![]() Since I was a student living on the Korean peninsula, I have been praying for peace between North and South when I have the presence of mind to do so. Since, God opened the door for me to bring teams and coaches to North Korea in attempt to begin breaking down the walls between the US and North Korea, I have been praying fervently. There was a certain sense of pride, excitement and optimism that I felt when Trump and Kim shook hands for the first time. But that doesn't mean I was not skeptical as well. Millions of people around the world who are invested or affected by the nations represented at the Summit looked on with hope and probably unreasonable expectations. I understand that there has been a heightened sense of optimism and families, churches and businesses are already buying their tickets to NK. However, I have been trying to ground myself in reality over this summit since it was announced. So, what exactly happened as a result of this historic meeting? On the surface, not a whole lot will change initially. It would be a little foolish to think a lot of change would result from just the first meeting (although millions had hoped there would be). Both sides agreed to be friendly and open the door to the "possibility" of laying a foundation of peace and unity (whatever that means). If I had to put this in an analogy, it is like that of building a business with a new partner you just met. You both have similar goals and desires but cannot make anything happen without each other. Both you and the future partner have a lot to lose if this business venture doesn't work out. It is imperative that both of you get to know each other better and learn to trust each other and perhaps go over a basic business plan and blue print. It would be utterly insane to think there would be a ground breaking or a ribbon cutting after just a few hours of conversation. It is like announcing your wedding plans after your first blind date. Most people would agree that is not too smart. So, please be patient with this delicate process. There is almost 70 years of negative history to undo here. From what I understand, Kim announced that they will comply with denuclearization and Trump agreed to put military exercises on hold until further notice. On the grand scheme of things, this is not the first time the US and NK have agreed to do these two things. But it is the first time the leaders themselves met and talked about it to each other. Last I checked, sanctions are still active and status quo will not change on the peninsula until NK can truly prove they are cooperating. Military exercises are a super small price to pay in paving the road to peace. I guess time will tell if this was a fruitful meeting or not. I am praying that the next meeting will be the one that proves to have a more concrete plan attached. And who knows, Trump might put in a new fast food chain in Pyongyang! All in all, I believe that the summit was a step forward in the right direction. It just happens to be a very small baby step. I am still optimistic that God will open up the doors to NK again for me to return! PRAY!
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![]() Do you ever get annoyed by couples around you who just can’t seem to figure out the who, what, where, when, why, how, etc. concerning the relationship they are in? You watch from a distance as they break up and make up and break up again. You want so badly to just say “GIVE IT UP ALREADY!” But can't bring yourself to tell your friend that they are in a destructive relationship. One day everything seems to make sense and there is hope for the future, but then you wake up the next morning and all bets are off. A Twitter war ensues with a “He said, She said” blood bath. Both sides hoping to garner sympathy and support for their side of the story from the world around them. And you as the friend are caught in the crossfire trying to hold on to your own life. But just when you think a nuclear bomb is about to drop on you, the sun goes down and the next day arrives with what appears to be a brighter sun and the couple is back together again. You the friend, sigh a breath of relief and hope this is the one that lasts. I have seen this pattern with friends of mine forever and needless to say, it probably will never stop. Just like the many onlookers who follow Hollywood couples, I make the best of the situation and join both office pools. One pool that tries to predict the next break up and the pool that predicts the somewhat permanent make up known as marriage. This is how I feel the situation between North Korea and the USA has been since long before the summit talks came about this year. Although things may look positive, I still proceed with emotional caution. I have been bombarded with so many questions from friends, family and even some members of the press who would like an opinion on what is going on, especially since Trump declared this week that him and Kim made up and our dating again. Although I am excited and hopeful things will turn out well, I will be honest, there is not much I can add to this story. My opinion is more or less a little blah. I was going to write a post soon after the Summit in Singapore was