NGI May News Letter - vol.5
2018/06/21 12:15 am
NGI NEWS
Nehemiah One Million Prayer Petition & Prayer Night
1,700 NGI Prayer Warriors are praying for the North Koreans!
As of May, 2018, 1,700 people (from 28 countries, 345 cities) have signed the Nehemiah One Million Prayer Petition to pray for the 25 Million North Koreans.
Complete freedom is not possible in North Korea. Human rights are not guaranteed. Many people are calling for the closure of political prison camps, a strong indication of human rights abuses in the North. For political purposes, North Korea even imprisons foreigners under charges titled ‘Plot to Overturn the Country’. Moreover, North Korea limits freedom of religion to keep their power structures. They kill or imprison missionaries and Christians in the country.
According to UN statistics, in 2016, 30% of North Koreans have suffered from multiple famines. Currently 1.3 million children under the age of five (5) are estimated to be malnourished. Our call as Christians is to provide for the poor around us. North and South Korea are one nation. We are neighbors. We are brothers. NGI knew the first thing we could do to help North Koreans was to pray. That was the start of the “One Million Prayer Petition.”
In the land of God, there are still 25 million North Koreans who are suffering. If you have not signed yet, please join the movement. Please encourage people around to pray together. Thank you everyone for participating. During the month of June, please pray for the doors to North Korea to open soon and free North Koreans from all persecution.
[ Prayer Petition ] http://pray4nk.org/sign
Every Tuesday at 7:30 PM (GMT +9), we hold the “Nehemiah Prayer Meeting.” to pray for the North Koreans. Everyone is welcome to come and pray together. For any inquires about the meeting, please visit the website.
[Prayer Meeting Website] http://pray4nk.org/prayer-gathering
Nehemiah North Korea Missions Academy
We are approaching the end of our Nehemiah North Korea Missions Academy, which started March 24th. We have completed 9 of 12 sections for this year’s academy, and it is getting intense as wrap up.
In May, three lectures and one ministry experience were held to include ‘healing ministry’, ‘rescuing North Korean refugee ministry’ and ‘Properly Knowing the North Korean Regime’ which was designed to better understand North Korea missions in depth. The main speaker for the ‘healing ministry’ was pastor Shin Kim who has an active healing ministry in the United States, China and South Korea. We explored how to deal with latent anger while experiencing a deeper relationship with God through learning prayers that uproot this anger.
The speaker for the ‘North Korean Refugee’s Rescue Ministry’ lecturehas dedicated his life to rescue North Korean refugees, having Liberated over four-thousand North Korean refugees thus far. He shared his moving testimony and we heard heartbreaking stories of many north Korean refugees, for whom we now pray.
Moreover, we learned from the minister who is running for the evangelism of North Korea how North Korea has maintained its regime for the last 20~30 years and how we should perceive its regime In mid-May, as a ministry experience, we went to Yellow Sea and participated in sending rice and bibles to North Korean residents by ocean current.
Nehemiah’s North Korea Missions Academy is the program to nurture reunification missionaries who will serve North Korean refugees and North Korean residents upon reunification.
Please pray with us that through this academy, all the students will continue to strive to understand God’s heart and His thoughts towards North Korea so that it will flow into their lives and be a link to practical service.
Help North Korean Citizens Directly
Continuing from last April, on May 15, people from NGI were heading to the west side ocean for passing sets of the bottles filled with rice, 1 USD and handwritten letters at the West sea.
And the students from NKMA(Nehemiah North Korea Missions Academy) joined us for their internship programme.
Some of the participant students shared their experiences.
JinJu, Lee said, “ I could feel the love of God for the hearts prepared for the gospel in North Korea.”
YuNa, Kim said, “ I was touched when I saw the sets of the bottles headed north at the sea.”
ChilSu,Heo said, ”I hope people in the North Korea, continuously could receive the bottles containing rice and bible through this ministry.”
WanSik, Lyu said, “I am very glad God used me to help the work. I believe these bottles would benefit both physically and spiritually.”
