Most of our orphanage ministry summer volunteers have arrived!  Here is a picture of some of us at a dinner meeting this past Sunday… John (ministry staff), Helen, Esther, Christine, me… other side (farthest to closest) Eunice, Jee, Amy, and Mina (ministry staff).  Sandy was at the meeting but had to leave early and isn’t in the picture.

Nam San Children’s Home:  Christine and Amy.  Their blog is: www.xanga.com/namsanchildrenshome08

Sang Rok Children’s Home:  Sandy, Eunice, and Esther.  Their blog is: http://www.xanga.com/sangrokchildrenhome08

Myung Jin Children’s Home:  Jee and Helen.  Their blog is:  www.xanga.com/myeongjin08

The volunteers will be living in their respective orphanages for one – two months (6 volunteers = 2 months, 4 = 1 month).  They will be teaching the kids English, spending time with the children, and learning what its like to live and serve in a children’s home.  My prayer is that each will keep close with the Lord and will thus bear good fruit here in Korea and also return to America stronger in the Lord, with testimonies to share, and with a bigger heart for the broken.  I know as the initial excitement of missions/orphanage ministry wears off, each volunteer will need perseverance to finish strong.  Pray for them and check out their blogs!  And our ministry site: www.jerusalemministry.org.

Mad Cow Madness

I don’t think most of the world outside Korea knows, but during the past couple months there were a growing number of protests against a new beef trade deal between South Korea and the USA because of mad cow disease.  South Korea stopped importing beef from the US in 2003 when there were three mad cow cases in the States.  Since then the importing was closed until just recently.  But, despite there not having been a single case of mad cow since 2003, many people in Korea have gotten more and more worked up over the new deal.  Rumors on the internet and over the radio circulated first that American beef is dangerous, then that American beef is deadly, and then rumors even circulated that Americans don’t even eat American beef!!!  The propaganda and false press have gotten so bad that my kids really believe that if they eat American beef they will die.  I even show them pictures of me in America eating meat and they still can’t believe the meat is safe.  The propaganda has brainwashed them.  Its really shocking. 

Leaders who are mainly responsible for all the protesting and stirring up of the people admit to foreign press (which most Koreans don’t read or watch) that there really isn’t that much of a big deal with mad cow disease, but that they oppose other stuff the president is doing and needed to use this as their starting point to rally the people against him.  Korean citizens that are in the know (who read foreign press and know the truth about what is happening) are concerned at how easily lies are spread through the media.  Korean kids will believe nearly anything if its on TV.  A TV program a couple years ago claimed that Jesus’ body had been found, so some of my elementary kids told me they didn’t believe in the Bible anymore.  So ridiculous. 

This propaganda isn’t just happening in South Korea but in most countries in the world.  I believe that the false press will only get worse with time, rather then better.  I honestly feel that its only by the Word of God and the Spirit’s revelation that Christians will be able to know right from wrong, the truth from lies, as this world becomes darker.

John 8:32 – Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. 

This past week I attended the annual arts/writing competition for kids from the children homes in Seoul.  Its held at Seoul Grand Park.  My best friend Hong was with us as was Semy.  Enjoy the pics!

A volunteer, Hong, Semy, a visiting Japanese orphanage worker Togashi, and dorm father Dong Min

Soo Jin and her little brother Dal Woo

Ah Reum

Chae Hyun

Young Eun

Hae Ji and Se Bin

Min Shik and Chae Hyun

My kids discovered the “color highlight” mode on my camera… as I’ve mentioned before, nearly all the pictures I post on this xanga were pictures my kids took with my camera…

Young Eun

Soo Jin

Hae Ji

Jae

Min Shik with his painting

Min Je working on his

Hyun Hee

Min Shik and Min Je

Our group

An extra pic… eating Korean bbq with Hong

God bless!

Which Choice Do You Choose?

This summer Jerusalem Ministry has 11 short term orphanage volunteers coming to live in some of the homes we serve at here in Seoul.  We call them “interns” because they will basically be living the same life that myself and our other full time volunteer John Lee live.  Two months probably won’t be enough time to build deep powerful relationships or be super effective, but it is enough time to experience living and serving in an orphanage and learning how to love these kids.  As a ministry, like any company who takes on interns, our hope is that some of the volunteers will develop a heart for the kids and for the ministry and will eventually return to join us.  But even if that isn’t the case for them, we hope and pray that each will glorify God through their service and will come out of this experience stronger in their walk with God. 

I have told some of the volunteers that they will have three choices as they serve…

1)  To just have fun with the kids, relax, and enjoy Seoul… making no lasting impact on the kids and experiencing no growth with God

2)  To really try to share God’s love with the kids, but then experience spiritual warfare and have to endure different struggles, and eventually become frustrated and filled with bitterness… thus again making no lasting impact on the kids and actually returning home in worst shape then before

3)  To really try to share God’s love with the kids and to KEEP FAITHFUL in their quiet times (reading the Word and praying each day), and then to experience the spiritual warfare and have to endure different struggles, but to continue to be faithful in prayer and in the Word and soon experience God’s eventual deliverance… thus making a positive impact on the kids because the volunteers were faithful in seeking God and thus were reflecting Christ’s light each day to them and then to return home stronger and more confident in God’s love and faithfulness

Spiritual warfare only comes to those who can effectively be used by God.  To those who are just “living life,” Satan could care less about them.  If spiritual warfare does come, Satan can succeed in “crippling” us if we aren’t bringing our requests to God in prayer.  Its only when we remain on our knees in prayer each day that we have the strength and discernment to overcome the tricks of Satan and live victoriously in Christ.  He is our strength!

