{"id":48301,"date":"2023-11-14T14:00:10","date_gmt":"2023-11-14T05:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/?p=48301"},"modified":"2023-11-14T15:04:18","modified_gmt":"2023-11-14T06:04:18","slug":"vomk-report-278","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/2023\/11\/14\/vomk-report-278\/","title":{"rendered":"NORTH KOREAN SMUGGLES BIBLES, FAMILY OF 27 COMES TO CHRIST"},"content":{"rendered":"

[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”48299″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”Each time a new customer walked through the door of the small coffee shop in Seoul where Mr. Kim (name withheld for security reasons) shared his story with workers from Voice of the Martyrs Korea, he hesitated or stopped talking completely. The middle-aged North Korean defector studied each person\u2019s face anxiously, searching for clues to his or her intent.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:1.2em|text_align:left” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:700%20bold%20regular%3A700%3Anormal” el_class=”headline”][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cMr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim knew from experience that he <\/span>had to be extremely <\/span>careful<\/span> when <\/span>sharing <\/span>his story<\/span>,\u201d says Voice of the Martyrs Korea Representative Dr<\/span>. <\/span>Hyun Sook Foley, whose organization <\/span>partners with underground North Korean Christians to share the gospel<\/span>. \u201cNorth Korean spies often find <\/span>and follow <\/span>defectors <\/span>in South Korea <\/span>and report their names to the North Korean government, which then punishes their relatives still living in the <\/span>north<\/span>.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cIn North Korea, no one trusts each other,\u201d Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim<\/span> told Voice of the Martyrs Korea. He said he initially <\/span>even suspected his wife of being a spy. \u201cWe <\/span>have to<\/span> be <\/span>very cautious<\/span> about how we think and always careful with our words. I still have that kind of tendency. I get a little nervous, looking back and forth.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]With the coffee grinder providing background noise, <\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>gradually grew more comfortable sharing <\/span>with Voice of the Martyrs Korea <\/span>the story of how he became a Bible smuggler in the most restricted nation on earth.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cMr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>became a believer during a lengthy business trip to China in 2004<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>While <\/span>he was <\/span>there, he visited a friend\u2019s church and <\/span>came to <\/span>love the Bible and <\/span>what he called <\/span>its <\/span>\u2018<\/span>weird<\/span>\u2019<\/span> stories.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Five months later, after being baptized, receiving his own small <\/span>Bible<\/span> and growing in his understanding of the <\/span>faith<\/span>, <\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim<\/span> had to return to North Korea. But as he prepared to leave China, someone from the church made a bold request: Would he accept a shipment that included 10 hidden Bibles once he returned to North Korea?<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>At first he declined<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>He was already nervous about bringing his own small Bible into the country. <\/span>He knew that <\/span>i<\/span>f border guards caught him with even a few pages, he could be tortured or killed. And <\/span>he <\/span>knew that receiving <\/span>a<\/span> shipment of Bibles could result in his imprisonment in one of North Korea\u2019s notorious concentration camps.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]As he agonized over the decision, <\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>remembered that he had given his life to <\/span>Christ<\/span> and it was no longer his own. He decided to trust <\/span>the <\/span>Lord<\/span> and accept the shipment<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cNow I believe in God, and in God everything is possible,\u201d he thought<\/span> at the time<\/span>. \u201cI can do anything he wants. Even if it looks difficult, <\/span>maybe God<\/span> will just do his work.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]The shipment arrived a few months after M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim\u2019s<\/span> return to North Korea. At 1 a.m. on a morning in November 2005, he approached a boat along the bank of the Yalu River, praying for God\u2019s protection and guidance with every step.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]After retrieving three large vinyl duffle bags, he hoisted them onto his back and ran toward his home in the dark. Once inside the relative safety of his home, he opened the bags to find them tightly packed with pants. But wrapped <\/span>inside <\/span>the clothing were 10 small Bibles.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cI was afraid and nervous,\u201d he <\/span>told Voice of the Martyrs Korea<\/span>. \u201cReceiving them was fine, but when I <\/span>actually opened<\/span> the <\/span>bags<\/span> I began to wonder, \u2018How can I distribute these at this time?\u2019 I began to have doubts.\u201d M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>decided to keep the dangerous books hidden until God led him to the right people.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

