When I played for funeral services, sometimes I heard Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 read, which is about a time for everything. Whenever I listened to these verses, it let me think about where I stand at the moment, and it gave me a kind of mysterious comfort. According to this message, we don’t have to be too sad and hopeless when we are in trouble. On the other hand, we should not be arrogant when we are successful.

When I started serving First Presbyterian Church in 2011, I was in a difficult time. It was, however, a great time for me too. It was a time for me to grow as a church musician and a person as well. Being led to this church reassured me that God had not ceased watching over me and preparing me for the next steps.

During the last 7 years plus some more months, I have had a wonderful part of my life. I have received an abundance of love from the church family and enjoyed blessed fellowship with them. Musically speaking, I have had chances to perform a lot of great pieces of music, including some of my life-dream pieces, such as Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy with the church choir and other musicians for the community.

Now, it’s time to move on. I feel like I am leaving my parents’ house when I need to keep growing up. First Presbyterian Church members have expressed their sadness to let me and my family go, but I also can see that they give their love and blessings, just like all parents do when they let their grown children leave them.

I will leave Waterloo, the Cedar Valley, and the state of Iowa after my last service on Christmas Eve at First Presbyterian Church. I will start serving Central Reformed Church in Grand Rapids, Michigan as Director of Music Ministries on Monday, January 7, 2019. My feeling is like going back to my birth place, since that state is the place where I spent my first 12 years in the USA with my family, and where the two universities I graduated from are. But, I will miss the state of Iowa and the Waterloo/Cedar Falls area, and especially First Presbyterian family for the rest of my life. You have helped me grow and loved me like my parents and family. Thank you all for everything, and God’s blessings to you all.