Sumgmu’s Monthly Message, February 2026

We were all shocked to know that John Fillian passed away suddenly, and for many of us, it still feels unreal. We thought that John was healthy, and he had recently been very active at the church. He came to check the church building in the morning on that day when he passed away and emailed me in the afternoon about a trustee’s meeting.

When I was a lay person, I thought that a pastor should know everything about God and explain everything about Christian life. But I say to you, “I can neither explain nor understand why this happened to him, such a good person.” But there is one thing I can tell you for sure: John Fillian is now in a good place with God. There is another thing I can tell you for sure: sooner or later, you and I will see him again in heaven. He just went ahead of us.

John always came to church early on Sunday morning and opened the doors for the service. On Sunday, when I arrived at the church, I found that snow was not removed from the ramp to the sanctuary. I said to myself, “It is strange! What happened to John?”

I knew soon the reason. Kristine came to the church and said to me, “My dad passed away last night. I am here because my dad would have wanted me to let you know this in-person rather than over the phone.” This is John Fillian, and this is his family, so respectful and considerate. And I could not control my tears.

lLast year, when the dryer at the parsonage was broken, I texted him, and he was there immediately. After looking at it, he said, “I think I can take care of this.” About a week later, when he got the part, he came again and worked very hard to fix it. He was very happy that our church saved money. I remember he smiled at me, saying, “It cost 3 dollars 95 cents.” You can imagine how much our church would have paid for a repair service.

When there was something wrong with the parsonage heating boiler or the parsonage gas burner, he was the one I called. And he took care of it willingly and joyfully. He was a faithful humble servant of Jesus Christ, and I have respected him very much.

It could be natural that there are conflicts between the pastor and the active member in doing ministry. Yet, he was always supportive to me and made me comfortable at our church, never criticizing or blaming me. I have lost one of my best friends, and our church has lost one of the most dedicated members.

Since he had been so good to us, our pain is greater than ever. We are crying now because we will not see him again in this world. But let us not fall into depression. John would not want us to be sad continually. He would not want us to mourn but celebrate his life. Let us learn from him and become faithful members of the church.

John Fillian! You have been faithful to God and God’s church. You have done so many things for other people. Now, you take care of yourself and enjoy in heaven with God. We will miss you a lot. And see you in heaven sooner or later!

Sungmu Lee