Elijah Foundation Blog

Christmas in Singapore

2011-12-31T01:17:00.000-06:00

Thanks to our wonderful hosts Jason and Violet, our family were able to spend our 2nd Christmas as missionaries in beautiful and clean Singapore.

Letter from Shapan Orphanage

2011-08-26T02:49:00.001-05:00

Dear Pastor Daniel,

I am much appreciate you for helping “Shapan” . I have been living in Mai Ja Yang for more than ten years ago. I also visited “Shapan” this year are much better than the previous. The coordinator (Shapan in charge ) work really well. She toke care as her children/grand children.

I would like to share from my view:-

The students are much go ahead from other. Because now there are many Internal Displace People (IDPs) and move to Mai Ja Yang school. They are behind from then.

I saw the students at Church every week and they sing a song. It is very good simple. Now in Kachin State there are fighting in many places. In Mai Ja Yang church 24 hours praying for all. The Shapan students are involving this program too.

My organization is call Bridging Rural Integrated Development & Grass-root Empowerment (BRIDGE). We also teach gardening at Shapan compound. We teach how to make composting and planning vegetable. After the school they do the gardening which is practically doing. I would like to say the students are improving a lot.

Hers is a short report from the coordinator:-

1. 13 June 2011 to 3 July 2011 the Mai Ja Yang was closed for the civil war. When the school closed they learned Basic Chinese language, Work gardening more and pray program for all.

2. This year with your help the students got mosquito net. The students can sleep well and less malaria illness.

3. Could provide medicine and the students who have skin disease get cured.

4. We could provide meat for meal and fruits after meal sometime. This year the students got good nutrition and healthy.

5. Every student has new uniform and sees happy face. It is very good motivation for the students.

Sincerely,

Hkaw Lwi

Introducing Shapan Boarder Orphanage - Kachin, Burma

2011-05-23T04:21:00.002-05:00

After spending about 8 months in prayers and preparation, we have started our newest project. This project is located in Burma in the northern autonomous state named Kachin. Almost as soon as we arrived in Thailand, we were introduced to Kachin ladies (Yog and her sister Su Hkwang). Along with their family, they immigrated to Thailand and currently lives here in Chiangmai. Yog is currently teaching at an OMF seminary here in Chiangmai. Through them, we heard first hand about the hardships her fellow countrymen were enduring each day in Burma due to 30 years of civil unrest caused by internal political strife. Along with few other autonomous states, Kachin has been fighting a civil war with the Burmese government. This has caused tremendous civil unrest, extreme poverty, illegal drug trafficking , and deterioration in various social sectors such as healthcare and education. One can just imagine the difficult standards they live by each day when you hear that the entire city in which they live in went without electricity for one whole year in 2009. These kind of conditions breed injustice and exploitation of the weakest in every society: children.

But God is the father to the fatherless and the defender of the weak, and has faithfully raised up His people to advocate His cause. Ms. Thu Lum has answered Gods call and has scrapped up what she can and started a ministry in Mai Ja Yang city which is a border town near China-Burma border in Kachin State. On June 10, 2007, she started Shapan Boarder Orphanage to provide Christian care for children who has been orphaned or extremely marginalized by poverty. For the last 4 years, it has been struggling to keep it's doors open and we consider it a miracle that it is still open until this day.

When God brought us together, we felt like a partnership made in heaven but we wanted to be sure! So, after arranging a meeting with the director of Shapan Boarder Orphanage, Ms. Thu Lum, we have been in prayers to find Gods clear leading for the past 8 months. In the course of waiting and preparing, God has made it clear to us to become partners in this wonderful ministry. Elijah Foundation will support Shapan Orphanage's full-operation of it's day to day activities (food, education, clothing, spiritual care etc.) and will also advocate and raise awareness for it's ministries and projects. They currently have 31 children and 3 staff at Shapn Boarder Orphanage.

Thank you for your continual partnership and prayer.

Community

2011-03-14T07:27:00.000-05:00

It has been 3 weeks since our NCPC team had gone back home to Chicago after their brief yet great one-week mission trip to Thailand. I had to admit that one week was a very blessed time for my family! But I also have to admit that the last 3 weeks have been very difficult for my family and me. The fact is, we really miss the NCPC community and have been wondering when we can have a community like NCPC here in Thailand. Soo and I were independently pondering this for the past 3 weeks and just this morning we shared our frustrations openly. It was a good time of venting about our situation, exploring the possibilities here in Thailand, and admonishing one another for our selfish ways. It was one of those conversations where our hearts met with God's desire for us. During our conversation, it dawned on us that we have been longing for a community and wanting what we had/have back in Chicago but have not been investing properly here in Thailand.

Communities are not formed just because you desire a community...communities are formed because Christians are committed in obeying the Words of God. We are not entitled to a wonderful community just because we are Christians. It becomes a part of us as we get our hands and feet dirty. We were victims of today's consumerism that desires immediate gratification. We wanted a community like NCPC and we wanted it now! The problem is we couldn't buy it even if we wanted to.

