF leaders continue to ignore any differing opinions regarding their ministry methods and beliefs. I pray that UBF leaders will face the facts and begin to report honestly and factually.

Praise God and ignore division? Serve God and forget about your neighbor? Sacrifice your life and mitigate the mercy of God? I don’t think so. Abraham repented of doing such things, and was blessed for it. We dare not talk about faith and serving God and obeying Christ if we cannot face the facts of our reality. How can I claim to know God if I do not attempt reconciliation, love my neighbor and fall at the mercy of God? We are in danger of becoming mystical fools if we do not face the facts of our situation.

“Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead–since he was about a hundred years old–and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.” Romans 4:19 (NIV84)

3 thoughts on “Praise God, Ignore Division”

  2. We agreed that the UBF reporter and those who posted the report and those who approved the report all know about the painful reality going on for more than a decade in Hong Kong. Yet the UBF report reported the good news but not the bad, such as the left of the HK Director last year (2010), lots of shepherds and whole fellowship disappear suddenly during the past 10 years. However, no one reported it. (Note: Most missionaries and leaders bring shame on the former UBF members while they are praising God of the growth in HKUBF on the other hand.)

    Here are more examples of “reporting the good news but not the bad” in HKUBF:

    1. While the leaders praised the growth in HKUBF, they ignored the very serious power struggle problems between former HK Director, CUHK and HKU missionary (actually as well as the shepherds). HKU missionary always defied the former HK Director publicly during the GBS. Once the Director mentioned in his Sunday message that the Yonhee Director Shep D. Kim had weakened his authority in HKUBF by diving HKUBF into three chapters in 2005. At that time, he was suffered from depression. He was suffered a lot and could not sleep at night.

    2. Once CUHK missionary praised publicly that HK UBF medical shepherds who offers two tenths income, “Three medical doctor shepherds were established. They offer offerings sacrificially offering two tenths of their income. ” (source: http://downeyubf.com/2011/01/27/asian-directors-conference-2011/)
    HKU missionary also praised HK shepherds publicly, “Even though HK is a small city rather than a country, but HK Centre’s offering to US HQ ranks no. 3 among all countries. The amount is even more than the sum of the all chapters in one country.” She was so proud of HK shepherds’ offerings. However, they ignored the reality that the shepherds are struggling to offer a lot of money to the church and they must live in poor on the earth. Some PhD. shepherds even proud of absolutely attending the Perdue University SBC by borrowing a lot of money from their parents to buy the air-tickets. Many shepherds need to borrow money from the bank in order to give marriage offerings to UBF (One month salary and offering to Director, shepherds, ……) While they praised the offerings of HK shepherds publicly, they ignore the reality that the current net worth of UBF is USD $12,896,882. While the missionaries teach the shepherds not store up their treasures on earth and not allowing them to buy their own flats, they store up a lot of net worth on earth for the missionaries and built magnificent Centres in Korea.

    It is puzzling to brothers and sisters why do UBF always praise God while ignoring the reality of painful divisions and disunity? According to the cult expert, “Only good and proper thoughts are encouraged”, “Need for obedience and dependency”, “No critical questions about leader, doctrine, or policy seen as legitimate”, are THOUGHT CONTROL and BEHAVIOR CONTROL which are the characteristics of a cult.

    In HKUBF, all brothers and sisters are not allowed to criticize the church policy or the missionaries. For those would be judged by the missionaries and leaders such as “lack of faith”, “human thoughts”, “disobedience”, “proud”, etc. during GBS or even in the Sunday message. However, those who pretend to report good news would be gloried or praised publicly or raising them as messageners or team leaders. In this way, they can easily manipulate the followers.

    In conclusion, “Praise God, Ignore Division” attitude happened in HK UBF too. There are THOUGHT CONTROL and BEHAVIOR CONTROL which are the characteristics of a cult. It is very clear that it is not because of Korean culture, but spiritual abuse. Even we are asians, we cannot accept the spiritual abuse. Hope this information can help the brothers and sisters to know the reality about HKUBF which is always praised by the Korean Director and other missionaries all over the world.

  3. HKUBF:

    I am glad that your stories are being told, around the world even. In the US UBF chapters, we heard nothing about what was going on in Hong Kong UBF. We only heard the glowing reports of how wonderful everything was.

    I pray that we may all realize that when one part of the Body suffers, we all suffer. Again, thank you for sharing.