2011

The Resurgence Ministry Peru Missions Testimony

By Inesse Lee, Kevin Kim, Hannah Lee, Esther Choi, Eunice Kim, Hansol Choi, Michael Baek, Chris Doh, Dan Chung, Myohan Oh, and Jonathan Yi The Resurgence Ministry of Chodae Church

Table of Contents
Inesse Lee Kevin Kim Chris Doh Michael Back Eunice Kim Esther Choi Hannah Lee Daniel Chung Jonathan Yi Myohan Oh ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------3 5 9 13 16 18 20 23 26 28

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Inesse Lee
I guess Ill start off by saying that I am the last person who deserved to go to Peru, not even for myself but to tell others about the Holy One, when I dont really know, when my faith isnt strong, when my prayer isnt what it is supposed to be about. I felt this guilt and disgusting feeling right before I was to be at church. At the time, I only went because I thought to myself all that time and effort would go to waste. I didnt think that... 1. a person could be saved through my words, 2. the trip could change me, and 3. that I could get closer to God. I didnt even know what my purpose was. Why was I chosen to go to Peru? What made me so special from all the other people who went to church? Without any of these questions answered, I went, landed in Peru, and finally got to the base. The next day, I was given the chance to see God do his work right in front of me. Its as if though this elderly woman, named Rosa, I was able to feel the connection between her and God. Words do not describe how beautiful and Words do not describe how emotional this moment was. As we prayed for Rosa, beautiful and emotional this tears rolled down my face. I couldnt really tell you moment was why You just feel this emotion that touches your heart and makes you realize that God is always there, literally. His presence was so obvious and it was the happiest moment of that whole day. Another moment like this occurred, but with a younger girl named Elsa. She was such a sweet native girl. She welcomed us with an open heart and open arms. She accepted Christ into her heart. She was so happy and couldnt wait to go to the base where we had set up medical help. Through Elsa, God made me realize that he will help me when I evangelize to others. The youth group was in charge of the VBS. All the kids were so different in every city/village. Some were very shy, some were welcoming, and some were beyond greedy. But when it came to praising the lord in these children songs and adding the motions it was like my frown was turned upside down. God gave me the spirit and the strength to express all I had in me to the kids watching and listening. Even though I had inflation in my nose and got sick, I was still able to praise the Lord through these songs and make the kids smile. Oh my goodness, when one kid smiled it was like someone gaveem 100,000 dollars; well, even better than that. Then, and right then, God showed me the answer that I asked from the very beginning. My purpose was to put a smile on each face that I saw. Through singing, smiling myself, handing out goodies, evangelizing, or even saying hello, my given purpose was to make people happy through the Lord, to show them that I am happy because of one reason; which was because I
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am a believer in Christ who died for my sins. At that moment the guilt, pain, and negativity vanished and I was left with a pure and happy feeling inside. So this is my testimony, and I guess what Im trying to prove is that even though I am not a strong believer, the attempt and the gradual continuation to serve the Lord is just as good enough as being a strong believer. He took his only son and sacrificed him for our sins. One way that showed me that I am worthy of saving was the Everything Skit. I was the main character and its about a Then, and right then, God girl/boy who commits all these sins and goes showed me the answer that I through all these hardships that life throws at asked from the very beginning you. So the girl, being human makes all these mistakes but in the end the light from God is presented to her. She meets God at her lowest point and he brings her up again, making her stronger and becomes pure again. So because of that, because of what his son did for us, the least I can do is accept my sins, move on, and continue to praise God. This trip to Peru was such a blessing and it is something that I will never forget and something I will always cherish. To PJ and every member of my team, I thank you so much for being there for me, supporting me, and especially loving me. FIGHT TEAM 2011<3

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Kevin Kim
Ok, Ill be honest. I didnt know why I was going to missions. I knew what missions were, I knew why people went on missions, but I didnt know why someone like me would be called to go to missions. I went to missions last year, but I didnt know why I felt the need to go on missions then either. It mightve been because I felt obligated as a member of the church, because it would make me feel better, or because I wanted to make my parents proud. What I do know is that I didnt go with the heart of a missionary. I went with the heart of a volunteer worker. Regardless of my intentions, I went in blind with no idea of what Gods plan for me was. The same applied to this year. My father told me that if I wanted to go to missions, I needed to pray about it and have a conviction in my heart that God was calling me for a mission. I guess he understood how important Peru would be to me even then. When he told me that though, I was in a spiritual slump. It was going on for about two years, before Philly missions, and I hadnt had an honest conversation with God for that whole time. I never