The hard work of having a community must start with me. I must start seeing people in light of ministry and not as problems to be solved or as their usefulness to serve my purposes. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, in his wonderful book entitled "Life Together" wrote these words: "Not what a man is in himself as a Christian, his spirituality and piety, constitutes the basis of our community. What determines our brotherhood is what that man is by reason of Christ. Our community with one another consists solely in what Christ has done to both of us." Another words, Christian community is not based on our physical, emotional, or even spiritual compatibility! Community of God is not a country club but a body of believers who are truly grateful for the grace of Jesus and are willing to follow Him together.

Now, onto the hard work...

God's Sense of Humor

2011-02-14T05:56:00.000-06:00

As I wait for the time to go to the airport to welcome our NCPC team to Chiang Mai, I was drawn to the computer for time of reflection and prayer. We are hosting our first short-term missions team and they are from our home church NCPC! This reality is very exciting for our family and we have been eagerly waiting and preparing to be good hosts. Double confirmed on lodging, triple confirmed on van reservation (I think this made the ladies at Journey Van Rental office quite mad), made a spreadsheet of our activities, prayed everyday even tried to fast for the team (which I failed), I think everything is ready...hopefully...

As I sit and reflect, I chuckled by myself as I thought about churches that I have attended and currently attending. Allow me to explain...

When I was a little boy (at the tender age of 10), my family and I moved from Korea to America. In America, for 32 years, I attended churches that were predominantly Asian. Now that we moved from America to Thailand (back to Asia), we have settled at a church (Chiang Mai Christian Fellowship) which is predominantly Caucasian. It is so ironic that I believe only God can orchestrate something like this. As I think about such twists in fate, I can only laugh to myself and see the hand of God in my life.
This week, at the invitation of the church, I have submitted my application to be an Elder at Chiang Mai Christian Fellowship. And on February 27th, I will be preaching for the first time at CCF.

I have to admit, it feels a little weird to be getting involved with a new church while NCPC (my home church) is coming to visit us. Regardless, I have this strange peace in my heart because I know that God will use everything for His glory and someday I might have the pleasure of seeing His wonderful plans in panoramic.

Relationships-The most important thing in my life.

2011-02-04T22:34:00.001-06:00

In the month of January, I was able to spend 3 weeks visiting 4 cities in America - Chicago, Tucson, Las Vegas, and Los Angeles. It sounds weird to say "visiting America" as I spent most of my life living in America. However, as I flew into Chicago, something was different - I couldn't put my finger on what it was exactly but it felt little different. Maybe it was nostalgia as I found myself driving around my old neighborhood, driving past my old house few times, visiting old stores and restaurants like Target, Jason's Deli, Portillo's and of course Bob Chinn's. Whatever that feeling was it brought out many different emotions in me and few times I had that sinking feeling in between the heart and stomach. Did you ever feel that way before?

Anyway, it was really good to see NCPC community, family, and good friends during this trip. I was once again reminded how important community and relationships are in my life. If my life can be summarized by one word, I think it will be "relationships." I think it is my most valued treasure and I spend all my life investing in it. I think it all stems from my belief that there is nothing you can take to heaven except your relationships. "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart." (Job 1:21) There is nothing material that we can take up to heaven but Bible also reminds us that we will recognize each other in heaven. Jesus will still have His scars to remind us of His time on earth and the rich man can identify Lazarus in the after-life (Luke 16). Armed with this value, I continue to live my life spending time with people with hopes to encourage and to be encouraged...and on this trip I was able to encourage and be encouraged! There were many memorable moments but one stuck out more than others. In Los Angeles, my friend wanted to visit a church with me. We had few discussions about Christianity and I always wanted to model Christianity before him as I prayed for his salvation. So, when this opportunity arose, I was delighted to take him to a church. I was even more encouraged as the preacher talked about the very issue that my friend and I were discussing couple of days earlier. This was no coincidence and my friend recognized it and he now wants to take his family and attend church more often.

I may be a missionary in a foreign country thousands of miles away from my loved ones but my heart is always near my friends and family with desire to lead, to help, and to pray that they will grow closer in relationship with Jesus.

If you spend few minutes sharing and opening up your life with me, I promise to spend hours spending it with you and on behalf of you before our Heavenly Father.

Visas

2010-12-31T02:43:00.001-06:00

After few months of planning, praying and presenting ourselves to the immigration office here in Thailand, all of the Jung Family received our renewable 1 year Thai Visas! Thanks everyone for your prayers!

2010 in Reflection

2010-12-30T20:56:00.000-06:00

Today is the last day of 2010 and what a year it has been! As I sit quietly and reflecting on the past year, it is truly amazing to see God's footprints in my life. Through the experience of cancer in your loved one (my mom went through stage 3 uterine cancer), I was able to understand, sympathize and pray for those who are going through similar trials. What do you say to those who are experiencing tremendous pain in their lives? Truth is, there is nothing you can do or say to change their situation. The only things that we can do is be there with them, pray for them, and remind them of the love of God who will use our pains and all other experiences to bring us closer in relationship with Him. We are reminded that our ultimate place is heaven and in that place, God will restore all things for all eternity.