cancelled. But then, I thought about it for a moment and decided to wait, because I figured something would happen that would get it back on again. I had several church people tell me how sad they feel because Trump was so dumb to cancel the meetings. These comments usually flow from two trains of thought: 1. They don’t like Trump and love any excuse to voice it in assumption that we all would just agree and 2. They are so emotionally invested in the hope that Korea will be unified and therefore put a lot of hope in these meetings believing something positive will happen towards their goal with no other concern for other agendas. Oh sure, there are probably other reasons as well, but these are the ones I deal with the most. To the first point; I believe Trump made a wise and calculated decision to cancel the summit initially. Politics is often a tricky game that most of us commoners don’t fully understand. We all benefit or lose when this game is played and sadly, there is no end to this game until Christ returns. And to the second point, Korea has been torn apart for over a generation and I along with so many others want to see it put back together, but this battle will be fought and won on the field of prayer and trust that God is in control and not that of world leaders. You have a choice to put your trust in world leaders or put your trust in the God who created the world. It is easier said then done of course. With that said, I am still praying that God will be felt and seen clearly through this crazy relationship that NK and the US have. However, keep in mind, even though they seem to be sorting out their commitment to each other, there is a crazy jealous EX in the back ground waiting to make this more dramatic than we can ever imagine, China. Stay tuned! ![]() In the light of everything going on with our always interesting neighbors up north, I am going to take a break from my journey to North Korea and answer the question that keeps coming to me from so many people; WHAT DO I THINK IS GOING TO HAPPEN UP NORTH AFTER THE MEETINGS IN JUNE? I am excited to see the Trump/Kim showdown in Singapore on June 12. But who knows what might happen. Therefore, I will answer the above question by answering the following questions: 1. WHAT DO THE AMERICANS WANT FROM NORTH KOREA? The simple answer is NO MORE NUKES! And with that a lot less bantering. However, there is a list of bonuses that will probably come up in the meeting in June. Some of that should include questioning of their human rights record with a nod to Otto Warmbier and a serious look at economic reform with hopefully a foundation being laid for future trade cooperation. These things would be an amazing start to bringing North Korea out of the Dark Ages. 2. WHAT DO THE SOUTH KOREANS WANT FROM NORTH KOREA? The simple answer here beyond the nukes is just PEACE on the peninsula. Peace does not equate to reunification. Most South Koreans I talk to would love to see peace and a restored friendly relationship but not necessarily reunification. One can hope that if peace is established that perhaps will start the long drawn out road to reunification. But the reunification conversation is complicated and one that most people do not truly want to have on the South side of the DMZ. More open trade would also be a nice bonus amongst a few other things. South Korea would love to tap into the resources and the potential work force North Korea could provide. 3. WHAT DOES NORTH KOREA WANT? Simple answer: NO MORE CRIPPLING SANCTIONS! The leaders want to stay in power and be relevant to the world and to their people. Kim Jong Un like his father and grandfather before him want to be acknowledged as leaders in the same realm as Trump, Putin and Xi. The North Korean people simply want to just live life, be afforded human rights, freedom, more food to eat, greater opportunities to dream and be able to watch a South Korean drama without the fear of being sent to a labor camp or worse. It may go without saying, but Kim would love to see reunification of the Korean peninsula as well, as long as he is in charge of course. Oh, and if he can keep his NUKES and get the USA off the Korean peninsula, that would be a nice bonus. 4. WHAT DOES CHINA WANT FROM NORTH KOREA? It really just wants North Korea to behave, continue to be a subservient vassal state, and quietly be a buffer between them and the USA. The Chinese agenda is pretty open and not a secret. They want to dominate the world. They ultimately are the greatest threat to the USA politically, economically and militarily. With that said, they are watching this summit very close and will have a lot of say on really what happens in North Korea. 5. WHAT DO I WANT FROM NORTH KOREA? For me personally, I want to see the nation change. I want to see the nation come to Christ through an amazing revival. But assuming that I might not get that, I want to see peace. I want to be able to go back to North Korea with my teams and impact the lives of their people. In order for that to happen effectively, I need the North Korean leadership be open about economic change, access to information and freedom for their people in all areas. They need to allow us to come back in and have the freedom to do our jobs unhindered. This is my prayer. 