Home of Christ in Los Angeles (HOCLA) from July 4th through 6th held a retreat every night at 7:30pm titled "2005 Rev. Shao An Kuo's Retreat." The theme of the event is based on the book "Purpose Drive Life" written by Rev. Rick Warren. Drawing from the scriptures and from his own life experiences, Rev. Kuo guided the retreat attendants in searching for purpose in their every day lives.

On the last day of the retreat, Rev. Kuo experienced difficulty in speaking due to a minor throat disease, yet he continued to preach with passion reaching out to the crowd.

"Once I was told that for some people, if you don't preach to them, no one else ever will. I sat in the back of the chapel, and when I heard those words, tears fell from

my face. It was then I devoted my life to ministry." Said Rev. Kou in the beginning of his sermon.

Throughout the night, Rev. Kou focused on the God who makes failure into success. Drawing example from the book of Ruth, Rev. Kuo pointed out Elimelech, the husband of Naomi, as the decision maker who have driven his family to ruins, yet Naomi, although a widow, was able to make the right decisions and changed the destiny of the family around.

Rev. Kou singled out the sins of Elimelech, and compared today to the days of the Judges when there was no king and every did as they pleased. He asserted in his sermon that problems do not occur because of the environment, but rather it roots from the person. The essential solution is not to seek another place for shelter, but to return to God, and make God the king.

During the sermon, many attendants were moved and fell into tears. In closing, Rev. Kou prayed for a return of faith to God, both believers and non-believers, and requested the attendance to stand and confess their gratitude to the Lord. Over 100 attendants were present at the last night.

Rev. Kuo is the senior pastor of the Home of Christ church in Taipei, also the son of the founder Rev. Shi Yuan Kuo. He has been known for hosting several TV programs and the president of the Kingdom Revival Newspapers.

This retreat is one of the three events Rev. Kuo is attending in his short stay in the United States. He has preached in San Diego at a conference sponsored by the Chinese Mission Overseas Inc. on July 1-3, and the retreat at HOCLA. On July 7-8 he will preach at the Full Gospel Business Men Fellowship North American Conference along with several prominent Taiwanese pastors. He make his return to Taiwan on Friday night.