Videos and Pictures

Last Saturday I took some of my 3rd – 5th graders to an English market in downtown Seoul.  The kids received some American money and then had to speak English to the people behind the counters in order to buy stuff.  Also, if the kids sang a song in English, they could get something for free.  My kids were shy at first, but then started to have fun.

Yong Shin and Il Ho, after some coaxing, singing “Lord You Call Me the Light of the World”  Can you understand it?

Il Ho and Yong Shin

Hae Ji and Eun Ji trying to haggle, “Discount, please!”

Two girls offering free hugs

Hae Ji giving one of them a hug

Yong Shin with a Santa wig

The kids with a friendly guy from Southeast DC

Eun Ji, Hae Ji, Il Ho, and Byung Chul singing again

Last, a short clip from the performance night last week… the kids from the baby room did a couple dances… super cute!

God bless!

ONE YEAR

Its hard to believe that a year ago I was packing my suitcases, having no clue what my life would be like in Korea.  So many questions/fears were running through my mind, questions like: 

“Will the kids accept me?”
“Can I really learn Korean?” 
“Will I have a decent place to sleep at the orphanage?”
“Will I have English-speaking friends/fellowship?”
“Will I be able to endure?” 

God has answered them all.  He has provided for my every need.  It took time, but the prayers of my supporters in America helped carry me through those first few months.  God has proven His promises true to me time and time again.  I’ve learned in life that to really experience God, you have to be living by faith.  If your life doesn’t require any faith (the simple, easy life), you likely will never experience the power of God.  But if you put yourself in God’s hands and choose to obey Him, He will reveal awesome adventures meant for You and show You just how close He really is.  He is good!!!

Jars of Clay – Waiting for the World to Fall (song I played on this xanga when I was coming to Korea last year)

Merry Christmas everyone!!!  All the children are really happy here at the orphanage, including me.  We just had our Christmas Eve service and the kids received their Christmas present (a new pair of shoes for each child).  We’ve had some nice meals from sponsors and the kids also received some really nice presents last Wednesday from a group of US soldiers that visited.  Last Thursday we had a huge special performance night for people who either sponsor our orphanage or volunteer here.  The kids did great!  Enjoy the pictures and I hope you have a blessed day celebrating Jesus’ birth. 

Yoon Ji receiving a present (she just ate some jja jang myun, hence the messy face)

Na Rae and her new hat

The toddlers

Steavenn Glean, a US soldier stationed in Seoul who sponsors three kids here, including these two happy girls

Orphanage group shot with the visiting US soldiers

Joon Hyuk with his present from the US soldiers

Pictures from our special performance night… first, the little ones did a little dance

Junior high girls dancing to the song “Romans 16:19″

Elementary kids playing on their records… I thought Min Je (boy in the middle) looked like Harry Potter a little… maybe not

Junior high boys performing a song in sign language

The 1st and 2nd graders doing a dance

Dal Woo during the dance

My high school kids doing a simple “Adam and Eve” skit in English… they were really funny

My high school kids now doing ”King Solomon’s Wise Ruling” skit… you can’t see the two girls in the picture, but I want you to know that is Na Rae that the boy is holding on the right (live baby) 

High school boys performed a couple songs using chimes

My elementary students sang “Light of the World” in English and in Korean… the three middle boys did hand motions while the others held candles

Soo Yun

Sun Hee and me

With some of my elementary kids after the performance

With some of my high school students (Yun Hwa who played Eve is missing)

With some of the dorm mothers and dorm father

With Pastor Chae and his wife Mrs. Chae

God bless you all!!!

“When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” – Colossians 3:4.

Lately the dorm mothers have been discouraged more.  The kids aren’t listening or obeying as much and the dorm mothers aren’t sure what to do.  Yesterday morning I led a prayer meeting with some of them in one of the dorm rooms while the kids were at school.  I noticed tears going down the face of one of the dorm mother’s as we prayed for the kids and for the orphanage.  These kids are tough and let us down often.  I had another rough day yesterday and so last night and this morning I kept asking God, “Why? What do I do God? What can I do??”  I never got an answer.  I couldn’t understand why God was allowing these struggles.  But then after lunch today one of the dorm mothers talked with me for a while in the cafeteria.  She is a strong Christian, but is only 22 years old and in charge of 14 boys (ages 10 – 16).  Tears came down her face as she shared some of her struggles with the kids.  I understood her struggles.  I encouraged her a little, but more than anything she just needed let it all out to someone.  I came back here and cried as I prayed for this place.  That verse, Colossians 3:4 keeps coming to my mind.  Jesus was a man of sorrows and familiar with suffering (Isaiah 53:3).  He knows our every struggle, our every pain.  He can truly relate.  Although we can’t see Him now, He is working and He is near us.  He is my hope.  He is the dorm mothers hope too.  His Presence gives us strength to carry on.  These momentary struggles help take away the numbness of everday life and remind me to keep looking to Him and seeking His return.  Don’t let this entry discourage you, it wasn’t meant to.  I know God is going to help us out, He is not going to abandon us.  Rather, I hope this entry will encourage you to pray and to recognize we are living for something so much better… His return.  “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.  When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory” – Colossians 3:3-4.

Heat – As Angels Looked On (my favorite song at Christmas time)

As angels looked on
You humbled yourself
And gave up your glorious throne
Obedient to God
You came to the earth
Full of compassion for us

What can I do before such love?
Unto your majesty I bow

For you are the Almighty One
You will be adored in all the earth
No one is as wonderful
Wonderful as you

With this entry, you will have now met every child here at Geon Orphanage.  I have now covered 7 different dorm rooms (1 baby room, 2 girl rooms, 4 boy rooms). 

