by Moon Choi

There are more couples at Lighthouse that have been set up than one would think – Jin and Grace Lee are an example of it. A good friend of theirs, a former member of Lighthouse, set up a blind date for the two of them when Grace was in the OC. After four and a half months of dating, they got engaged.

At church, I had to pull them away as soon as second service ended because I knew that they’d get caught up chatting with other people. As I approached them, Grace said, “You caught me in the middle of Jin abusing me!” My puzzled expression must’ve prompted Grace to explain the situation: she had given away their box of Samoas. And Jin loves Samoas. Sitting in the back corner of the sanctuary of the old building, I asked them what the challenges and blessings of their marriage were. They both responded that they feel very blessed to be married. This is something that kept on coming up throughout their interview – they would just look at each other before responding to the question. However, they were quick to say that there are still struggles because they are not perfect. Grace said, “Really, it’s still two sinners coming together.” Jin quickly chimed in, “But it’s still joyful. It’s like – 95% joys.” He added that the things that they argue over stem from being selfish over small, silly things (“Like Samoas,” he said), and that though their marriage isn’t perfect, the joys and blessings far outweighed the struggles and challenges. “We’re always reminded that marriage is a gift,” said Grace.

Then when asked why they wanted to serve in College Life, they said that it was because they had always wanted to serve Christ together as a couple and that the collegians were a group that they wanted to minister to because “it’s such an impactful time,” Grace said. Jin joked, saying that they had no choice but to serve in College Life because the Single Life ministry already had enough people serving in it. Still, they said that it’s been great and that they’ve constantly been learning a lot through serving in the ministry.
“I was thinking about that!” Jin exclaimed, when Grace said that Jin dances for her. They couldn’t quite pinpoint a single favorite quirk about each other. “She laughs at my stupid jokes – and she has a cute laugh,” Jin said with a smile, looking at Grace. Then turning back to look at me, she said, “And I love his silliness. He reminds me to just have fun.”

“Well, anything else that you’d like to add?” I asked them as the interview neared its end.

Jin reiterated that though their marriage is great and it’s such a big blessing, there are still challenges. Grace, too, reiterated that it is two sinners coming together. “But I think that we’re still in our honeymoon stage,” Jin said. Grace added that it is so crucial to put Christ as the center of their marriage and that they end the day in prayer together. “You really need to love and nurture.”