Secondly, God answered my family's year long prayer by confirming our call to the mission field. It was a very difficult decision for us as it meant leaving our family, our church NCPC, our friends, and our community to pursue a new life in a new country. We agonized over our decision but God made it very plain and simple for us: Go! God opened doors for us and gave us the support from everyone. When you see the community of God working together to affirm something, it is a beautiful and very powerful thing to see!

As I reflect beyond 2010, I noticed God's major movements in my life happened almost every 10 years. I was born in 1968 (let's say 1970), then I immigrated to America in 1978 (let's say 1980), then I graduated from college and joined adulthood in 1990, then in year 2000, God led me to Korea and I got married, and finally in 2010 God led me and my family to Thailand for full time missions. From Korea to America, from childhood to adulthood (from school to work place), from being single to marriage, from America to Thailand. (Of course there are other movements in between like being called to ministry and having children but I simplified it for the purpose of this blog.)

I am most certain, if you take time to reflect on 2010 and on your past, you can see God's footprints all over your life. The question is what are we to do about it?

November 2010 Update

2010-11-29T05:18:00.003-06:00

November was filled with events for the missionary Jung Family. First, Pastor Brad visited us then Soo Yoon and I celebrated our 10 year Anniversary together and we capped off the month with Thanksgiving Celebration here in Thailand.

We were so excited to see Pastor Brad in Chiang Mai! When I picked him up from the airport, he looked like Rocky Balboa right after his fight with Apollo Creed, Mr. T, and Drago "I must break you" Russian all combined :). His eye was infected during his trip in China and he looked dazed and confused at the airport. Even though we had dinner prepared at home, I took him for a quick bite to eat and took him to the hotel to get some rest. The next day he looked better but not that much better so I took him to the hospital here in Chiang Mai and he loved the health care system here. When he felt better, Soo Yoon and I met with Brad for 4 days to go through Discipleship 300 with him. These meetings were incredibly insightful and many things came forth as we dug deep to our roots and pried open the closet doors of our families. We were able to learn why we do the things we do and started on the road to healing and recovery. Bitterness and fear controlled our lives and forgiveness and faith must replace our sinful nature. We were so thankful for Pastor Brad's visit that we were very sad to see him go. I think this was the first time I felt this way about him leaving :)

On November 23, Soo Yoon and I celebrated our 10 years as married couple. I was so bad to her on our previous anniversaries, that I wanted to start off a new chapter in my life by going all out to make this anniversary very special. I wanted to do nice things for her because she has put up with me for the past 10 years. She was very gracious and was moved by everything I did. I pray we can celebrate many more anniversaries together in the future!

In Thailand, people already started to gear up for the Christmas season but no one was interested in Thanksgiving, even American people! God, in His wonderful wisdom, brought 3 other families from USA together and is building a community for us here in Chiang Mai. So, we decided to get together and have our own Thanksgiving Party! Everyone cooked delicious food and had potluck dinner at one of the missionary's house. The evening was filled with laughter, thankful hearts, sharing, and good food! Then our family drove to Khaodee Orphanage and spent the weekend there and celebrated Thanksgiving by having Thai Style BBQ with pork! Being a missionary is really changing me because I am eating pork and I am enjoying it! I am so confused right now! Soo Yoon and I were trying to converse with children in Thai and they were all so surprised at how good Soo Yoon is in speaking Thai. They weren't that surprised that my Thai was poor :(

During these events in November, there was one constant theme: Thanksgiving. I was so thankful to God for His wonderful provisions, His miracles (my wife sticking by me for the past 10 years is a miracle in my book), His beauty, and all the joys that He gives through people...community of people who are all different: People to help you, community to enjoy godly fellowship, someone to share your love with, and people you can help.

Thanks everyone for your partnership and fellowship. During these holiday season, we are already missing home and everyone back in USA. Be well and continue to focus/invest on relationships! We will be praying for you.

Superstitions

2010-10-31T03:51:00.005-05:00

Fall is the season which baseball classic is played in America. The World Series is going on as we speak and many people in America are celebrating Halloween today. As I sit in front of my desk in Thailand, somehow I am craving a good Chicago style hotdog. In fact, I have an urge to go to Portillo's and binge on all the tasty adult treats...especially the Portillo's Combo (juicy Italian beef with an Italian sausage with lots of hot peppers).

My fantasies aside, I read an article on Bangkok Post today regarding superstitions or "black magic" practiced by the Thai people. The author wrote with an assumption that this is commonly practiced by Thai people especially by the politicians. He writes, "The decision-makers of Thailand do not make a move without consulting the black arts. Don't jeer. Don't sneer. Do not mock what you don't understand. The black arts are real. There are powerful forces at work in this universe." This article is written on one of the most circulated newspaper in Thailand and written by one of the respected columnist whose writings which I read often to get perspective on Thailand and Thai people. I have lived in Thailand for only 3 months so I have much to learn about Thailand but this article was a bit surprising.