Welcome to Peace Room! (평화방)

Yo Han Jung

Sang Yong

Soo Hwan

Kyung Min

Min Ho

Sang Kook

Choong Hee

Go Hyun… I lost his picture!  I had let the kids borrow my camera and they deleted it but took this one instead (Go Hyun a couple years ago)… I’ll post a more recent picture of Go Hyun soon

Keun Oh

Yong Soo

Doo Bong (the oldest at the orphanage)

Choong Hee again…

Sang Yong, Kyung Min, and Yo Han

Yo Han again

Kyung Min again

Yo Han in the snow

It was really snowing tonight!!!  The younger kids called me outside around 10:30pm to play in it.  It was all the kids against me, but one boy Dong Chan decided he wanted to be on my side.  A couple of the elementary boys started yelling out, “Korea versus JM!”  Dong Chan in seriousness said to me, “We are Japan.”  I had to laugh, I love kids’ imaginations. 

Check the video in my last post if you haven’t already.  God bless you all!

GEM Memories…

This skit was done at the infamous GEM 2004 pink-eye camp.  This video is clips put together, so it is missing some little things.  I uploaded this for a former GEM volunteer, but then figured I’d share with everybody.  Notice how skinny all of us were, including military man David.  This camp wore us out, but was mad blessed. 

I would encourage you to use this skit if you are serving at a winter youth retreat or doing missions.  If you can’t read Korean, the words on the signs express either his sins or his trauma depending on the scene.

Stuff missing (in order, each only taking a few seconds): him messing up when playing a game with his friends so he gets ditched by them, party people coming on stage and encouraging him to join them, Jesus (me) trying to comfort him after his hangover and him shaking Jesus off, after his parents push him away him falling on his knees with his head down in despair and then (after a moment of stage going dark and people taking positions) awaking in Hell, and finally Jesus breaking free of the Cross as he sits in agony. 

Editor’s Note – If you are from Virginia and plan to fly out to Korea for Christmas or winter break, PLEASE leave a comment.  I might ask you to receive a few small things from my parents to carry with you here for me.  Thanks!

Welcome to Faith Room!  (믿음방)

Sun Jae

Joon Hyuk (I love this picture, he was purposefully being goofy)

Da Woo

Ji Hoon

Yoo Min

Myung Bae

Soo Hoon

Min Je

Byung Chul

Yong Shin

Myung Mook

Jong Hyun… 9th grade, and somewhat of a father/leader for the rest of the boys, the dorm mothers appreciate his help a lot

Mimi dorm mother with Sun Jae (I let Mimi borrow my camera to take the last three pictures for me while I was gone yesterday… she put on make-up just for this picture, the goofball.  Other dorm mothers and staff have complained that they were unprepared for my picture taking and didn’t look their best, which I guess is true… me being a guy, I’m somewhat oblivious to the whole make-up thing)

Mi Jung dorm mother and Joon Hyuk

Da Woo and Ji Hoon playing a Korean kids’ game

Yoo Min and Da Woo

Sun Jae looking tough for a 4 year old

Min Je playing with a yo-yo (he wanted me to take a picture of him doing this)

Yong Shin being goofy

Da Woo and Soo Hoon playing soccer in their bedroom

Another blurry shot, too much action for my camera… Myung Bae was playing goalie at the door

So Yun, our orphanage’s dietician, she makes sure the kids are eating okay

Mrs. Lee, our orphanage’s main cook

Ajoomah… her real name is Ms. Kim Sook Ja, but we all lovingly call her simply “Ajoomah,” which is a Korean term for a woman roughly between the age of 30 – 55… she is one of our orphanage’s two cleaning ladies…

One Hundred Hours – Taste and See

Today I let the first graders invade to watch a movie (Totoro, a weird Japanese kids’ movie).  After the movie I played hide and seek with them and then one of the boys had me pretend I was King Kong and chase them around.  When I would catch them I would pick them up and playfully tackle them on some cushions.  These kids wore me out and so at one point, after playing for a while and tackling them, I didn’t get up but instead layed there and rested with my eyes closed.  The kids then yelled out (in Korean), “Oh no!  King Kong died!”  “Wake up King Kong!  Wake up!”  Good times…

Welcome to Hope Room! (소망방)

Sun Hee

Hae Hyun

Soo Yun

Hae Ji

Sun Mi

Se Bin

Hyun Hee Joo

Jin Seul

Eun Jin

Kot Nim

Eun Song

Yoo Ree

Sun Hee and Ms. Kim dorm mother… Ms. Kim was severely burned when she was a young child.  She knew Pastor Chae and he used some of his American connections to have her sent to the United States for treatment.  She lived in the United States for two years while recovering and receiving surgery, and then returned to Korea and grew up with the children in the orphanage.  She has been a dorm mother here for over 20 years and the kids love her and appreciate her a lot

Soo Yun dorm mother and little Soo Yun

Sun Hee and Soo Yun

Sun Mi again (with another one of the girls trying to get in the picture too)

Se Bin again

Group pic

Se Bin and Soo Yun

Sun Hee acting goofy with Soo Yun and me (Hae Hyun behind me)

Sun Hee, Soo Yun and me

I brought some Christmas lights with me from America to put up on my balcony outside my apartment.  I didn’t realize just how long my balcony is until I began putting up the lights.  As I was hanging them outside, the kids were coming back from school.  They were all curious about what I was doing… people don’t hang Christmas lights here in Korea, at least not at their homes.  The kids were excited to see the lights at night.  I’m hoping they may bring some extra light and joy to the kids. 

Some of the younger girls on my balcony

I’ll have to purchase another strand of these lights next time, two wasn’t enough.  The baby room is below my apartment.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures!  Two more rooms to go and you will have met all the kids. 

Watermark – Take Me There