Prayer Partner Update

Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. (Col. 4:2)

SUSA PP

Don't miss the article in Christianity Today this month on how zoning laws are making it increasingly difficult for churches to locate wherever they want in American cities.

As you read it, ask yourself the question:

Is this persecution?

We tend to toss that word around pretty loosely these days to refer to any kind of restraint on our ability to practice our faith whenever and however we prefer. We even use it when people disapprove of how we're practicing our faith. I was attending a workshop recently for couples considering pastoral ministry. The moderator asked, "What is the hardest part of the decision for you?" "The persecution," one woman responded. "Our family and friends really aren't very supportive, and they've said some really mean things."

It's tempting to look at zoning restrictions on the placement of church buildings and whistle through our teeth about how the dark shadow of persecution is advancing across American soil. I believe passionately that persecution is definitely advancing and we need to prepare for it...but I don't think the zoning restrictions described in CT are particularly good evidence. Those restrictions are largely arising from the reluctance of cities to give up the tax revenue that would come from having (tax-paying) businesses in certain storefronts rather than (non-taxpaying) churches. That's just the state being the state, doing the things that states do and thinking about the things that states think about.

That does not mean persecution isn't increasing - it is. But when we use the word "persecution" to refer to any kind of opposition, we dull our senses such that the real and very dark forms that are emerging slip by us in the shadows, unnoticed. Persecution is not merely the discomfort that results from a restraint on freedom of religion. It is the result of the state moving beyond the conserving (order-keeping) power that the Lord appoints it to wield and moving into the realm of demanding the worship, glory, and honor that is due only to the Lord.

That is increasing-dramatically-in the US these days.

But we don't readily see it because we're too concerned that we can't park a church building wherever we'd like to have one anymore.

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Quick product update: We did indeed get a recording of me preaching an extended version of "How to be as Free as a North Korean Christian," from a few weeks ago at the very cool Church of the Rock in Olathe, Kansas, where they let me preach for an hour and a half and they still gave me pizza afterward. If you'd like a copy of the DVD, email Brett at bleather@seoulusa.org and he can get you one. $5 plus $1 shipping and handling-thanks for helping our mighty mite ministry cover our costs.

From the Field

I just returned from a few days in China, working with our partners there to set up a new distribution center as well as a safe location for discipleship training for North Koreans living [illegally] in this area of China. Security isn't always as straightforward as we'd like to think.

In order to lease property in this area, connections with the communist party are required. This begins a risky process of working with partners in the underground church community and party members who are friendly to our cause. Our folks on the ground there had already begun this process, but my visit, with one of our key contacts there, was to finalize the relationship to safely operate these facilities.

Some of the things we do to manage this risk:

First, we do our best to keep specifics on project operations for these projects to ourselves. Even when we have to discuss what we are doing with our "friendly" contacts, we avoid specifics, we don't use real names for people on the ground and we don't actually share with our contacts the materials we are using or distributing through these locations.

Second, we do our best to make multiple partner contacts. By using different partners for different projects, we can reduce the risk that any one contact or partner can compromise all of our operations. The reality is that every partner on a project may compromise a particular project, but by dividing projects between different partners, we can reduce this risk. Of course, this lowers our overall efficiency and may increase some costs, but this is always a trade-off we have to make when considering security issues.

Finally, in the case of working with party members in China, besides doing our best to check them out and find out how trustworthy they are - on this trip, this particular contact has family ties to North Korean exiles, a long relationship with a trusted partner, and has secretly supported many churches in this area - we worked on this trip to strengthen our direct relationship with this member. Eating with him, taking pictures of him with me and North Korean exiles, pictures of me and our team at his businesses can make the revelation of these projects to authorities as risky to him personally as it is to us and our projects. He doesn't want to risk his status, his business and, potentially, his freedom by having his support of these underground projects revealed.

Hopefully, this never becomes an issue we have to deal with, but by intertwining this relationship in a way that our contacts are motivated to continue to work with us covertly, especially early on as we start in a new area, is how we do our best to protect the missionaries, staff and partners working directly in these dangerous areas.

Prayer Points

1. Pray for a successful start to our 2011 balloon launch season in which we'll be launching not only FLYERS but also BIBLES into NK!

2. Pray for a successful official launch for our Doers Of The Word Church here and in Korea, that we may be able to model for churches the kind of church that can survive and thrive as persecution increases in the West.

3. Pray for a bilingual, Korea-based partner coordinator to assist in our work with churches and champions in Korea and our partners around the world.

4. Pray for a bilingual, Korea-based balloon launch coordinator to oversee our expanding balloon launch ministry.

5. Pray for the publication of The Whole Life Offering, Pastor Foley's new book on comprehensive Christian discipleship, due out in early April.

The map above was created by WikiTravel.org user, Cacahuate, and is available here. Click on map to view in higher resolution.

March 8, 2011

In This Issue

From the Foleys

From the Field

Prayer Points

Resources

Get Involved

Where We're Speaking

Resources

Click the links below to learn more about life in North Korea.