touched my bible, even on Sundays, and I prayed before meals, but only if I felt like it. That was the extent of my relationship with God for that time. I grew up a Christian, so I knew how to act like one even if I no longer felt his presence in my heart. I knew how to tell people the word of God, I knew how to argue with atheists, and I knew about the important verses of the bible and when to say them. However, I had no relationship with God. I lived a life that showed I wasnt a Christian and that I was just as secular as the rest of the world. I found no guilt I was in a spiritual slump when I sinned, and I sinned knowing it was a sin. I was callous to everything around me, but I was totally oblivious to the work of God in my life. It was with this attitude that I went into Peru missions training. Although I didnt believe that God was really in my heart, I still believed that God existed. I knew that he was all powerful and all knowing, because I had believed it even since I was a child. Since I knew this, I figured that missions are important in the eyes of God, so that if I wasnt meant to go to missions then something would come up that would prevent me from going. I knew that God worked in mysterious ways and that he does do his work in others, so I thought that he would only send me to missions if he wanted me to. As the months dragged on and trainings came and went, the day for departure finally arrived and I still felt no different from before. Then, we left. It really didnt seem like we were going to Peru for any of us because it had crept up on us so quickly. Even when we landed after the 7 hour flight, it felt like we were still in America. Then came the bus ride. Its crazy how many games you can play with 11 people for 9 hours. Riddles came and went, stories and jokes were told, but most importantly, the fellowship that we shared bonded us even closer together as a team, something that was crucial to our working as a group. Finally, we arrived at our base and the air
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was so thin. Like, really thin. We couldnt take more than a couple steps without panting for air, and we werent even carrying anything. After the first night passed, the first day of real ministry began at Vicas. There, we werent accepted as well as we expected to the point where the children there actually refused to talk to us and the adults rejected us when we tried to reach out to them. It was here that I made my first mistakes on this trip. As I walked around with my translator, Samuel, I spoke with an elderly man who hadnt heard the word of God. I was happy that he seemed approachable because when I was looking around, some other town members didnt seem as friendly. As I told him about the four spiritual laws and Gods love for him, he was very receptive to both me and my translator. As I finished up with my reading of the laws, I asked him if he wanted to accept Christ as his Lord and Savior and he said yes. In my heart, I was so relieved, but for the wrong reasons. It wasnt because I was genuinely happy for the man himself, but I was relieved that I didnt have to continue my awkward conversation with him. However, my translator interrupted, and I am so glad that he did. Samuel asked the man if he realized what this meant for him and that he would have to change his life. He would no longer be a man without a reason to live but he would be a son of God He would no longer be a man which means that he would have to live his life without a reason to live but he in that manner. It didnt even occur to me to would be a son of God which mention that to him, but in my haste to finish means that he would have to live the conversation, I failed to really reach out to his life in that manner. him. After the man heard that news, he decided that he needed to think about it more and reflect upon his life. With those parting words we left, and I realized just how misguided my intentions were. I realized that the way I was acting was for out of my self interest and not for the kingdom of God, which was why I should be going to missions. After my conversation with that man, I looked around and saw members of our team spreading the word to the children who were on average no older than 10 years old. Looking at this, I thought to myself, Whats the point in telling them? Theyre nothing more than children and theres no way that they could truly understand the word of God. Because of that belief, I refused to talk to the children, because I figured that they wouldnt comprehend the gravity of what I was saying. That night, after all of our VBS and evangelizing, we had a meeting with the youth of our team. As we reflected upon what we did that day, I realized just how ignorant I was to Gods work. It says in Matthew that children are the kingdom of God and that they are the future children of Christ. When I talked to Pastor Jaemyung about my experience, he told me of the vision he once had of these children being the future soldiers of Christ who were working for his glory. When I tried to see his vision, my heart broke because I realized then that I was lacking Christ in every part of my being. After our meeting adjourned, I felt the need to fix my inadequacy so I asked PJ for help in my faith. Before then, all of my doubts in Christ prevented
