A Letter from the North Korea Safe House Ministry
Near the border of China and North Korea, on the Chinese side, are several homes that look just like any other. The streets are quiet, and the houses inconspicuous.
These are places where North Korean refugees are given shelter.
Open Doors operates several safe houses in the Chinese border area. Here, North Koreans – both Christian and not – can stay for a short time to receive food, medicine, and Bible study. Most eventually return to their home country, because staying in China is too dangerous for them. But thanks to your help, they come home strengthened by the Gospel.
Inside, the shelter looks like any other Chinese house or apartment. Yun Hee*, who operates the safe house, says “the refugees wander the streets looking for places to sleep…I approach them, offer them a free place to stay, and serve them until they go back or move on. They want to know why I do this without asking anything in return. Only then do I share with them about God and the Bible. Many return as believers.”
Yun Hee’s ‘job’ is to take care of the refugees and give them love. “I have seen even spies change because I was kind to them”, she says. “Some guests later confessed they had been sent to make a report about me for their secret service, but they said they were so grateful for me that they promised to only write good things and nothing about illegal activities.”
When the North Korean guests are already genuine Christians or sincerely searching for the truth, they are connected to workers who can give them Bible study.
“We have a code word”, says another safe house worker. “If my local contact tells me that word, I know I have to meet him in a specific parking place. In the back of the car, I explain the gospel to the North Korean escapee. If he or she wants to learn more, we’ll go deeper next time. If we’re certain we can trust the person, we’ll give in-depth Bible study for several days in a safe location. This way we prepare them for when they go back. Many North Koreans bring back the gospel and evangelize their own families.”
Support like this makes an enormous impact on our persecuted family in North Korea – the hardest place on earth to live in as a Christian.
One guest, Hoon*, left a thank you letter and specifically asked that it be shared with the people who made his stay in the safe house possible:
Dear brothers and sisters whom I have never seen or known,
Thank you, everyone! I am grateful to God. I could truly feel His and your love.
Even though we do not know each other, it feels like we know each other in Jesus Christ from long ago. Because God has chosen us we became brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.
I give thanks to God.
I thank God for calling me to do His will and to meet with [name omitted] so that we can cooperate together in our ministry. I thank God for everything He has done.
Your loving support has helped me to remove my burdens and I am so grateful that I can continue to do the work that He wants to accomplish through me.
I have so much to thank but I cannot express all my gratitude with words and pen. However, I would like to repay to you all by doing everything I can to carry out God’s ministry.
Lastly, I would like to convey my gratefulness and blessings from 3 John verse 3, “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.”
Thank you all once again.
Your brother in Christ,
Hoon*.
Pray with us
- That workers like Yun Hee would be able to continue their ministry safely and without fear
- That God would use the safe houses to greatly expand the gospel in the spiritually dark land of North Korea
- That guests like Hoon would be strengthened and encouraged in their faith and be kept safe as they secretly follow Jesus.
* All names changed for security reasons.
