Goodbye Letter 001: Claire (South Africa)

This is the first in a series of goodbye letters from people who are moving away and leaving KNU International English Church.  I hope this will be a good way for people to end in a spirit of appreciation and for our church to understand the impact we are having.  This is all inspired by Michael Palmer's post: The Beauty in Goodbye.
Our first installment comes from Claire of South Africa.  We baptized Claire in the fall of 2011.  Without further ado, here's Claire's goodbye.

     Getting ready to leave Korea after a year of teaching here has turned into a difficult thing for me.  I will be gone at the start of March, and it's hard to believe my year is at an end.
     When I arrived last year, I was looking forward to a year of being away from all the things that made me unhappy in South Africa.  Especially a home that had changed into something I hardly recognized over the last few years because of addictions, co-dependencies and lack of acceptance of each other.  My home used to be the place I wanted to be when things went wrong, but it had become the one place I desperately wanted to get away from.
     I was quick to learn though that your problems don't change just because you change where you are.  I remember a conversation I had with a new friend I had made at KNU International English Church in Cheonan.  After telling him my story, he told me that a year might not be as long as I wanted it to be.

The Gospel of Restoration - Isaiah 61

             Hello.  My name is Josh, and I’m an alcoholic.

             I’m a porn addict, a compulsive gambler, a smoker, and a semi-regular crack user.

             I’m a shopaholic, workaholic, me-aholic.

             I’m the child of abusive parents, and now I’m a codependant adult.

             I beat my wife, and I’m more than $100,000 in debt.

             I am a rape victim, and I’m a sexual abuser.

             I’m grieving the loss of a loved one.

             I’m a racist, a legalist, a moralist, and a recovering hypocrite.

             I am depressed and lonely. 

Sometimes I have thoughts of suicide.  I may even have a plan.

I look like I have a lot of friends, but really I have a very hard time developing meaningful relationships.

I’m struggling with problems with my parents, and my marriage is falling apart.

I’m obsessed with my looks, and I have an eating disorder.

I’m addicted to the internet, and I am a flagrant procrastinator.  Not a good combination!

I have deep resentment and hidden anger.

I am addicted to romance.

My life is dominated by anxiety.

I use profanity often – especially when I’m not at church.

I can’t stop gossiping, no matter how many times I tell myself I’m going to stop.

I’m beginning to lose hope in God.

I am actually an athiest.

I doubt everything all the time.

I value achievement more than love.

I’m struggling to become the person God wants me to be, and I’m beginning to give up.

I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired.

I am lost, captive, blind, despairing, mourning, helpless, and hopeless.

I am broken.  I am a sinner.

Some of these are true of me.  All of these are true for someone in this room.