[Orlando, USA] The Christmas Cantata in a City of Fairy Tales

The 25th city is Orlando.

Orlando, the city of Disney World fairy tales with the world’s greatest theme park, is the last destination of the 2015 US Christmas Cantata Tour. Here in the Orlando Church are 13 members and it is their 3rd Christmas Cantata this year.

Missionary Hojun Ki says he felt burden in his circumstances thinking, “God who helped with the first and second Cantata, will he also help with the third?” The costs of renting the venue was already a burden but the brothers and sisters were also filled with burdensome feelings. It seemed as though God was asking Missionary Ki, “Have you freed yourself from burdensome feelings?” Feeling shameful before God, the Missionary shared his heart with other pastors to receive a heart of hope towards the Cantata that God rejoices in.

At 5 pm, the Christian Leader’s Meeting was held with the participation of 50 leaders.

Juan D. Grullon said, “Today’s gospel was clear and concise. The Words today were about the basics and fundamentals of how to receive salvation. I do not need to prepare any sermon for today and tomorrow’s Sunday sermon. I’m just going to go and preached based on the Words I heard today.”

“The Words today were really interesting. God’s Words changes our heart and opens our lives. This is a blessing to us. Jesus tells us that we are righteous beings. It is the Words of God so our salvation has been fulfilled in Heaven, not this earth. It’s the first time I have seen the gospel being preached this way. If Jesus says it is wine then it is wine. What we think doesn’t matter because God is always right.”- Ivan and Carmen Gonzalez couple

Since an hour before the performance, the vicinity of the Bob Carr Theater started bustling. The line of Orlando citizens wishing to see the Orlando Christmas Cantata today kept on increasing. From the entrance to the theater, over 200 meters of line continued to tonight’s Christmas Cantata.

Sister Hyangdan Lim of Orlando Church who manages a Japanese restaurant says, “The Cantata was a valuable time through which I learned God.” Being the third year of the Cantata, she simply thought, “I’ll just prepare as I always did with the church.” But 2 weeks ago, he daughter went through an accident and she questioned God, “I was trying to work with the church but why did you give me such a problem?” Missionary Ki delivered the Sister with the heart of God who rejoices in the Cantata and began to gain hope. Her daughter whose life was in danger suddenly got better in a week and seeing that she was thankful before God. “It was difficult but God taught me His world that is beyond my limits and I was able to prepare the Cantata with joy.”

At 7 pm, the last Cantata began in Orlando and the audience immersed into a deep emotional state as they watched each and every expression of the performance into the 3rd stage.

Armando Ramírez, the Clerk of the circuit court of Kissimmee city who attended the Christmas Cantata said, “I think the main point of the Cantata was that Jesus took away all our sins. God’s Son took away all sins and by the blood of Jesus all our sins have been redeemed. I think our country also needs such gospel.”

Samuel Ings, a member of the Orlando city council expressed his overwhelming joy, “The Cantata touched my heart and made me connected to Jesus” and “This performance needs to run at least twice in Orlando.” “The Gracias Choir is truly welcome. The performance is absolutely awesome. It’s so thankful that Jesus has been depicted as king of kings. It was wonderful enough to feel like the Heavens had opened and an angel came down. As I saw the Cantata, I realized where the King is from. I liked the sermon but as I also heard the story of John Choi who was stung by a scorpion and it was impressive that the doctor had said he’d die but was healed by the power of God.”

The 2200 Orlando citizens stood in ovation even after the Gracias Choir had sung the last encore song and ‘God Bless America’ and were unable to leave the performance hall. The Gracias Choir’s Christmas Cantata has presented the citizens a dreamlike moment.

The Christmas Cantata US Tour that began on the 19th of September in New Jersey came to an end on the 16th of October in Orlando. For about a month, the Christmas Cantata has toured 25 US cities and delivered the ‘good news’ to 1000 Christian leaders and a hundred thousand citizens. The one message delivered through the Cantata performance let the American citizens know the fact that Jesus’ blood had already redeemed all sins. The American citizens shed tears at God’s love and were moved. America was founded with the Christianity but as time passed and the people lived an abundant life, they drifted away from Jesus. However, they searched Jesus in the depths of their hearts and became sincere and pure before the Words of God. During the Cantata tour, the American citizens accepted the gospel of Heaven and no longer look towards this earth, moving to the world of eternity. We look forward to America changing as the gospel had been spread throughout the entire country through the 2015 US Christmas Cantata.