SEND MONEY FAST!!! 

The orphanage’s last remaining basketball hoop has fallen apart.  What will the children do???  Better yet, what will JM do!?!??!  

Alright alright, so the money request is just a joke.  =)  Right after the basketball rim collapsed my best friend Hong, who was visiting the past few days, joked that we should take a picture of the kids crying and post it on this xanga asking for money.  We got a good laugh from it.  Only In Chul and Sang Hoon (boys in pictures) were able to pretend cry enough, all the other kids would laugh as we would try to take the picture.  Hopefully I will be able to fix the rim tomorrow with a worker here…

I had a good visit with Hong (below).  We’ve been friends since I was 8 years old (1990).   

I’m a bit tired so this will be all for this post.  I will post more pictures next week.  God bless!

Waiting…

King Saul in the Bible looked like he would be perfect for the throne.  He was tall, the most handsome guy in Israel, humble, and patient.  But then his character began to change as he did the Lord’s work.  As he became victorious, the success began to get to him.  Pride took over and he was soon making altars for himself rather than for God.  So God disposed of him and set up “a man after his own heart” in David.

But how was David different from Saul?  David was handsome, humble, and patient as well.  But David wasn’t handed the throne like Saul was.  David had to wait for it… for more than 13 years.  And during that waiting period he served as a lowly shepherd for his father, as a musician and as a soldier for the king, and then later he had to run for his life in the wilderness.  It was during this time of waiting that David was emptied of himself.  He learned time and time again that the battle is God’s and that God alone is due the glory. 

The difference between Saul and David is that Saul was handed the kingdom on a platter.  He had never gone through a time of testing or learned to wait on the Lord.  In fact, his first major mistake was not waiting long enough for the Lord (1Samuel 13).  David had to wait for the kingdom.  He received a promise for it, but it would take those 13 long, humbling years before he would get half of the kingship, and another 7 years before he was fully king over Israel.

And so I wait. 

Empty me of me Lord, fill me with You.  Deliver me of any anxious thoughts of the future and put my delight fully in You.  Be my joy always, no matter where I am in life.  Amen!

Random Pics of Kids… all of these except one (Eun Ji) were taken by other kids… actually, about 90% of the pictures on my xanga are taken by my kids and not by me

Myung Bae

Eun Ji

Jin Seul and Yoo Jin

Soo Hoon and Il Ho

Young Jin

Chae Ho

Chae Young (Chae Ho’s brother)

Sung Kee

Min Je… as I was measuring his height (I measure some of the kids’ height every year and keep track of it, they enjoy it)

Jung Ho

Hae Hyun is still recovering from liver cancer, but has improved a lot… today I rough-housed with her and some other kids for the first time since she contracted the cancer last August… please continue to pray for her that the cancer will completely be gone from her system

Hae Hyun brushing her teeth

God bless!  =)

Orphanage Ministry – The Needs of the Kids…

The other day I wrote out “The Need” part to the website for the orphanage ministry I am directing here in Seoul… www.jerusalemministry.org.  I emphasized how committed, loving relationships are so critical for these children.  That more than food, clothes, money, or even education, what the kids need is love. 

As I looked over what I had written, I couldn’t help but think, “I haven’t included a single word about salvation or evangelism in any of this.  Our ministry is a Christian ministry and so shouldn’t there be more of a missions evangelistic purpose to it?”  But then I felt God reassure me that before these kids can be approached with the 4 spiritual laws or put their trust in God, they first need to receive the loving touch from Him.  That I can’t preach to some girl about a loving Father and tell her to put her trust in Him when the only father she has known has abused her and then abandoned her.  First she needs to receive a touch of His love before she can open her heart to Him.

My friend Ruda shared this with me today… in Mark 1:40 a man covered with leprosy fell to the ground before Jesus and begged Jesus to heal him. 

Mark 1:41-42 – Filled with compassion, Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man.  “I am willing,” he said.  “Be clean!”  Immediately the leprosy left him and he was cured.

Before Jesus pronounced the man’s healing and cleansing, He first reached out and did what no other person would do… He touched the man with leprosy.  The man had been devoid of such touch ever since he contracted the disease.  In many other instances of healing it was the touch of Jesus that helped rid the person of their disease.  It is this same touch that our orphanage ministry hopes to provide for the children.  To love them and reach out to them, just as Christ would. 

Seoul Land!

Every year our orphanage gets to go to the amusement park Seoul Land.  Here are some pics from our most recent trip…

Yoo Jin and Young Eun enduring punishment…

Some of the girls on my least favorite ride: “The Viking.”  This one does numbers on my stomach…

So I chose not to ride “The Spinner” the first time around… this thing would spin around and around while also moving up and down… yay for amusement park rides!

The kids loved it though and asked me to ride it with them, so I prayed for my stomach and then took a ride…

The girls further down…

Surprisingly my stomach was fine, it was a fun ride…

Here are some of the kids riding, “The Shot Drop” tower ride…

Other kids waiting…

Some of our younger boys

Last, here are pics of the “scariest” ride at Seoul Land, one that costs money:  Sky-X.  Its the bungee swing ride.  A number of kids wanted to try it this year, so I offered to pay for half the cost for them.  Here are Soo Jin, Young Eun, and Jin Seul before riding

I rode with Choong Hyuk and Yoo Jin 

The girls being lifted up

Us at the top

The drop

Yong Hee and Young Jin watching

Choong Hyuk and I afterwards

Young Eun and Jin Seul

Hope you enjoyed the pics!  God bless!