Then, as <\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>walked through his village one day in February 2006, he heard a man whistling a Christian hymn<\/span>. \u201c<\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>had learned the tune, <\/span>\u2018<\/span>The Trusting Heart to Jesus Clings<\/span>\u2019<\/span>,<\/span> during his time in China<\/span>,\u201d said Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201cHe <\/span>made note of where the man lived and decided to deliver some Bibles to him that night.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”48296″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center”][vc_custom_heading text=”Mr. Kim, a North Korean now living in Seoul, participated in Bible smuggling to North Korea before defecting.” font_container=”tag:p|font_size:13px|text_align:center|color:%23000000|line_height:1.45em” google_fonts=”font_family:Noto%20Sans%3Aregular%2Citalic%2C700%2C700italic|font_style:400%20regular%3A400%3Anormal”][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]After midnight, M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>rewrapped eight of the 10 Bibles in the <\/span>pants<\/span> and left them at the man\u2019s front door. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>He didn\u2019t leave a note for fear that it could be traced back to him<\/span>,\u201d said Representative Foley<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Months later M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>returned to China with the intent <\/span>to <\/span>defect<\/span> to South Korea<\/span>, but in November 2006 he was arrested and <\/span>sent back<\/span> to North Korea.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201c<\/span>In prison, he met a friend who had been arrested because of his Christian faith<\/span>,\u201d said Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201cA<\/span>s they talked, <\/span>Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim<\/span> came to realize that the man he gave the Bibles to <\/span>was<\/span> that <\/span>friend\u2019s uncle.<\/span>\u201d<\/span> That man also had been arrested and was being held in a different cell in the same prison.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim<\/span>\u2019s friend told him that his uncle had given the eight Bibles to relatives, who had then committed their lives to Christ. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>The entire family of 27 people gather<\/span>ed<\/span> secretly at night to worship God and to read and discuss the Scriptures<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>But one night a neighbor overheard the believers singing hymns and reported them to authorities. <\/span>State security agents<\/span> raided their home and arrested everyone.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim told Voice of the Martyrs Korea that a<\/span>lthough he wasn\u2019t able to interact with them in prison, <\/span>he <\/span>often heard some of the family members praying in their cells.<\/span> \u201c<\/span>He never told his friend that he was the one who had left the eight Bibles on his uncle\u2019s doorstep<\/span>,\u201d said Representative Foley<\/span>. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>It was still too risky for anyone to know.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]A month later, all 27 family members, including M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim\u2019s <\/span>friend and his friend\u2019s uncle, were sent to a <\/span>prison camp<\/span> for punishment<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cMr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>was released after seven months in prison, and in 2014 he successfully defected to South Korea<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

She says Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>remains<\/span> concerned<\/span> about the Christian family. <\/span>\u201cHe still feels guilty,\u201d says Representative Foley. \u201c<\/span>After all, he<\/span> supplied the Bibles that helped lead to their imprisonment. Still, he knows that <\/span>it was <\/span>God <\/span>who <\/span>provided the Bibles<\/span>,<\/span> and <\/span>he knows <\/span>that <\/span>God <\/span>is with them as they suffer <\/span>for <\/span>his name.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe that these 27 people are children of <\/span>God,<\/span> and that God will somehow release them miraculously,\u201d M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim told Voice of the Martyrs Korea<\/span>.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Today Mr<\/span>.<\/span> Kim serves<\/span> in a variety of ways at his church and participates in a one-on-one discipleship program.<\/span> He continues to pray that more North Koreans will learn of God\u2019s love.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]<\/p>\n

\u201cI just want North Korean people to hear the gospel and share the gospel,\u201d he <\/span>told Voice of the Martyrs Korea<\/span>. \u201cThat is my only prayer.\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]At the conclusion of his conversation with V<\/span>oice of the Martyrs Korea <\/span>workers in the coffee shop, M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim <\/span>pulled out the hand-sized Bible he received in China when he first came to know Christ. The outside looks like a notebook, but its pages <\/span>contain<\/span> God\u2019s <\/span>W<\/span>ord in a <\/span>tiny <\/span>font. <\/span>\u201c<\/span>He had hidden the Bible from everyone, including his wife, and it had sustained him when he was a lonely Christian fearful of his work as a Bible smuggler<\/span>,\u201d says Representative Foley<\/span>.<\/span> \u201c<\/span>Like the family of 27 believers imprisoned for their faith and countless others secretly following Jesus inside North Korea, M<\/span>r<\/span>.<\/span> Kim continues to <\/span>depend on God\u2019s <\/span>W<\/span>ord, too.<\/span>\u201d<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][vc_column_text]Individuals interested in learning more about Voice of the Martyrs Korea\u2019s North Korean <\/span>ministry <\/span>can visit <\/span><\/span>https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/<\/span>en\/<\/span><\/span>northkorea\/<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a> or <\/span>contact the ministry at 02-2065-0703 for more information.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span>[\/vc_column_text][\/vc_column][\/vc_row][\/vc_section]<\/p>\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"[vc_section][vc_row][vc_column][vc_single_image image=”48299″ img_size=”full”][vc_custom_heading text=”Each time a new customer walked through the door of the small coffee shop in Seoul where Mr. Kim (name withheld for security reasons) shared his story …","protected":false},"author":659,"featured_media":48300,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"give_campaign_id":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[857,235,869,140],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-48301","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-russian-special","category-special-column","category-china-special","category-vomk-report"],"translation":{"provider":"WPGlobus","version":"3.0.2","language":"en","enabled_languages":["ko","en","zh","ru"],"languages":{"ko":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"en":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"zh":{"title":true,"content":true,"excerpt":false},"ru":{"title":false,"content":false,"excerpt":false}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48301","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/659"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=48301"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48301\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":48314,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/48301\/revisions\/48314"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/48300"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=48301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=48301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vomkorea.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=48301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}