As a part of the 'Help North Korean Citizens Directly', We, NGI, hope we can continuously send physical and spiritual food to the north. Please pray for the ministry. If you would like join us for the ministry, please contact to us, Ministry Headquarters, NGI(Tel : +82-2-363-8488 / E-mail : [email protected]
English Reunification Camp NERC
“2018 Nehemiah English Reunification Camp” will be held on Jeju Island for 7 days and 6 nights, from July 29th to August 4th.
North and South Korean youth will be instructed by volunteers from English speaking countries. Freindships and strong bonds form through small group interactions while learning English and encountering God in powerful ways, including a variety of worship services.
It is a time for the South Korean and North Korean students to interact and connect through various programs, further understanding each other and accepting one another. They experience first-hand what “becoming one” is like, as we envision Korea’s reunification.
North Korean refugee students receive full scholarships of 350,000 won and more information can be found in the link below. Partner with us through prayer for this year’s NERC
Link: NERC - 2018 Nehemiah English Reunification Camp
NGI INTERVIEW [ I'm coming to see you. ]
In the May issue, we met Kayla Vezeau, a translator for NGI.
Q. Hi, Kayla. It's nice to meet you. Could you please introduce yourself and tell us about your life in Korea?
A. My name is Kayla Vezeau and I'm from Canada. I first came to Korea in the fall of 2011 to work while I pay off my student debt. I've been teaching English to students in Seoul ever since. Outside of work, I like to spend time writing, drawing, and boxing.
Q. What are your personal life goals for the next 10 years?
A. That is a really good question. You know, I thought I had my life planned out, but then God totally turned everything upside down. I thought that I would stay in Korea long-term, hoping to transition out of teaching English full time so that I could serve as a full-time minister. But instead I felt Him call me to leave this fall to go back to Canada and attend YWAM DTS in Honolulu in January 2019. So, at this point I can’t really say what my personal goals are for the next 10 years.
Q. What made you become an NGI volunteer? Can you tell us what you've been doing with NGI?
A. When I was working as a part time English teacher, a friend from another NGO called to tell me that they needed someone to teach English to NK refugees. I've been teaching English as a volunteer since then. In June last year, the academy I worked for closed down and God told me not to find other jobs until fall came. Because of the way things turned out, I was able to serve as a full-time volunteer at NGI in charge of planning and implementing game workshops at the English Reunification Camp. Currently I am help translate and proofread documents for NGI.
Q. You told us you will leave Korea this fall after 7 years in the country. Do you plan to continue volunteering in NGI?
A. Oh Yes! As I've told you, I will leave Korea in a few months but I plan to keep working with NGI overseas. Translating, proof reading and so on; I want to help in whatever way possible. I hope to come back to Korea in the near future, after I finish my DTS training, and would love to do more work with NGI. NGI is focused on reaching and helping those that are in North Korea or who have defected into South Korea. I share that same desire to reach and serve and would love to continue working alongside them.
Q .You participated in the Nehemiah North Korea Missions Academy as a student, what was your motivation for that?
A. I knew that I needed to learn more about North Korea, and how to really support and help the people there, in order to become a more effective missionary to them. Fortunately, NGI started the Nehemiah North Korea Missions Academy, so I signed up.
I learned a lot through the academy. Mainly, I learned more about God's heart for the people of NK as well as the different ways in which we can help North Koreans and refugees. There were many topics that were covered and addressed, which were especially interesting as events unfolded on the peninsula while taking the class. The experience helped cultivate intimacy with God and I learned more about spiritual warfare, as well as what reunification could look like. Hearing stories from those who were either in prison, or have escaped North Korea, also helped give more of an insight into what happens there and what might we be able to do to help.
I'm personally thankful that even though most of the classes were in Korean and there were only two foreign students out of 30 students, there was English translation every single class.
Q. Lastly, is there anything you'd like to say to NGI groups, sponsors, or future volunteers?
A. I wish that more and more people would catch the vision of NGI and be willing to come alongside us whether it is through financial support or volunteering. I believe that we all have something to give or offer. Nothing will be more rewarding.