6. WHAT DO I THINK IS ACTUALLY GOING TO HAPPEN ON JUNE 12, 2018 IN SINGAPORE? Making a prediction concerning an event that is unparalleled in recent human history is a practice probably not worth much. But I am going to do it anyways. My gut feeling keeps telling me that something is going to happen in the next few weeks that will keep the meeting from happening. However, assuming that it goes through and is completed, I believe very little will actually be accomplished immediately. Both leaders will talk and exchange pleasantries perhaps, and at best, a certain level of denuclearization will be accomplished in exchange for some lessening of sanctions. But I am not so sure Kim is really open to change quite yet (I hope I am wrong) and Trump is kind of holding most of the cards. But I believe the meeting will decide whether or not a more serious meeting will take place between the USA and China in determining the future of North Korea. But, the photos of TRUMP and KIM together will be EPIC and the liberal media will probably encourage a bunch of crazy memes that are likened to those of Dennis Rodman and his “homie” Kim. LET THE GAMES BEGIN! I guess it is time to PRAY. The word on the street this week is that the three Americans being held as prisoners in North Korea have been moved from their labor camps and will possibly be released soon in preparation for the Kim/Trump showdown. This is exciting news for the families and friends of these individuals who have been on their knees praying to God for their safe return to them. I personally cannot imagine what it is like inside of a North Korean labor camp, but all my sources and testimonies have confirmed that it is pretty awful.
I am not exactly sure who the Americans are or what their crimes might have been, but what I do know is that North Korea is a place that is dead serious about keeping certain outside influences out. One of these influences would be religion of almost any kind. Christians seem to be a pretty hard target. And most Americans who tend to be detained are often those who have evangelical motives (there are exceptions). I guess you don’t hear too much about Muslim or Buddhist missionaries getting caught. There are reports all the time of Christians being brutalized in North Korea by some pretty gross methods. For this reason and many others, Christianity still exists all over North Korea but it has to be very well hidden. Church is very much restricted. With that said, I want to share with you about my first time (and only time) attending a Church service in Pyongyang, North Korea. It was a beautiful Sunday morning in Pyongyang. The basketball team was pretty excited about the day’s activities. We finished breakfast and boarded the bus. We were all pretty quiet as we looked out the bus windows. We knew we were headed to a church. After all, it was on our schedule. We pulled into the parking lot. It was a simple and beautiful grey stone/brick structure. We all stood around outside talking and taking pictures. I couldn’t help but think to myself what kind of service it would be. Local men and women filed in to the building (mostly older women). I wanted to go in and see what it looked like. But we were told we must wait. Our guides were lecturing us on how North Korea is a free country and everyone can worship the way they want. Most of us smiled and internally rolled our eyes at that notion. As we were talking the pastor of the church shows up and greets us all. With a warm friendly smile he welcomed us. Finally we were ushered in. As we were ushered to the front of the auditorium, we were introduced with an uncomfortable applause. I looked around to take it all in. It was weird to think that I was going to a church service in Pyongyang, North Korea. As I walked up the aisle, I immediately noticed that all the people sitting in the pews were probably no younger than 60 years old and mostly women. There were no children or diversity of any kind in relation to age. The service started. We were directed to the hymnals and sang a few traditional hymns. There was a small choir that sang a few songs. And then the pastor came up and introduced the passage and his message. Since the message was in Korean, I wasn’t paying much attention. One of the guides behind me was trying to translate here and there for my teammates. My mind drifted to the plight of the Christians in North Korea. I was more than aware that this service was very much propaganda and not much more. As I was drifting in thought, I decided to come back to the present and attempt to listen to the message. My Korean is fairly functional but a far cry from fluent. I was trying to piece the words together when I caught a line from the pastor I am pretty sure I understood. With conviction and typical Korean pastor style (some of you know what that means) he clearly said "If we love Jesus, we need to always be ready to kill the Japanese." I smirked at the line because I assumed I did not understand it clearly. Then I heard the same words in English spoken by our guides behind me as they were translating. I am pretty sure that was not what the passage was eluding to in