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President of Baptist World Alliance Delivers Staley
Lecture Series
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Dr. Billy Kim, president of the
Baptist World Alliance
photo by Bennett Scarborough |
Korean evangelist Dr. Billy Kim, president of the
Baptist World Alliance (BWA), was the featured speaker at Campbell
University's annual Thomas F. Staley Lecture Series for students
held on March 2-4, 2004. Speaking to the students during their
Cultural Enrichment Program, Kim related how an American soldier
during the Korean War took a personal interest in him while he was
working as a houseboy for the soldier’s outfit.
Sergeant Carl Powers, though not a Christian himself at the
time, saw potential in Billy Kim and convinced him to come to the United
States to receive his Christian education. Kim reiterated that every Korean
teenager wished to come to the United States, but he knew it would be
difficult to convince his mother to let him go. Powers helped Kim to enroll in
Bob Jones University in Greenville, SC, where he not only completed high
school, but also received his post secondary degree. For over eight years,
Powers personally paid for Kim’s education and today Kim is the president of
the 120 million-member Baptist organization the Baptist World Alliance.
Kim gave his mesmerizing testimony regarding the roadblocks
that were in his way as he pursued his education, but how he, with the strong
and unwavering support of Powers, was able to overcome temporary obstacles in
his path.
Kim told the audience how he became a Christian in his dorm
room on the Greenville, SC, campus. He later led Powers to become a Christian,
while visiting him during the summer. One of the highlights of his long and
storied ministerial career was visiting the Holy Land and baptizing Powers in
the Jordan River. Powers was the main mentor in Kim’s teenage and young adult
life. Kim’s young son, John, 11 at the time, also was baptized. John Kim is a
minister in Korea today, and Billy Kim describes him as the most spiritual of
the five-member Kim family.
Kim’s compelling message to the students was that through
difficult times, each one of them could persevere, and with Christian
guidance, achieve all their dreams. He encouraged each student to acquire a
vision as they pursued their goals and aspirations. Kim continued the Staley
Lecture Series, on March 2-4.
Founded in 1887, Campbell University is North Carolina's
second largest private institution of higher education and the second largest
Baptist university in the world. Located in Buies Creek, NC, just east of the
center of the state, Campbell combines academic excellence and Christian
commitment.
Bulletin 0050 |
