book review by Carol Lee

Pastor Ché Ahn’s biography, Into the Fire is an honest, practical exploration of his own personal walk as pastor for a struggling church in southern California, his devastating descent into spiritual "dryness" in 1993, his personal spiritual renewal and the renewal of his relationship with God and other significant people in his life, and the spiritual revival which lead to the founding of Harvest Rock Church and Harvest International Ministries (H.I.M.).

Basically, the book is a chronology of events and occurrences in Pastor Ché’s life which led him to the founding of Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena, California and the H.I.M. network. However, it is also dedicated to recording, in detail, Pastor Ché’s personal learning and growth born of each life-changing encounter with the Holy Spirit. Pastor Ché also dedicates a good portion of his book to exploring key relationships in his life, including those with his father and wife, the healing of which brought about first a personal renewal, which then opened up the spiritual channels for full renewal and revival of his ministry.

For those seeking practical suggestions on how to enter into spiritual renewal and revival, Pastor Ché’s book offers such insight after each chapter. He recommends books to read, what to pray for and how to pray, and makes other suggestions with respect to fostering key relationships with people and organizations in the Christian community.

What strikes me most about Pastor Ché’s book is the refreshing simplicity, honesty and humility with which he expresses his joy when faced with clear leading from God. He relates to us the clear "road signs" that God put in his path to confirm in his heart that his prayers were in line with God’s will for him and his wife, Sue. Some of the more memorable signs he speaks of include the following: after nine years of pastoring at a church where he felt spiritually "dry", the head pastor of his church initiated a suggestion that Pastor Ché plant a new church in Los Angeles – just as Pastor Ché had prayed he would; after much prayer about a difficult decision, God speaks to Pastor Ché and his wife through a re-run showing of the "700 Club"; when faced with a decision of taking a huge leap of faith by renting out the costly Mott Auditorium for his church, God speaks through a friend’s dream of "Mott’s Applesauce"; Pastor Ché is hit with his first authentic "fall" by the power of the Holy Spirit (after a few self-confessed "courtesy falls"). At times, the writing is so transparent that I find myself laughing in self-recognition and wondering why I ever thought pastors were so much more "holy" than myself. Pastor Ché’s evident humility when sharing mistakes he has made and learned from on his spiritual walk reminds us powerfully that we are all wounded, imperfect healers, and that regardless of our "station" in life, we are all commissioned by Jesus to seek him and love him with all our heart, all our soul, and with all our mind. Where such active love and hunger leads us in service of Him is the only thing differentiating us as His disciples.