Matthew that he was reading. But yeah, that really happened. WOW! I wasn’t about to ask our North Korean authorities as to whether or not if the church was a real thing or just a show for us. The team debated back and forth as to whether or not the service was real or not. Coach Hayes chimed in and said, “Of course it was a real church.” As we all quietly looked at him. I asked, “Why do you think so?” With a proud little smirk, he said “Well, I looked around the sanctuary while the preacher was talking and I noticed most of the people were asleep. What more proof do you need?” We all chuckled at that and started preparing for our first basketball game. ![]() The news lately has been quite interesting and exciting to say the least concerning North Korea. For the first time that I can remember, there are rumors that a possible Peace Treaty could be on the table that officially ends the Korea War that has been ongoing since 1950. This is all on the heels of what is expected to be a historic meeting between President Trump and Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un that is supposed to take place in the next month. There is no doubt that there is a great deal of anticipation and also trepidation felt by millions of Koreans and Americans everywhere. Although a million things could go wrong in the next few weeks that can delay or derail an epic meeting between the two leaders, I am praying and hopeful that this showdown will take place. I could only wish to be a fly on the wall in that meeting. It will be the first of its kind and could be one of those landmark events that can define the Trump legacy. I remember the day when our basketball team visited the Korean War Museum in Pyongyang. I am very enthusiastic about history and museums are a great chance for me to geek out on people and learn more. After all, I was a history teacher for many years. However, this museum was quite interesting. I have studied in depth and taught courses at length about the Korean War and very little of what I have taught and learned seemed to be reflected in the museums exhibits. I was very aware that the North Korean government ran a tight ship when it came to propaganda, but even in most extreme cases, I thought this was a bit over the top. The museums intentions were clear. It was not to tell the history of what really happened, but rather perpetuate the narrative that the American Imperialist were evil and that the North Koreans won the war over them. I tried not to snicker at the presumption that there was any truth to that narrative. The guides were very rigid and did their jobs well. They were nice enough to answer any of our crazy and sometimes condescending questions. They were well rehearsed and ready for our “opinions.” I remember when they took us down to the “VAULT” where they kept a display of random guns, a handful of vehicles and some crashed airplanes that they proudly display to show all those who visit that they were able to capture all of these from the US military. I was kind of taken back when the North Korean military guide came to me and asked with a snarky tone “How does it make you feel to see all of your nation’s weapons gathered here?” Being kind of lost for words I simply said, “It’s okay. It does not bother me at all.” The guide pressed on me a little harder clearly looking for a different response by saying “How can you feel nothing. You should feel embarrassed or angry!” I smiled and said “To be honest, our military has bigger and better weapons then these and most of my friends in America have more weapons then this in their house than in here just for fun.” I am sure that was probably not the most politically correct thing to say but it did come out. Later on, the guide came to me and asked “Do people who are not soldiers really have guns in America?” I nodded and said yes. She looked away for a minute and then responded “Where do they get them from?” I smiled and simply said “They go to the store and buy them.” She looked at me with a bit of bewilderment and walked away. Needless to say, the NRA has no representation in North Korea. ![]() I am sorry I managed to disappear for a few months unannounced. Just so you know, everything is fine and North Korea did not kidnap me or anything. My job got a bit busy with a lot of travel and therefore literally had no time to write. Anyways, I am back and here we go again until the next time I go M.I.A.! North Korea is back in the news once again. Then again, were they ever NOT in the news. They made a big political splash at the Winter Olympics held in South Korea (I was there) and also made an unprecedented move by reaching out to the USA to have a leader to leader meeting with the USA. Hmmmm… interesting times we live in! FIRST DAY IN PYEONGYANG!!! I boarded the plane in Beijing, China with the rest of the anxious CTI squad. Prior to boarding the plane it was all jokes and laughs as most basketball players go. But the tone quickly changed to silence and attentiveness as we took our seats on our Koryo Airline flight. The plane was rather old but thankfully safe. There were quite a few bumps and turbulence on that flight. The inflight service was basic and nothing special. They served