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. This kind of stuff goes on all over the world and America is not exempt from such superstitions. Baseball players are notorious for practicing superstitions. The lengths to which some ball players will go to manipulate their fate is amazing. A classic example is a famous Boston Red Sox player Wade Boggs. He ate chicken before every game, woke up at the same time every day, took exactly 150 ground balls during practice and took batting practice at 5:17 and ran sprints at exactly 7:17. He drew the Hebrew word "n-Chai" (meaning "life") in the batter's box before each at bat and he was not Jewish! Others would "kangaroo hop" over baselines, and some would brush their teeth in between innings, and some would not wash parts of their uniform or parts of their body until their streek (which could take weeks even months) is over. One pitcher, when he is on the mound, would stand when his catcher is squatting and squat if the catcher was standing.

All these sounds somewhat silly but do we have superstitions that we practice in our lives as Christians? I don't remember not praying when I am on an airplane but don't remember ever praying on a boat or a car or a train or a horse...etc. all of which are equally or more dangerous than airplanes. If not superstitions, are there anything in our lives that we practice to control our future and destiny? Waiting for God has become too difficult so we decide to take matters into our own hands. Does this sound familiar? We know that God does not need our help or advice but we tend to live our lives believing God needs our help or at least our advice in running this universe and especially our lives. (Genesis 16 is a great example of this.)

The Fall did one thing that is common in all man-kind. We all want to be like God and control our own lives and future. What are we to do as Christians? Please pray with me as we tackle this epidemic in America as in Thailand.

Feeling at Home

2010-10-15T03:49:00.002-05:00

Our family spent little over a week in Korea renewing our Thai Visas and visiting family and fellow NCPCers at large. We were delighted to see Ho Bum's family and meet Yongjoon and his "close" girlfriend for tasty dinners. We were excited to see how God was leading their lives in Korea. While in Korea, I was tempted to visit my hometown Taegu on the newly built super fast sky train but my wife had packed our schedule with other things that my desire to reminisce about my childhood home was not possible this time. We spent a third of our trip at the hospital getting physicals and various tests for me, Soo Yoon, and Kido. I don't know how Kiwon got an exemption??? Everyone got a clean bill of health except for me. I was diagnosed with high blood pressure and subsequently put on medication to treat this. Otherwise the result was exercise more and eat healthier...no surprise.

Kids had to see han-yak specialist in some deep countryside - shi-gol (Deliverance territory). When we arrived, I was disappointed to see a run-down house with an old man who didn't look much like a medicine man. I thought they were supposed to have a long white beard, black round hat, and han-boks (traditional Korean clothing). But he looked like a farmer with various opinions on politics to religion. After listening to him for about an hour, he decided to diagnose Kido and prescribed him some han-yak. When he looked at Kiwon, he said he is healthy and doesn't need anything. When he was eyeing me, I looked back at him with skeptical disbelief and was exempt from this terror.

While spending good quality time in Korea, the time to return to Thailand approached very quickly. On our last day in Korea, Soo Yoon and I asked each other this question: When we go back to Chiang Mai, would it feel like home? Would it be a haven where our heart and soul can get rest? Or would it be just a physical place...just another place in our sojourney? This curiosity kept us captive all throughout our plane ride back to Chiang Mai. After spending 3 days back in Chiang Mai, we were surprised to feel at home in Thailand. Our hearts and souls feel at rest here! We realized that home is not where your heart is but that home is where you are within God's will for your lives. This surprising revelation gave us much needed peace in our hearts. We are where God wants us to be and we will make the most of this wonderful opportunity. Life of faith is a life of promise...claiming God's promises and feeling His wonderful presence and approval. We still can't see the future and we cannot control our lives but that is okay as long as we are within God's will for us. It is my prayer that we all feel at home wherever we might be and not be restless in pursuit of worldly longings.

We are always grateful for your partnership and thank God for you always. We are counting the days now to Pastor Brad's visit to our new home.

Church, Food and Language

2010-10-09T03:45:00.005-05:00

We are now 2 months into our long-term missions in SE Asia. These last 2 months seemed like a year as everyday is stretched out due to time moving more slowly in warmer climate. We have been filling these times with grappling issues that we took for granted back in the good old USA like language, church, and food.

