Alaskan Winter...blessing
Shalomš
Ketchikan, where we live, is the southernmost island in Alaska. That's why it rains more than it snows in the winter. It was a little strange because it didn't rain much last week, but it's starting to snow and rain again without fail, so it seems like we're experiencing a typical winter here. Since houses are limited due to the nature of the island, finding a house here is as hard as picking stars from the sky. A couple who wanted to move here posted on Facebook [Ketchikan House Search], "I'm going to move to Ketchikan in a few months and I'm looking for a house." This is the first comment on that post.
"Good luck...It's a horrible place to live if you like sunshine,,,it rains all the time...good luck."
The moment I saw this post, I laughed. It's because the people here also have a hard time with the rain every day...I guess it's a sympathetic feeling. It rains and is cloudy every day, so I always miss the bright sun, but since this is the place the Lord has called me, I start my day with gratitude and energy today. I took a picture on a clear day. It is 3 PM, but the sunset is starting:)
Sharing Christmas gifts š
Every December, the Christmas season is a great opportunity to spread the gospel. I sincerely thank everyone who donated and prayed for Christmas gifts in the last letter!! I shared a booklet from the Gospel of John along with Christmas gifts to over 80 children.
I visited the homes of the native children living on this island and gave them gifts, and one of the girls asked if she could open her gift~ She did so as soon as she received it, so I allowed her. (Originally, the culture here puts the gifts they received under the Christmas tree and opens them on Christmas morning.) The child took out the Gospel of John and started reading it out loud, and then asked her mother what it was about. Her mother said she was not a Christian and did not know much, and that when she was in prison, she tried to read the Bible once, but she closed it right away because there were too many names. I think she read Matthew 1;; and she told her child to ask them (us who visited) if she had any questions^^ How lovely that child was... While reading the Gospel of John, I prayed earnestly in my heart for her family to be saved and meet Jesus more deeply.
Last summer, I contacted someone who was visiting Hydaburg (Haida Native tribe) on Prince of Wales Island, where I had visited with a short-term team, and prayed for them to visit there. Here in southeastern Alaska, there are often strong winds in the fall and winter, so the ship cannot sail due to the weather. He was not able to come on the day he was supposed to come because of the strong wind. We prayed so much because he was planning to come to our island two days before Christmas... We prepared a gift, but we were afraid that we would not be able to deliver it to him, so we prayed every day that the strong wind would die down and that we would be able to meet him and deliver it to him. Finally, we met him dramatically and gave him a lot of gifts. In Hydaburg, they say that even if they don't believe in Jesus, all the children and adults in the village gather for the Christmas event. After that, he gave the gifts to the children well, and he contacted us to say that he was so grateful. More than anything, I pray earnestly that the Hydaburg children will read the Gospel of John and meet Jesus. Please pray for these children together! š
Have you heard of the Singing Christmas Tree? š²
We also learned about it for the first time when we came here, but the Singing Christmas Tree is also called a living Christmas Tree. It was an event that was held every Christmas on this island before COVID, but it was stopped after that and started again in December of last year.
A member of our church who had been a music teacher here for a long time and retired hosted the event, and at his request, missionary Eun-ae Park played Christmas hymns on the piano for 30 minutes before every event. During the performance, the pastor came out and delivered a message, and even non-believers came to see this event, making it a precious channel for spreading the gospel.
Monthly Grind Piano Performance
On our island, there is an event called Monthly Grind once a month. It is an event where people who like music on this island can enjoy singing, playing instruments, choir, ballet, etc. even if they are not good at it. When Yeseul was in the 4th grade of elementary school, her teacher was in charge of the December event and asked Yeseul to play the piano. Missionary Park Eun-ae thought it would be a good opportunity to spread the gospel, so she and Yeseul played the piano together for 15 minutes. Missionary Park Eun-ae was very nervous, but she prepared Christmas hymns and shared the gospel with a short message while playing them. The last song was a Korean song, which was a good opportunity to introduce Korea. It always takes courage to challenge something new. I hope that we can courageously challenge ourselves and share the gospel in all the situations that come our way in the future.
<Thank God>
-Thank God that Yeseul hurt her ankle but recovered well...
- Eunchul's friends' family came to church
- the whole family prayed with one heart through the 21-day Daniel Prayer Meeting
- the children who participated in the evangelism event held in place of Halloween heard the gospel
- new children were sent to the native children's meeting every Wednesday
- our family stayed healthy during the winter
God's Promise
Genesis 27:28
May God give you of heaven's dew and of earth's richness-an abundance of grain and new wine.
Numbers 6:24-26
"The LORD bless you and keep you;
the LORD make his face shine upon you
and be gracious to you;
the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace."
In 2025, we earnestly pray that God will pour out the richness of the earth and the spiritual things of heaven on the lives and families of all those who pray for us and this land, and that God will strengthen your souls, give you grace, and lead you to peace.š
šø Prayer Topics
1. Permanent residency for long term ministry has not yet been processed to the next stage. If there is no progress in the permanent residency before the visa expires in May next year, we will have to return to Korea and reapply for the visa. Then, if we pass the visa interview at the embassy, āāwe can come back to Ketchikan. Please pray that the permanent residency will be processed this year!
2. For the children who received the Gospel of John as a Christmas gift to meet Jesus through the Word, and for their families to be saved!
3. Please pray that the gospel will be more powerfully witnessed in Southeast Alaska through all the ministries of YWAM Ketchikan, which we belong to.
4. Please pray that our family can move to a house where we can freely serve more people and worship God, and that we can always be strong both physically and spiritually and be filled with the Holy Spirit to fully fulfill the mission that has called us to this land.
February 2025, with a grateful heartā¤ļø
Jung Jae-ho, Park Eun-ae, Yeseul, Eunchul
http://www.ywamketchikan.org