us some pear soda that was quite awesome and inflight entertainment consisted of speeches, music and videos about how amazing North Korea is and its dear leaders past and present. This short 90 minute flight would certainly be a preview of how the next 7 days would be. As the plane was approaching Pyeongyang, most of our team was huddled close to the nearest plane windows trying to get a glance down at the barren landscape below. The colors were dull and bleak as most of the hills have been plucked of all their trees. We could make out the scores of people working In the fields below and watched as their eyes locked onto our plane as the wheels finally touched the runway in which felt like the middle of nowhere. We bounced down the runway for a few moments before we finally smoothed out. We then proceeded to taxi on the runway for quite a while before we came to a complete stop at a big hangar that also doubled as our terminal. We barely waited for the seat belt sign to turn off before we were all up and arguing over who was going to step out of the plane first. It was an epic game of paper, rock and scissors. And as usual, I lost! For all of us, this was the equivalent of Neil Armstrong stepping on to the moon for the first time. The biggest difference, however, was that we did not bring a large American flag to plant on their land! I can't imagine that going over too well. After we all managed to get off the plane, we all found ourselves as a group on the tarmac exchanging high fives and smiles and some selfies. As if being tall and American wasn't inconspicuous enough, we were all decked out in our basketball team gear which drew more attention to us from those around. We had no idea what to expect or do. But we were a bit apprehensive and excited that we were all there together and preparing for an adventure. JJ Davis recalled that moment in a similar way as he explained “I remember standing there in the middle of the tarmac and looking at the plane and thinking, WOW, that’s a really old plane and a really old airport.” Even though we felt like we were in a small town somewhere, we were just outside of North Korea’s largest city of over 2 million people. We were finally ushered into the hangar where we were processed by immigration and then all of us and bags were meticulously checked. We were quiet and respectful as so many eyes of armed guards and people were all locked and loaded on us. We were finally brought to an area where our minders waited for us. Their names were Ms. Choi, Mr. Lee and Mr. Oh. They were pleasant enough but also very stoic in their introductions. There weren't really any smiles exchanged. There was a clear sense that as an American basketball team that we were not ordinary guests. To many of those who we would interact with over the course of the next week, we were small scale invasion of American imperialists. But I would argue and say that over the week, we would prove to be far more than that! For the next posts, I am going to do my best to share our experience in North Korea in a way that helps us understand more of what is going on with North Korea in the news. ![]() I finally caught my breath and picked up the phone and called my friend JJ who was still living in Seoul, South Korea. Him and I were close friends and college basketball teammates who worked in Seoul with me for years and also started a club basketball team in Korea together. I was excited to give him the news on the progress that was made that day in Beijing concerning the North Korea project. We both shared in the excitement. I finally got to the real question that needed to be asked and the other main reason I decided to call and not send text messages. I basically fumbled out the words “Sooo, I am going to need some guys to…” I only made it that far before he cut me off and said “I’M IN!” I paused for a moment and said “Uhhhh…” I continued to explain “Dude, I am going to be very honest. I don’t know what the plan is, how much it may cost, or if we would even get in or out alive, etc.” He immediately repeated his affirmation again; “Doesn’t matter. I am in! When do we go?” With those words, I was encouraged and motivated. I started thinking about all the people who wanted to go on this adventure with and than immediately called them. One by one I called up old and new teammates. Each one got the same ambiguous sales pitch. However, despite the lack of information or guarantee of personal safety traveling to the most notoriously crazy nation in the world, each response was that of excitement and full on participation. Patrick Leslie was a grad student at the time in Korea, and when asked what his thoughts were after asking him to come, he said; “My initial reaction to the idea of going: This could be an opportunity that only comes once in a lifetime and I must go. If this happens our contact with the locals will be unlike any documentary you see.” I asked Adam Shear his recollection of the day I asked him as well. He simply said “This is insane. I’m in!” I guess there is not much more that could be said at that point! The players for the team was coming together nicely. However, finding a head coach was going to be a bit tougher. I had no idea