Soo Yoon and I have started our Thai language classes at a local language center. We were lucky to join with another missionary couple from Houston, Texas as misery loves company. Thai language is very difficult with 5 different tones (flat, rising, falling, high, and low tones). So, the same word can have 5 different meaning depending on how you say them. We haven't even gotten to the section on Thai letters and I am already struggling with brain cramps! However, learning language appears to come very naturally for Soo Yoon. No surprise here but let's not judge too quickly as I have a tendency to be a late bloomer! Our teacher already favors my wife over me as she asks longer questions in Thai and asks yes/no questions to me. Speaking of our teacher, on our first day, I was little disturbed to realize our lady teacher was a man with husky voice. However, after some time of reflection, my disturbed heart slowly changed to a compassionate heart. I started to ask questions to myself: What internal struggles must you go through to want to change your gender...and what is the mind-set of a culture that is so willing to accept such violation of the human body. Now I am glad to have her as our teacher because every day is a reminder to me of the vastness of the work here and the need for me to go deeper into this culture to not only understand but to know what it takes to help transform a person to Jesus Christ.

After visiting many different churches in Chiang Mai, our family have settled on Chiang Mai Christian Fellowship as our church here. I cannot get myself to call it "home" church as NCPC will always be our home church. After few more Sundays, we want to get involved in serving this community in some fashion. The praise leader of this church (her name is Grace and she is Korean American from Chicago!) approached me and asked about joining the praise team. When I started laughing, she was a bit confused. When I explained about my musical talents, she was very surprised that a Korean American pastor had no musical talent. Then I explained we have another Korean American pastor at NCPC with no musical talent. On a side note, I have found 2 other brothers here in Chiang Mai who I have been meeting together every 2 weeks for accountability!

In our first 6 weeks, our family struggled with food. We couldn't find right ingredients for proper cooking at home and local restaurants were always hit or miss. We all got sick few times because of food. About 2 weeks ago, we were craving Korean food and decided to spurge a little and go to a Korean BBQ restaurant. The experience was so horrible and food so terrible that when we got home that night I wanted to pack up everything and move back home to Chicago! It wasn't just this restaurant, it was the cumulation of 6 week experience with food here in Thailand. After I calmed down and realized I can't move back home, I decided to do some research on food and restaurants in Chiang Mai. Last 2 weeks, we have found few restaurants that the locals and expat community go to and our experience have been fantastic. Now I think I can stay little longer!

These are our latest experiences as missionaries here in Thailand. Our children both received their 1 year student visas but Soo Yoon and I are working on our visas. We are going to Korea next week because kids have a week off for Fall break and we have to renew our 3 month visas. We are continually meeting missionaries and learning about different ministries and there is one orphanage in Burma (Kachin State in northern Burma) that I have been praying to visit soon.

Please continue to keep us in your prayers that we will honor God and be faithful!

Recess Monitor

2010-09-29T03:43:00.002-05:00

One of my goals was to be part of the missionary community here in Chiang Mai to build up the Kingdom of God. So, I asked the question to few people, "What can I do to help right away?" Most people responded with the answer Recess Monitor. Apparently, there was a great need for volunteers to monitor recesses at Grace International School so the teachers can get a break and have lunch. So, I volunteered one day a week to oversee all 5 recesses in a day. They gave me a whistle, list of rules, and a form to fill out for my background check (I was cleared from the states of Illinois, Wisconsin, and California - I don't know about the rest of the States...). In the first couple of days, I walked around the outdoor recess with a sweat (because of the heat and humidity) and a mean look on my face (because of squinting from the sun) and I was blowing my whistle at various violations. Kids didn't seem to like me very much! But I was okay with it as long as I had the whistle in my mouth.

After few more days of monitoring, I noticed patterns in different children. Some were shy and liked to play by themselves, some were picked on a little, some were selfish, some were sharing their snacks to gain friends, some were loud, and some were very quiet. I also heard through the grapevine about children who were struggling to adjust to their new environment and families who were having very difficult time because of it. So, within few days, I found my proud whistle in my pocket and me walking around praying for children whom God prompted me to pray for. I am beginning to learn their names and I find myself smiling more. Needless to say, the children seem to like me more now.

I know this doesn't seem much and I am wondering what God will lead me to do next but I am enjoying this simple process. I am so used to trying to do something bigger and great (like Naaman in 2 Kings 5:1-14) that I neglect the simple and pure things. I hope I can make a difference for God's Kingdom not with a whistle but with prayers and purity...

Living in Thailand

2010-09-15T03:41:00.002-05:00

I woke up past few mornings with a question: "What am I doing here in Thailand?" I am eating exotic fruits, bargaining to save 50 cents, driving on the left side of the street, fending off all kinds of insects, discovering new species of lizards, learning a new language with letters that I can't seem to figure out, choosing which church to attend each Sunday, visiting Immigration office every week, fighting with my wife to get some space (we are spending way too much time together!) and on and on. Everything still seems very surreal to me. I wake up sometimes thinking I am still back in Chicago but the reality of being in Thailand hits me real fast when I enter Thai style bathrooms or when I take a whiff of Thai air which is combination of fruit, incense, waste, pollution, and hot suffocating humidity...it all depends on which way the wind is blowing.

I am really living in Thailand with my family!

