Profile: Hyepin Im
Hyepin Im answered God's call, and her life hasn't been the same since.
"I wanted my life to be an inspiration where others would be inspired to serve God."
In junior high school, Hyepin Im's father told her she should go into ministry. It was not what she wanted to hear.
 "I always told God in prayer, 'God if you ever do call me, let me know very clearly, and I will obey whether I like it or not.' And I started off reluctantly, but once I answered the call, God turned my fears and reluctance into great joy."
Im founded and is president of Korean Churches for Community Development in Los Angeles, a nonprofit faith-based organization established to help Korean and other Asian-American churches expand their social services in areas such as affordable housing, job training and economic development. Their goal is to assist low-income people move from poverty to self-sustenance.
"My parents were in ministry and I saw how hard they worked," she said. "And it was not just my parents but other Korean pastors who worked just as hard. Korean-American pastors and Korean-American churches are really literally compelled to respond to the needs of the congregation who are in desperate need."
“God has amazing plans, and if you answer God's call, really amazing things are out there for you.”
Im came to the U.S. with her parents when she was seven. As immigrants in the 1980s, they had very little income and yet God provided a way for them, she said.
God also provided a way for her to go to college through a scholarship program. "And so through that I saw that God was alive and living and that He cared."
"When I answered God’s call to ministry I never imagined all the things that I had been searching so hard and working so hard on my own towards that wasn’t happening for me, I would find it when I answered God’s call to ministry ... whether it was career opportunities, whether it was meeting my spouse, whether it was with my family relationships ... all those things and so much more, God just opened one door after another."
 In their fourth year, Korean Churches for Community Development won a "historic $5 million grant" from the U.S. Department of Labor to serve at-risk Asian youth and young adults, she said.
"Because of the work that I do and with the name Korean Churches for Community Development, I've been in many settings where I've been able to witness to a Congress member, a council general, to different individuals with the White House, to mainstream corporations, to so many people about the amazing work of God in my life."
Im is married to Jim Kim whom she describes as a "key anchor in my life." They have a ten-year-old son named Timothy.
Im says she has many favorite Scripture verses, but the most life-changing one for her is Proverbs 3:5-8: "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, lean not in your own understanding, in all ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your path."
"When God opens a door, whether it makes sense or not, it is important to walk through....God has amazing plans, and if you answer God's call, really amazing things are out there for you."
The following people contributed to this Profile:
Audio story by Mike Hickcox; print story by Kathy Gilbert; videography by Studio Luxe.
UMC.org Profiles are produced by Pam Price, 615-742-5405.
Hyepin's Spiritual Gifts
- Interpretation of Tongues
- Shepherding
- Exhortation
- Apostleship
- Compassion
Learn more about your spiritual gifts
Hyepin's Recommended Resources
Experiencing God by Henry Blackaby
Your Love Broke Through - The Worship Songs of Keith Green
The life of Joseph
High Resolution Video for use in worship services
Windows Media
QuickTime
You may need to update your media player to view these videos properly: Windows Media Player | QuickTime Player
| 