who on earth I could ask to be a part of this. As I was praying over the matter, I received several emails of interested coaches who wanted to be a part of this project. However, only one coach made the most sense at the time. Former UCLA coach Greg Hayes. I was sure he was the one. However, we have never met but corresponded by email. We finally took some time to talk on the phone. By the end of the conversation I felt he made it clear that this was something he wasn't interested in. I was pretty disappointed to be honest. However, 24 hours later, he emails me back and basically said "What was I thinking? Is it too late? I really feel I need to go on this trip with you." With that, we had the coach we wanted and I have been blessed ever since. Within a week, I had a full roster of 16 talented basketball players, coaches and staff committed, ready and excited to brace the unknown world of North Korea. Now, all I had to do was the fun logistics of visas, games, hotels, food, money, transportation, etc. I have never planned, hosted or lead a full on tour like this and the stress was mounting. Needless to say, we all arrived in Beijing, June 2012. And after a week of training, briefings, basketball games, the Great Wall, diarrhea, shopping, Ade’s ridiculous humor, Ross’ ability to sleep anywhere, shady hotels, JJ getting injured in warm ups of the first game, everyone getting injured by day 3, etc. we were headed to Beijing International Airport to board a plane headed to Pyongyang, North Korea. The night before we had a team meeting to discuss the final plans and purposes for this trip. We went around the room and asked people how they felt and any fears they had. Most of us were pretty honest. One of the participants decided that he just couldn’t go through with it and left the team that morning back to the states. This was a big shock to the team but the rest of us stood firm. We all prayed together and attempted to go to sleep that night. It was exciting to think that the first known American basketball team will be in North Korea in the morning! ![]() As winter was somewhat finally coming to a close in Beijing, more than just the seasons seemed to be changing. The very young Kim Jong Un has now been fully instated as supreme leader of North Korea and the world watched with curiosity as to who this guy really was and what direction North Korea is going to take. At this point, we have learned that Kim was educated in the west (Switzerland) and could speak English. We also learned that he loved a lot of American pop culture. Within months of his reign, he seemed to loosen up on some of the nation’s tighter restrictions for their people and there was a buzz in the Asian community that things in the Hermit Kingdom might be changing for the better. Myself included was also quite optimistic as there was finally a breakthrough with Project uNKnown. It was actually pretty cold that day in Beijing and there was no heat in the office that I was in. Nevertheless, I was internally sweating bullets as I sat there in the chair with my translator watching two North Korean officials whisper in my presence just a few feet away. They were talking about the proposal that I just gave them about my desire to bring an American basketball team to North Korea. I couldn’t help but wonder what they were discussing. I had no idea if my proposal was good, bad, stupid, unrealistic, etc. All I knew was that I had tried for months with no success to try to find a way to talk to the right people who could make this “crazy” plan a reality. And now, after a year of prayer, research, hair pulling, and more prayer, here I was, looking at two men who could make it happen. I was pretty excited that I was able to make it this far. Finally the two men came back to the table where I was sitting and in paraphrased terms said “We like this plan, let’s do it!” At that, I was completely floored. I wasn’t sure what to say or do. I was completely taken off guard. It was like asking a girl on a date that you were sure was going to say no because everyone has said no. Well, this time, she said yes and I had no clue as to what to do next. I have never been on a date, but in theory, it sounded like a good idea. But this was not a date, this was North Korea. If you go to the bookstore, there are thousands of books to help your dating life. But how many books are there to help deal with North Korea? Regardless, I was trying to contain my excitement. We shook hands. I said “thank you.” We scheduled a follow up meeting to discuss full details for 3 days later and I went home. As I walked through the door of my apartment in Beijing, I plopped down on the sofa and just gave out a big sigh of relief and gave thanks to God out loud for this major step of progress. As I was saying the word Amen, a great deal of anxiety hit me when reality kicked in. That reality was “I have three days to find basketball players crazy enough to form the core of this team.” Argh… ![]() People will always remember where they were and what they were doing when certain traumatic things happen. Such things like December 7, 1941 left and imprint on my grandparent’s generation just like September 11, 2001 did for mine. But how