Living in Thailand has other challenges as well. Even though I am a pastor, I am pretty spiritually dense. My pastor friends would visit different countries and cities with me and talk about "spiritual darkness" of places that we visit but I had no idea what they were talking about. Nothing usually phased me until now. Few nights my wife and I woke up in the middle of the night with a gripping fear and would not be able to fall asleep again. Sometimes when I am exploring the city on my scooter and praying at the same time (this can be dangerous physically), I get a sense of spiritual stronghold upon this city. I recently learned that there is a sacred Buddhist temple on top of the mountain that overlooks the city of Chiang Mai. This temple is sacred to Buddhist because the story is that Buddha's bones are buried in this temple. A white elephant was given the task of carrying the bones of Buddha from India and when it arrived on the foot of the mountain in Chiang Mai, it collapsed and died. It is so sacred that all of the freshmen class at Chiang Mai University has to make a "mini" pilgrimage to this temple on foot. Spiritual battles are real and it is very evident in places like Chiang Mai. Our house had a picture of Buddha on top of the front door which we promptly removed after we moved in. We covet your prayers to fight this spiritual battle!

There is another battle that I am fighting. Now that the busyness of moving to Thailand and settling down in Thailand is almost over, everything seems to have slowed down to a crawl. I think this is the reason why I am asking the question: "What am I doing here in Thailand?" I am a doer and I am feeling a bit restless to do something or to accomplish something for God's Kingdom. This is an internal battle with my personality and character. Often I find myself rushing into things without a game plan (often moved by my compassion and sense of justice), and regretfully pulling back due to character of the people that I would be partnering with or realizing the sustainability of such ministry - that I might cause more harm if I can't see it through to completion. My family and I came here with a game plan - to be patient in the first year and learn as much as we can without engrossing ourselves in full commitment to particular ministry. We have come with a long-term view of missions in mind. To help us in this, please pray for our patience, wisdom and discernment, skill in learning the language, finalizing our long term visa, and for our health.

Thank you for your partnership and reading this blog.

Our Transition to Chiang Mai

2010-08-10T03:38:00.001-05:00

It has been pretty hectic getting adjusted and everyday has been an adventure thus far. We scheduled to sublet a house until end of August but on the day of checking in, we were told that someone else was staying there and we cannot use the place. So, we got a guest house nearby but the place was like a jungle with no internet in the rooms and bad breakfast not to mention mosquitoes. Anyway, we started to look for housing and didn't know where to start. Someone suggested to drive around the neighborhoods that we wanted to rent and look for rent signs. So, we hired a taxi to drive us around all day and looked at houses. This was a bad idea so I searched and found a real estate agent who spent couple of days showing us some places. We found 2 that we liked but chose the one that was closest to kids school. But since it wasn't ready for us to move in, we booked a hotel this time until Sunday or Monday 8/16. Kids school starts on 8/16 and we had orientation, luncheon, testing, uniform buying, etc.

Mosquitoes love Kido and he scratched so much that he got infected in 2 places so he is on antibiotics right now. Everything is pretty hard. Opening a bank account and internet connection was an all day adventure. Soon we have to settle into our new house and work on visa. I am not sure if we are going to buy a car anytime soon. I am going to do some research before buying anything. But I think I will get a scooter soon. So, that is our update so far.

We really felt your prayers this week especially in our search for rental house. God provided such good people who went out of their way to help us and we found a house which was perfect for us. Reasonably priced, 3 blocks away from kids school, which my wife liked. We talked to some newcomer missionaries at kid's school and they all seemed to have similar stories and are still looking for housing and were asking me for advice!

Me and Soo had our first fight b/c we were so tired that we got into each other's nerve. But we worked it out and feel better about it all. Kido and Kiwon kidnapped a gecko from the "jungle" hotel to be their pet and when it died the same day from their mis-treatment and had to put it in the toilet (proper burial or not), they were crying hysterically.

Next week Pastor Peter Yi (Pastor from Toronto) and his family is coming into Chiang Mai for 4 days.

Thanks for all your support and prayers.

Seven Years of God's Faithfulness

2008-10-22T10:55:00.000-05:00

Seven years ago, God provided a check for $800 from a dear friend and partner to be used to start Elijah Foundation. That money was used to pay for legal/application fee to organize EF as a 501 C 3 Non-Profit Organization. Since then, God has provided us with 5 orphanages in 3 countries! We are supporting over 200 children and teaching them about the love of Jesus Christ!

I recently visited Khaodee (Chiang Rai, Thailand on October, 2008), the first orphanage under our care, and reflected on God's faithfulness. As I walked around the community, I remembered how each building/structure came to be. Dormitories, library, widow homes and staff homes, EF home for visitors, water reservoir, each segment of concrete road, bathrooms, storage, playground, etc. They were all created within the last 7 years through God's faithfulness and through generous giving by God's faithful stewards. I was in amazement of what God has done within the last 7 years.