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me from getting any closer to God than what I thought was a comfortable distance away. My doubts broke down my faith brick by brick and I no longer found my strength in Christ, but in myself. Talking to PJ really opened my eyes to how ignorant I was being to the grace of God. I realized that what I was doing was asking God for all of these things but I refused to look for answers. I thought God was rejecting me and ignoring me, but it was me rejecting God. I was looking for God to speak to me through a vision or in spoken word or in some other awesome way, but I refused to look for answers in his written word, which was my greatest mistake. I chose to open my mouth to selfishly ask for I thought God was rejecting me what I wanted, but I closed my eyes and ears and ignoring me, but it was me to all of the answers that God was trying to rejecting God. show me. That night, I reflected upon the word and I remembered the verse that I kept closest to my heart when I first knew Christ. That verse is Habakkuk 3:17-18 and it goes like this, Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior. I hadnt really reflected upon this verse since I first accepted Christ as my Savior, and now was the time I needed it most. My faith was failing and my trust in God was almost completely gone, but after reading this verse again, I realized that even though I may not get my answers and that I dont succeed in the way I want to, even when my life is down in the dumps, it is my duty, not to give up on God, but to have faith and praise his name because he never gave up on me. From that day on, the week only got better and better, Although I did get sick over the course of the next day, every time I was doing Gods work I got reenergized and all my symptoms drained away as if I was never sick. I began to appreciate everything God had done for me as well, starting from the beautiful mountain ranges to the mission team he had blessed me with. Everyone in the team had a strong relationship with Christ and I was in awe of how he used each and every one of us to our full ability. On our prayer walks in the morning, we would sing songs at the top of our lungs and pray for the land and people we encountered as well as reaching out to complete strangers to join us for our services and for the fun of VBS. In everything that we did, whether it be singing songs and dancing with the children or spreading the word of God to the natives, it all brightened my mood every day to the point where I couldnt stop smiling. I knew it then that this was the reason I was called to My doubts made my faith even missions. Not to reach out to the children or to stronger than before experience the food there, which I did do, but I know now that I was called to strengthen my faith in God so that I would be able to spread it to others. My doubts made my faith even stronger than before because the gap that I crossed to get back to Christ was so much greater. He completely erased all of my doubts in my work
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there and he opened my eyes to the light that made my job clear as day. It is our job as his people to never doubt in him because he always has faith in us no matter how far away we stray. I always knew that God was our Shepard and he always searches for us when we wander, but it was at Peru where his love for me was revealed and I am forever thankful for the work he has done in my life. Because of him, my life has meaning again and the fire in my heart has grown ever stronger for his love.

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Chris Doh
I have been going to church ever since I could remember. I grew up in the church. I knew the answers by the book and I knew what I had to do to be called a Christian. For 18 years, I went weekly to service listening here and there to get a simple grasp of what the Bible is. To be honest, I didnt really care for it and kind of regarded Sunday to be a day where I HAD to go to church and I HAD to sit down and listen to some pastor ramble on about the Bible. It is most likely because I was too comfortable with my own life. Nothing was earned, only given to me. I never had to beg for anything because I would live a fortunate enough life to just go out and buy it myself. Now that I look back, I never understood why I complained so much in High School when everything I had was in front of me. Towards my Junior/Senior year in High School, I thought I had everything figured out. I started to get even more relaxed, and this put my guard down to things such as drugs and alcohol. I became addicted. The first thing in the morning My heart and mind had become that ran through my mind was that I would have a extremely calloused fix, then at night before I slept, the same thought process. I was obsessed with drugs. Furthermore, towards my Senior year in high school, I picked up drinking as well. What Ive learned is that drinking is reserved for those who are mature enough. Let me tell you, I am almost 20 years old and I know for a fact that my mentality about drinking is still not up to par. Long story short, I lost my purpose as a Christian, and my heart and mind had become extremely calloused. I didnt care about anyone, my emotions were gone, and I was totally indifferent to those around me seeking only to find something to make only me happy. In the process I hurt people and theres not a day that goes by when I feel guilt for causing them pain. I was lost, but I didnt understand it. Then came college. I thought that college was a time to start myself anew. I wanted to give out a different image of the name Chris Doh. I wanted people to see me, not as the drug and alcoholic but as a good boy that went about daily doing work, studying and occasionally going out to have fun with everyone else. Two weeks into college, I failed, miserably. And I continued to fail daily throughout the rest of semester. You ever hear the rule about not having a girlfriend your first year in college? I did, but deep down in my mind I was lonely and ignorant. This girl was the root of all my problems, I lost my friends in college because of her, I lost my friends in high school because of her and the worst part was that she didnt even care. If there is ONE thing that I know for sure, is to not get in a relationship until at LEAST your junior year in college. You know why? Because your first and second year there, your still trying to get to know everyone. Its impossible to have a relationship with someone you barely know. It just wont work, trust me. To be simple, this was the darkest part of my entire life. I was completely
