By Kathie Fetveit
Before we left for Korea, God told us to tell the Korean people that He sees them. El Roi, the God who sees, wanted them to know how much he loved them and knows them. He is calling them to return to their first love and to serve him out of a deep knowing that they are loved. We shared and demonstrated that message in five churches from Seoul to Pusan.
We have never seen such sincerely hungry, enthusiastic people. They really know how to pray and worship! From Seoul to Pusan, we encountered young people in their 20's and 30's, some with young families. It was so refreshing to see their eagerness to lead the people in experiencing the Lord as the “heart healer.” Many of the young leaders expressed their deep desire for a mentor or spiritual father. They want and need to be shown by example what godly leadership and relationships look like. These people are so hungry for healing. And, best of all, they believe that God has called them to get healed and be prepared so that they can fulfill a call of God to heal the nations (especially North Korea when the border opens). Already they are ministering to a few N. Korean refugees who manage to get across the border. They want to take prayer and healing to Israel and the Islamic nations as well.
In Busan on the Southern coast of South Korea, a group called Busan House of Prayer (BHOP) hosted us. Several churches (including the YWAM base) came together to seek God and pray for renewal and healing. It was their first time to host an Inner Healing seminar. Each night we spoke to over 200 people - all crowded into the church and sitting cross legged on the floor! Such eager faces in the crowd - beautiful and precious people! Many of the people received a touch from the Lord and were able to release bitterness, unforgiveness, and shame and to receive the Father’s love.
At the Wagner Leadership Institute in Jang Yu, we spoke to about 50 leaders from 20 different churches who attended the Inner Healing Seminar from Monday-Thursday. Wow! What a move of God! The Holy Spirit’s presence was powerfully felt in the five-story retreat facility where we met. The second day of the conference, something remarkable happened to one of the kitchen helpers who the church had hired to help prepare and serve the meals for the students. The first day she came to work she didn’t do a very good job, so the person in charge was not going to pay her. But then the next day when she came, she was overcome by the Spirit of God, repented and accepted Jesus! From that day on she was one of the best workers they had!
We taught and ministered to the people from early morning until late at night, but many of the students stayed up praying and ministering to one another all night! The glory of God was in that place and it seemed to be an endless day for the people. Our interpreter had brought along a friend of hers to volunteer and to sit in on the classes. She was not a believer, had recently been divorced and was at the lowest point in her life. On the second day of the seminar, during one of the small groups, the other ladies in her group led her to Christ. The pastor prayed for her too and she was saved, delivered and filled with the Holy Spirit! After that, she didn’t quit smiling (or crying for joy) for the rest of the week!
Although our schedule was packed (preaching or teaching 40 times in two weeks) Robert and I literally felt like we were being carried by your prayers and felt the Lord's covering and protection over our health and hearts! Thank you! It was our great privilege to be sent out to share the love of God, to teach, to pray for and to learn from a remarkable group of people whom God sees! After spending two weeks with them, we are beginning to “see” them too and can’t help but love the courageous Koreans!