many people will remember December 17, 2011? This is the week where millions of North Koreans will collectively celebrate the life of their immortal Dear Leader Kim Jong Il on the 6th anniversary of his death. The only reason most people in the world would care at all is because North Korea seems to celebrate big events by launching rockets or other provocative actions. People must understand that the Kim family in North Korea are viewed as literal gods to their people. Their images are engraved in every home, business, school, and statues are placed in every public area to remind people who the god of North Korea is. Kids are taught from birth to be reverent and thankful to the Kim family. People are taught to sing praises to the Kim family and virtually worship them in various ways. With this type of influence engrained in each citizen since birth, there is no doubt that much of the tears you see displayed by the people of North Korea when their leaders pass away are quite real. I will never forget the day Kim Jong Il died. I was visiting my family in Seoul, South Korea for Christmas break. I was currently living in Beijing and playing basketball for a living. I just moved there a year earlier because I believed God called me to a very specific purpose involving taking a basketball team to North Korea. At that point, I had not actively pursued any channels to fulfill that mission. Quite honestly, I was kind of enjoying Beijing more than I thought I would and I was hoping God forgot the plan. Anyways, it was a very cold day in Seoul. I was driving my car around town doing some errands and of course I had AFN radio going. I was about to cringe if I heard the song Jingle Bells again. But as I was waiting at the light outside the west side of Seoul Station downtown, an announcement came in on the radio interrupting the current song. The voice was clear “BREAKING NEWS: Kim Jong Il, the leader of North Korea is dead.” At that moment I was a bit taken back. I wasn’t sure what to think at that moment. The light turned green and I started driving, I am pretty sure I forgot at that moment where I was going or what I was supposed to be doing. I started to wonder what this all meant and the inevitable question of WHAT’S GONNA HAPPEN NOW? Who is going to take over? Will the government fall? Will peace finally come? Will war finally happen? Etc. My mind literally went all over the place. As my mind was racing with curiosity, the voice on the radio returned and said again: “We have more BREAKING NEWS: We just learned that Kim Jong Il’s successor will be his youngest son Kim Jong Un.” I snickered under my breath and lipped the words “Kim who?” Once again the voice came on and was clearly fumbling through this report saying “Yeah, we are trying to sort this story out on the fly. We do not know much about the Kim Jong Un. All the info we have is that he is young and loves the game of basketball.” The moment I heard those last words, I felt an overwhelming amount of conviction come on me. I pulled the car over and parked. I turned off the radio and sat back in my seat. I prayed out loud, and made it very clear to myself and God. I simply said “Ok God, I got it. I know what I need to do, but I do not know how to do it and I am quite afraid.” I paused and took a deep breath and said “I need your help. Amen!” I started the car engine up and drove back home. It was time to begin project uNKnown! ![]() I am going to make this a very simple transitional post as we prepare to really unpack the issues in North Korea and also take you behind the curtain and into my journeys that have included several trips to North Korea and a lot of work on the border and so much more! To make a long story short, I was living a very cushy life in Seoul, South Korea as a teacher, coach, pastor, etc. At this point I have lost all desire or concern for the nation just 30 miles North of me. I just bought a car, had a new apartment, and life was rolling high in almost every area. However, my cushy life and my growing apathy towards North Korea was rocked on January 1, 2011 at 3:23 AM. I was in Beijing, China for vacation when God woke me out of a dead of sleep with a message that I heard as clear as crystal. The message was a like a checklist. And one of the items on that checklist was TAKING A BASKETBALL TEAM TO NORTH KOREA. I thought it was the most random thing in the world. I walked around my room for a moment trying to figure out happened or if my mind was playing tricks on me. Or perhaps the pasta i had for dinner that night was acting strange. In all my life as a Christian, I have only heard of people having God speak to them in this way. And now, it happened to me. I was a bit scared and confused. After the next few months of battling with God trying to convince Him to choose someone else for this ridiculous task, I finally left the comfort of what I thought was the dream life in South Korea and boarded a plane for China and started working on what become known as Project uNKnown! Whether I was the right person for the job or not, I knew God called me to it and I couldn't fight it. BRING IT ON! |
AuthorLuke Elie Archives
June 2018
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