Ruffling feathers

The following is complied of bits that I wrote up while I was sitting at the coffee shop at the top of the mountain at Seorak.

It amazes me that there is a possibility of an international school opening in North Korea. The work that a specific group is doing up there is amazing. They have gone in as businessmen. The odd thing is that the government knows that this group of businessmen are Christians.

The government is actually allowing this group to work along side of them. The gov't is also considering the suggestions this group has made about improvements they can make. One of the major suggestions being that since the N. Koreans want to begin making their country an international country, they will need schools for the children of the internationals living in the country. To this, the gov't has actually agreed. With the connections already made, it very well may be an Oasis school.

This group is doing the ground-breaking that is necessary to make connections and relationships with the government. This is just amazing. The visions this group has for their business and for the country of N. Korea are a true testament of the wonders of God.

We were recently given a glimpse on just how spiritually dark the country really is. Every morning at 7am, the N. Koreans begin by singing songs (much like hymns and praise songs) to their leader. This is immediately followed with time to journal about what this song time meant to them (again, much like the quiet time Christians set aside to worship God). This country is being brainwashed into worshiping a man, a human. Ick.

The possibilities amaze me. The potential and likelihood of an international community in North Korea, the Koreas re-uniting, and even an international school in N. Korea is possible. From the inside, the people are hoping for a regime change within the next five years or so. That may or may not happen in that time frame but it's highly possible either way.

The similarities between N. Korea and America amaze me sometimes. The North Koreans are fed nothing but propaganda from their government.

Although the Americans aren't given messages from their government that they believe, they are being fed propaganda daily from the news industry. Just in the same sense that the N. Koreans believe the propaganda that's being spoon fed to them, the Americans do the same thing with the news. Most believe whatever they hear from a news source; not realizing that the news company that they are so devoted to tells everything from a biased slant. These news channels shove their agenda down their "loyal" viewers throats. With this, most people don't take the time to compare sources to see what the real truth may be.

Most Americans are made to think that their country is invincible and that no one can do any harm to it. It is the world superpower, but it is still vulnerable. It has many enemies; it is a target.

More importantly the Americans have abandoned the foundation on which it was built, a foundation of Truth. A godly foundation. A hope to have a better, freer chance to worship God that what was set before them in England. A chance to worship God only and not the idols and statues that the churches in England had set before them.

The foundation of America is Christianity, regardless as to whether or not it is recognized. America has walked away from its foundation. Anything without a foundation collapses or is at least easier to destroy.

Some Pictures

These are just a few of the pictures from the Seorak trip.

This is a view from the Mt. Seorak Natn'l Park.

This is just what you would want "guarding" your hotel.

Yup, I definitely rode to the top in this.

These are just a few shots from one of the hikes at the top of the one mountain.

And, just one more for fun. I saw this on our way back from Seorak today in Osan. Gotta love Engrish.

Random Thoughts

This weekend was our annual staff trip to Mt. Seorak on the East Coast. Most of it went fairly well. It rained just about every day, but we still got hiking time at the mountain in.

Sunday we thought we were headed to the beach, when it turned out that we were going to a lighthouse first. Let me preface it with, we were dressed to go to the beach (including footwear), it was raining, and the steps that led up the hill to the lighthouse were metal and slick. I was wearing my cheap $2 Wal-Mart sandles and on the way down, fell and slid down about ten of those steps. This of course bummed me out because our next stop was the beach (as planned).

I ended up spending most of my time at the beach on the bus. One of the other teachers came back to the bus shortly after I did to avoid the rain.

I love the conversations that she and I have, especially ones like we had yesterday. She's really been dealing with a lot lately, a good portion of which revolves around her ex husband.

Talking with her about some of the things she went through with her ex was like looking into a time warp of what my life may have ended up like if I had stayed with the guy I dated before Matt.

It still boggles my mind that women so easily are attracted to men who do nothing but manipulate. Why? What is the charm about them?

Daily I am shown blessings from having a godly husband. Matt has been great with helping since I fell. My body is completely sore, even to the point of breathing hurting when I was laying down this morning.

Crazy. The only thing really to do is to train our youth (young women and men) how to treat each other, what to look out for, and how to avoid putting themselves in situations where they will be manipulated.