Then, I started to reflect about the many children of Khaodee...those children who I knew from the beginning and those children who are new and those who passed through Khaodee. The images of those children smiling and growing almost unrecognizablely taller/bigger brought a huge smile to my face. However, a thought ran through my mind. How are they doing spiritually? Have they grown in the knowledge of the Lord as they have grown physically? What can be done to help them grow in this area?

As I was praying through these questions, I realized that God is faithful in this area as well. These children are not my kids, even though they call me "Paaw" (which means "Father" in Thai), they are God's special children and He will look after them. As I was having a meeting with Pastor Simoon, God made this point very clear. During our meeting, 3 things surfaces and none of it related to another building project or any physical need. It centered around spiritual growth! They wanted my help to raise the spiritual level of the staff so they can be refreshed and so that they can teach the children better. They also wanted my help to start a Revival Meeting for the entire city of Chiang Rai using our children to lead worship and to evangelize their friends and neighbors! Those came as music to my ears and I was more than happy to oblige. We made plans for our first Revival Meeting on December 5-7 in a small stadium inside the city of Chiang Rai.

This is our first ever event like this and I do not know how things will turn out. Will 800 to 1000 people show up as we are expecting? Will our children be ready to share the gospel to their friends? Will this be a success or a failure? There are many questions, but for some reason I don't find myself worried. Maybe, it is because our God is faithful.

Pastor Danny

Vietnam Vision Trip Reflection - Pastor Danny

2006-10-02T11:07:00.000-05:00

The first half of our trip to Vietnam found us in the northern part of Vietnam. We traveled to the capital city, Hanoi and to the beautiful Ha Long Bay which is about 3 hours (car ride) East of Hanoi. Being in a new country for the first time can be very emotionally and spiritually draining. The first night in Vietnam, I felt very oppressed spiritually as dark images crept into my imagination when I had my eyes closed. It went away when I opened my eyes but the reality of spiritual battle seems to be all around Vietnam. I didn’t see small spiritual houses guarding a store or someone’s house nor did I see images of Buddha or a picture of a King on every wall as is the case in Thailand. Regardless, spiritual battles seem very real in this country with only small percentage of 82 million people being Christians. There are few visible churches which were given official licenses to practice Christianity in this communist country. But later I learned that these are mere illusions of religious freedom because the only reason these churches are allowed to exist is because Vietnam wants to join the WTO. There is no guarantee that these churches will continue to exist once they are formally given entry into the WTO. There are 54 ethnic groups living in Vietnam of which Viet (or Kinh) people account for 88 percent of the total population and are mostly concentrated in the lowlands. Most of the other ethnic minority groups live in mountainous areas (Hill Tribes) in the north. Many of the Christians are found among these ethnic minorities and there are still numerous accounts of their persecution by the Vietnamese government.

We then flew into Ho Chi Minh City (better known as Saigon) to be greeted by traffic jam likes of which I had never experienced before. The roads were covered with a sea of motor bikes in all directions and the city was enclosed with dense pollution which made me dizzy and gasping for some fresh oxygen. When we traveled on our taxi going only 200 yards in 30 minutes and driving in reverse on the opposite side of the street only to be where we first started, I understood why there were so many motor bikes in this city.
Saigon is nothing like Hanoi. Hanoi is a quaint easy going city covered with “an old city” charm with values of old communism. Saigon, on the other hand, is a bustling metropolitan city which can be a poster child for modern capitalism. There are neon lights advertising their product, greeters in front of every store enticing the potential customer with flyers or with words, and everything seems to be open 24 hours a day for people willing to pay money for their product or services.

On one occasion, I turned to Hoon Lee (my travel companion) and asked, “Can you remind me why we are in this country?” He replied, “c’mon you know…” Yes, I did know but sometimes I have to be reminded because I am easily distracted. It was in Saigon that we met our Vietnamese contact and shared our visions together. I don’t think Vietnam will be as easy to get started like Thailand was. When we began in Thailand, we were young and naïve. God knew that we had no clue what we were doing so he led us by the hand. But, now that we have grown a little, God reminded me of a story in Mark 9 where the naïve and young disciples of Jesus, who showed some early successes in their ministry, could not heal a little boy with an evil spirit. When this boy was healed by Jesus, his disciples asked him privately, “Why couldn’t we drive it out?” Jesus replied, “This kind can come out ONLY by prayer.” (Mark 9:29)
God reminded me that this time it will take much more prayer.