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and utterly broken, in the deepest ditch of my life and there was a stretch of a few weeks right before winter break where I would literally cry alone asking for help to a God that I had forgotten, to a God that I had ignored my whole life. Second semester rolled around and I did something I thought would never happen, I started to go to church and praying voluntarily. Two weeks into second semester, God pushed me to go on a retreat. I couldnt have asked God for something better because the whole theme about the retreat was the Love of Christ and the Gospel. It was the first time in my life I had broken down in tears begging the Lord to take me back. He did, because his faith never dies for us. I had never prayed and read the Bible so much in my entire life. My whole life I had betrayed Jesus Christ, spitting in his face and acting as if I was better. But now I realize, He is the one and only God that died for us, and for that I am forever grateful. This retreat is where I found Christ Jesus. He taught me the value of prayer, the Bible, and love. It took me 19 years of my life to finally understand the Love of Jesus Christ. There is a difference between knowing it and understanding it. And even now, I may understand it, but I have so much more to learn from Him. There is one thing I know for sure, the Jesus Christ loves us with an undying faith and he has a specific plan for EACH AND EVERY one of us. Second semester, God showed me his Love, he showed me that no matter how many struggles I have in life, He is always there to help me prevail. After freshman year, I had this conviction to do more than just say the words of the Bible. I just didnt know how. That was until Peru Missions landed in my lap. This was perfect timing and I couldnt thank God more for giving me an opportunity to send me to Peru to preach the Gospel to the people of Huaraz. This was His plan all along; He wished to show me that with the Love that we have received, we must go out into the world as disciples and do his work. In other words, we must follow in his footsteps and do as Christ as done to the best of our ability. That week Peru has really shown me to be more than a Christian, but a missionary, a worker of Christ. I had my bags packed, my snacks in my bag and lounged in front of the church waiting to leave on the coach bus that stood in front of me. After a few months of missions training, I was still doubtful of what was to come on this trip. I I was continuously meditating had many questions: What is the food like? Are and praying that Christ will truly the people there willing to accept Christ? What humble me and set a right happens if they say no to the gospel? How will mindset in me this help my relationship with Christ? And most of all, what is my purpose on this trip? Least to say, I was very anxious, even doubtful. The whole plane ride there and the 8 hour bus ride I had my mind set on Christ. I was continuously meditating and praying that Christ will truly humble me and set a right mindset in me so that I may go about doing the best work to glorify Him. Let me tell you Missions were nothing like I had imagined.

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God does unspeakable miracles wherever there are soldiers for Him. As representatives of the youth group, we were in charge of VBS for the children. In the four days that we had gone around in Huaraz, we had seen about 200 children. When you see these children, you realize how fortunate you are and how much Love God has for each and every one of us who live in the tri-state area. We live in some of the richest parts of the world, and yet we are all blind to those that dont even have a dollar, or enough to eat. Tuesday through Friday we travelled to four towns of Huaraz: Collon, Ucush Pampa, Yiwash Vicos, and Pashpa. In these four days, God had shown me so much love, he kept me safe and healthy teaching me the value of a missionary and how we need to have a right mindset about spreading the word of the A missionary is not one who is crazed, Gospel. As a youth group we were so excited but grounded and secure in his own for Peru. To be honest, I was very antsy and jumping out of my seat. Interestingly, however, mind, not anxious of what will come God slowly humbled me. He taught me the next because Jesus has us in His arms value of being excited for God, but at the same secure and sound. to be sensitive and mature, quiet and reserved when need be. A missionary is not one who is crazed, but grounded and secure in his own mind, not anxious of what will come next because Jesus has us in His arms secure and sound. My relationship with Jesus Christ blossomed even more, and now more than ever, I seem to be getting a true grasp of how a Christian goes about living with Christ. This maturity in Christ, really put me at peace with myself. No doubts, no pain or suffering, just joy. On this mission to Peru, I saw true happiness in the eyes and smiles of all the children and adults I evangelized to. It taught me the value of Gods power and how he uses us to make others happy. I have forgotten many names but when I saw the smile from an adult or a child and looked into their eyes to see acceptance, I was blown away. I was utterly speechless. These