In just about 10 days, I am going to do something that not a
lot of people get to do. And, to be honest, I’m not really sure how I feel
about it. I’m going to North Korea.
As expats, we love to travel to new places, get new stamps
in our passports, and tick exciting and exotic places off our “must-see” lists.
After returning from vacations, we all share about where we went and what we
did. Those who have traveled more off the beaten path get to tell their tales
of adventure with more pride as those of us who stayed on the main roads listen in awe and often with a hint of jealousy.
That’s how I used to feel about North Korea. When I first
arrived in Seoul and I learned that one of our teachers goes up every year to
help out at a tuberculosis clinic, my immediate reaction was that I needed to
get my name on that list so that I could play Marco Polo to my friends and be
able to trump everyone else’s “where I’ve been” lists. However, the more I’ve
read, the more I’ve learned, the longer I’ve lived here, my feelings about our mysterious
northern neighbor have changed.
To me, North Korea isn’t a box to tick and it isn’t an
adventure to be had. It is a country in suffocatingly desperate need and is governed
by a leadership so corrupt that we literally have to hand-deliver medications
to dying patients to ensure that they don’t end up in the wrong place. The
danger of traveling to one of the most closed countries on the planet isn’t the
exciting quest of an adrenaline junky. It’s a nauseating, nagging fear that
sends me into cold sweats and keeps me up at night.
To be clear, I am not doing anything illegal by going up
there. The North Korean government wants
us there and is granting us the proper paperwork to make our stay a legally
authorized one. I’ll be given a minder who will direct my every move and I’m
sure that every minute will be scrutinized by someone; “private” won’t exist. I
won’t say anything critical of North Korea nor will I say anything praising
another country. I will make sure that my wardrobe doesn’t stray from the
black/gray color palette. I will toe the line.
So, why go? What is the draw? Let me ask you this. Have you
ever had something weigh so heavily on your heart that you feel like you can’t
breathe? Have you ever been so drawn to someone’s story that turning away would
take an incredible feat of physical strength? That is how I feel about the North Korean people. Their reality is a terrible one and their
government makes it incredibly difficult for anyone to step in and do something,
anything, to help. Yet this is what I have been given the opportunity to do.
Help. I have the very rare chance to actually do something to make the lives of a few people better.
I was reading in Romans the other day and I came across a
passage that we all grew up reciting:
And
we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. –Romans 8:28
I happened to notice
that there was a note connected to the passage that offered an alternate
translation at the bottom of the page. The alternate translation reads:
And we know that God works together with those who love Him
to bring about what is good.
How cool is that? This
passage isn’t just about allowing a grand puppet master to tie up all the loose
ends to make us happy because we are Christian. Rather, it is a call for those
of us who love Him to team up with the Creator of the universe and make the
world a better place. We get to take an active part in God’s plan to bring
about good in people’s lives. We are called to work with God to bring light and hope to a fallen world. We are not only
recipients of grace and love, but givers as well.
And so that is why I
am going to North Korea: a place that is at once only a few kilometers away and yet also light years away. If you ask me how I’m feeling, I’ll tell you that I
don’t know. However, I will ask you for your prayers. Pray for me, for our
team, for the people we will see, and the people we will have to turn away
because the medicine has run out. Pray for strength, hope, and love.
And thank God for the incredible opportunity that we have to work alongside Him
to make good happen.