Pastor Danny 10-02-2006

On the Road to the Killing Fields

2004-02-26T23:27:00.000-06:00

"On the Road to the Killing Fields" - By Pastor Daniel Jung - February 26, 2004

As soon as I stepped off the airplane in Phnom Penh, my worldview has changed yet once again. My initial feelings about Cambodia can be summarized by this simple statement: "This has to be the poorest country that I have ever seen in my life." This war torn country has not recovered from the atrocities done by the Khmer Rouge (from 1975-1979 when they killed more than 2 million of their own people which at that point in their history was about 1/3 of their total population). Today, Cambodia has about 11 million people of which about 1 million people populate their biggest city Phnom Penh. There was hardly any evidence of western influence in this city and the comforting signs of McDonalds and Starbucks were no where to be found. Cows, people, bicycles, motor-scooters, cars, and trucks were using the same narrow streets and paved roads were exception to the general rule. Most of the roads in the capital city, Phnom Penh, were not paved and were filled with rocks and dips that speed signs were not necessary. Distances that would normally take us 10 minutes to get to in USA took an hour to get to in Cambodia. On our first night, our host missionary checked us in to a very friendly Sakura Hotel with many ladies smiling and welcoming us. Later, I found out that the ladies that lined up in the entrance dressed in white shirts and yellow shorts were all prostitutes that worked for this very expense for Cambodian, $15 per night, run-down, yet thank-goodness it had air-conditioning, hotel. During dinner, at the worst Korean restaurant that I have ever been in (please do not ask why we went to a Korean restaurant for our first meal in Cambodia...), we heard countless stories about the physical and spiritual conditions that enveloped this country. Little toddlers were being sold into prostitution by their own parents for mere $300 (and sometimes for even less) and other more unfortunate children were sold to be butchered for their organs. Our hearts were broken to pieces and were filled with so heavy of burden because the work needed seemed way over our heads. So, when we came back to our hotel, we didn't know what else to do but kneel before God and pray. We were all filled with tears and asked God to use us for the cause of Christ in Cambodia, even though we do not know what that means.

The next day, we were taken to the Genocide Museum "Tuol Sleng" (Former Khmer Rouge S-21 Prison where 10,499 men and women and over 2,000 children were killed.) and more darkness filled my heart. Then, we were taken to a slum village then to another slum village where we saw dirt filled naked little babies to school age kids running around doing nothing because they have nothing else to do and school was not even an option. Their parents could not afford to send them to school because they simply could not afford to pay for it and because their children were the source of their income. (Children can make more money begging in the streets than their parents working.) There is no wonder why the illiteracy rate in Cambodia is above 50%. Then my heart was broken even more. What can I do? What can I hope to accomplish? My heart was filled with grief and even more my heart was frustrated because I didn't have the slightest clue where to even begin answering my own questions.
Then, we were taken through this straight unpaved yet very beautiful road shadowed by big and colorful trees to the infamous Killing Fields. We saw mass graves where innocent Cambodian people regardless of their ages were buried...some even alive and some killed with a machete because "a single bullet cost more than a life of a Cambodian." (- as stated by a Cambodian tour guide whom I over heard explaining to his American guests) We even saw human skulls still bearing the scars caused by the blow received with a machete. At this point, my spirit could not handle anymore and I felt like vomiting spiritually. So, when we got back into the truck that was taking us around, I gently demanded to our host, "Take me to a Happy Place. Take us to an ice-cream parlor. I will treat. Take us to a Happy Place."

I didn't know if my gentle demand was heard by our Cambodian host and I wondered even more as we veered off from the road from the Killing Fields away from the city where we came from. We stopped at a village store and she asked us if we wanted anything to drink. "Of course," I stated and jumped off the truck. She got a drink for me and she picked up few bags of supplies that I did not know what it was. I offered to pay and all of it only came out to be $3. We were then taken to another slum village and everyone got off the truck. With the bag of supplies in her hand, she walked into the village and we simply followed. Then this fragile 75 pound Cambodian lady called the children over to her and immediately about 50 kids lined up in front of her. She arranged them in rows and she taught them the gospel message and we sang songs together. We all exchanged hugs and smiles as we played games and sang songs together. Then she took out the supplies that we bought and inside these bags were Candy! She distributed 2 or 3 wrapped candy to each of them in an orderly fashion and all of the kids were happy and as they smiled, they showed off their ugly teeth that badly needed to be treated. Yet, it did not matter because they were the most beautiful of children that I saw in Cambodia.
Then suddenly it dawned on me, "I am indeed at a happy place!" For the first time in Cambodia, my frown was replaced with a smile and we actually took pictures with us in the pictures. Happily we entered our truck and I promptly thanked our Cambodian lady, whose name is Sarah, for taking us to a Happy Place. Inside our truck, the normal somber mood had changed and we all looked at each other with much hope. Then I said, "That’s the best $3 I had ever spent!"

When we arrived at the dead-end junction where our road met the road to the Killing Fields, we looked right where the road leads to the Killing Fields and we slowly took a left turn to the city and left the memories of the Killing Fields behind us forever. Softly, our Lord Jesus was speaking to us on the road to the Killing Fields and reminded us of the road that led to the cross and all the history of God's people who had been delivered by the power of our Almighty God because they had trusted in the cross. Then gently He reminded us that without hardship and suffering for the sake of the cross, our lives have no meaning and no hope. Then my heart burned within me and I knew I had to turned around toward the cross and come back home to tell all of you that our Savior lives and He will meet us in Cambodia.