NEWSLETTERS

How God Led Me to Korea

A Calling Planted

I first felt called to North Korea many years ago when I learned about the prison camps. My heart was broken and deeply moved, but at that time, I didn’t act on it. I was working full-time and raising two toddlers.

An Unexpected Connection

In 2021, I visited the YWAM base near Seattle, where Pastor Peter is the director. I hadn’t come for a YWAM event but for a retreat hosted by another pastor. That’s where I met Pastor Peter. He gave me his card and said my family and I were welcome anytime.

I meant to contact him, but I thought I lost the card. Life moved on, and I poured all my energy into starting a nonprofit organization on my own.

God’s First Step

By mid-2023, something shifted. I couldn’t stop thinking about North Korea. I watched documentaries, read books, and tried to learn as much as I could.

Then in December 2023, while praying in my closet, I asked God:
“If You want me to pursue North Korea, just give me one step. I don’t know anyone who can help—just one step.”

Right after that prayer, I pulled out an old purse I hadn’t used in years. Inside, I found Pastor Peter’s card. Immediately, I felt God say:
“Call Peter. That is your first step.”

So I did. Peter shared his heart for reunification and invited me to the New Korea Retreat in July 2024. I signed up six months in advance.

A Heavy Heart and a Clear Call

In those six months leading up to the retreat, God continued to place Korea heavily on my heart. I read stories, watched K-dramas (which I now love!), and began learning the Korean alphabet.

But I was also exhausted. I was running both a business and a nonprofit alone, chasing success for my own credit. By May 2024, I was burned out. While my husband and I were praying, he sensed God telling me to let go of the nonprofit. I immediately felt complete freedom, and I knew then: God was calling me to be a missionary for Korea.

The next morning, filled with joy and peace, I realized I needed community. I could not walk this journey alone. That’s when God made it clear—my family was to move to Seattle, where I would find that community at the YWAM base.

At the retreat in July, God confirmed it all. And in October 2024, we moved.

Living the Journey

Since moving to Seattle, I have volunteered at the YWAM base and have been warmly welcomed by the staff. I have now also taken on some administrative work for YWAM, and I commute there 2 days a week. (The Monroe YWAM base is about 50 minutes from my home in Shoreline.) I’ve had the opportunity to travel with Pastor Peter to South Korea twice now, where I shared my testimony at churches and retreats, and met many who escaped from the North.

Looking Ahead

I have not yet been to North Korea, as Americans cannot yet travel there. When the time comes, I will go as part of a team with people who have already served inside the North and have connections there.

While we wait for the North to open, I will continue to travel to South Korea. This journey is not something I can do alone. I need prayer, as well as financial support. If you feel led, I invite you to partner with me through giving. Your support enables me to continue serving at the YWAM base, serving those in South Korea through our Hana Scholarship Fund, and prepare for a trip to North Korea.

Together, we can play a part in God’s heart for reunification, healing, and hope in Korea.

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My First Trip to Korea

My first trip to South Korea was in the Summer of 2025, and primarily a season of learning and observing. I stayed in Paju, a city shaped by its closeness to the border, where the division of the peninsula felt tangible. I also spent time in Seoul and Jeju, each place offering a different window into Korea’s history, culture, and present reality.

Much of my time was spent listening, especially to stories connected to the division of the peninsula, and beginning to understand the emotional, historical, and spiritual complexities surrounding both North and South Korea. At a retreat in Jeju, I met many individuals who had come from North Korea, and they were so kind and welcoming.

During the trip, I had the opportunity to speak at a church in Paju and a church in Incheon, sharing my testimony of how God had grown a passion in me for Korea’s reunification. These moments were less about having answers and more about faithfully sharing how God leads, often step by step.

That trip did not feel dramatic or glamorous. It felt grounding. It clarified that meaningful work in this space begins with humility, patience, and a willingness to be present. I also formed friendships that continued beyond the trip, relationships I was able to revisit and deepen during my second visit to Korea.

This first trip became the quiet beginning of a deeper journey, one that continued to unfold during my second visit to Korea.

JULY 10, 2025

My Second Trip to Korea

My second trip to South Korea was in the Winter of 2026 and intentionally focused on building deeper foundations through language, relationships, and learning. I stayed in Seoul in the home of a Korean couple who are learning English while I continue learning Korean. Although we often relied on translation apps, daily life together created space for meaningful conversations, mutual patience, and genuine connection. This experience made clear how essential language is—not only for communication, but for trust, cultural understanding, and long-term presence.

Alongside my YWAM directors, I attended a three-day Korean unification retreat where pastors, professors, and missionaries shared both their personal longing for unification and the active work taking place in South Korea and China. A pastor invited me to share my testimony, reconnect with friends from my first trip, and form new relationships with those already engaged in this work. Listening to their stories and experiences reinforced the complexity of the unification ministry and the need for humility, preparation, and sustained commitment.

Throughout this trip, I sensed God clearly affirming that this season is still one of learning. I experienced a deep peace and growing clarity that this calling is not short-term, but the beginning of a long relationship with Korea and its people. As I continue to pursue the Korean language, I am also learning how to begin conversations and serve Korean communities where I live now, trusting God to prepare me for future seasons of greater involvement.

I am prayerfully looking ahead to future trips to Korea that will allow for further language study, cultural immersion, and exploration of the land, all of which are necessary for faithfully walking into what God is unfolding

January 21, 2026