Going up to the Holy Mountain of the Lord   / Eric Maia  

Jiri Mountain is a special place for all of us here at Pyung Kang Cheil Church because that’s where Rev. Abraham Park wrote the books of the Redemption series 45 years ago.

As I prepared to go to Jiri Mountain 2 verses kept coming to my mind, Exodus 19:16 (16 So it came about on the third day, when it was morning, that there were thunder and lightning flashes and a thick cloud upon the mountain and a very loud trumpet sound, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled.)andExodus24:9,11(9 Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, 11Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank.)

As we prepared to climb the Mountain it felt as if all of us were going up to Jiri Mountain to meet God like the nobles of Israel. I was praying that when we arrived to the mountain top that God would show Himself through the thick cloud and thunder and lighting and that we could listen to His voice.

As I climbed Jiri Mountain all my thoughts were going towards what Rev. Abraham Park had to go through going up the Mountain by himself over 45 years ago. I am sure that there were no stairs on the way up like the many stairs we saw while climbing; I am sure that there was not a clear pathway like today and for sure he was by himself and no one to talk with.

When we arrived at the mountain top it was a relief that the top was finally reached after almost 4 hours of a very steep climb.  Even tough it was a hard climb, I kept thinking it’s nothing compared to what Rev. Abraham had to go through as he ascended and descended without having enough to eat and even to drink.  The view from the top is very amazing like the view of the chief mountain among the other lower mountains.

From there we went on a long line to wait for our turn to go to the cave where Rev. Abraham Park lived for 3 years 6 months and 7 days.  As we were waiting to go to the cave a thick cloud came and started to cover one side of the mountain. And the cloud started to come over us and we started to be inside this thick cloud as we were waiting for our turn to go to the cave.

When we finally reached the cave it felt like the Holiest place within the Mountain; like the Holy of Holies within Ezekiel’s temple 

(Ezekiel40:22 In the visions of God He brought me into the land of Israel and set me on a very high mountain). For it was on the highest mountain in the region and everyone wanted to go in it to pray.  At the same time, as I looked around and saw that the cave was surrounded by mountains it felt really lonely; how could anyone live here? How did Rev. Abraham Park live here with wild beasts, not enough food to eat, no one to talk with and the unknown that every night brings? It must have been really difficult.

As I prayed in the cave, my thoughts became very clear and organized, and I realized how blessed of a place this is. Even tough it’s a sad place to live, I realized that this is where the History of Redemption series was born and from here it will go to the ends of the earth in order to spread the knowledge of God.

Once we returned to Church, we were able to meet with Rev. Abraham Park and he answered all the questions that I had when I was going to the mountain: “I was able to overcome through the Lord Jesus Christ.”

In conclusion, amazingly enough, the thick cloud came to meet us at the mountain top and we heard God’s Words through the Redemption Series books. The most important thing I realized while going to Jiri Mt.  was that I thought that by seeing pictures and hearing the words about Jiri Mountain that I had an idea of what Rev. Park went through when he lived there.  But when I actually went to the place and saw it, I was really astonished at the reality and I was able to feel and see some of the pains that he must have gone through. This experience encouraged me not to take lightly the redemption series books, to make an extra effort to read them and when reading it, to try to imagine the pain he was going through while writing them at Jiri Mountain