people accept Christ knowing that they live in poverty and their next meal might never come. Yet Christ fulfills them with so much Love they can do nothing but smile and agree. In this trip there was one boy named Freddie. As soon as I looked into his eyes, we connected. He was like a long lost brother I never had. As I talked to him about the Gospel, his eyes had so much joy! It actually brought tears to my eyes. Then I looked around, and I saw that everyone else had smiles as well, including the youth group missions team. It was like spiritually charged electricity filling my heart. To see a smile on a childs face is worth more than anything. I would do anything to see a smile on the face of a lost soul. It breaks my heart to know that I may never see these children ever again. But Jesus has assured me that all will be well because planting that one seed in that child will help him/her to grow to be a soldier of Christ, willing to give up their lives for him. That thought, helped me to sleep at night. I taught these people the Gospel, but in return these people of Peru taught me a value and power of Christ Love, grace, and mercy. God has a plan for each and every one of us. It was his plan to break me down and bring me up in college. It was his plan to show me His love in a time of difficulty and struggle. It was
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his plan to send me to Peru missions. And it was his plan to show me that there is much more to life than just reading the Bible, and praying, but actually participating in the act of evangelism. We are the clay and he is sculptor, he continues to mold us and change us for the betterment of our Christian lives. I am convinced, now more than ever, that we need to spread the gospel. No one ever said it was easy though, I never said it was. We need prayer and we need faith. In retrospect, I havent understood Christ for a long time, but I have learned so much from Him and I am determined to know more because of this missions trip and what it has done for me. He is my salvation and he has I am convinced, now more than done miracles for me. I know everyone ever, that we need to spread the struggles; its when we finally learn to no gospel. longer feel any more pain that we turn to Jesus Christ. He is our one and only savior and he died for all of us so that we can rejoice in life. He died, and he still loves us because his faith is unfaltering. Put your trust in God because he has a plan for everyone. Its a matter of time before you accept the truth, because when you do. Your life as you know it will change forever. I promise you this because its happened to me, over and over again! Amen.

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Michael Baek
First off, I would like to thank God for giving me an opportunity to be used as his vessel at Huaraz, Peru. Sharing the Word and serving the people in Peru truly blessed me, and Im sure the entire missions team was blessed as well. I also thank God for letting me grow, love, and work with each and every person on the team, and I couldnt have asked for a better one. Initially, I decided to go to Peru because I felt as if I had a calling to solely help the people there through our ministries. I thought that as a Christian with a strong relationship and faith with Christ (or so I thought), I was obligated to serve the children there, respectively through VBS. All this is true that we as Christians must go and make disciples of all nations and serve the needy, but what I didnt realize was how much I needed to be changed myself. Im in no way trying to say that this experience was only about me, but that God has truly opened my eyes. What do I mean by opening my eyes? First, God has taught me how blessed I am to be living in a place like Bergen County. I realized that I have always taken everything for granted and am so privileged to be living in these kinds of circumstances. Down to the basics, I have realized how lucky all of us are to have warm food, hot water, warm clothes, etc at the touch of our hands. I know how clichd this sounds, but truthfully, everything we take granted for is a blessing given to us that we should be thankful for. For example, when the whole team would take a lunch break, kids would be huddling around and staring at our food hoping to get a bite to satiate their hunger. Cold water was the norm to take showers at our base, but when I arrived home, I was truly amazed at how I would be able to take a hot shower just by the turn of one knob. God also opened my eyes to show how happy I should be with anything I have. On the second to last day of our missions, in a town Y-Souras eyes kept named Ucushpampa, God helped me witness a wandering and not even truly humbling experience with a little girl glancing once on the balloon, named Y-Soura. As the team and I were and upon asking the mother, I singing songs and dancing with the children found out that she was blind. outside, one of the NFC members came up to me with a girl and her mother, asking me to help them. Soon, I found out that Y-Soura wanted a balloon, a prized possession to all the children in Huaraz. Soomin nuna blew up a bright yellow balloon and put it into her little hands, and the smile on Y-Souras face was indescribable. Her eyes lit up and I thought her cheeks were gonna rip apart. But what I realized was that Y-Souras eyes kept wandering and not even glancing once on the balloon, and upon asking the mother, I found out that she was blind. In 2008, Y-Soura had a leaking in her brain
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after hitting her head, and during the operation, she lost her vision in both her eyes. To see that a girl growing up in these kinds of conditions being so happy and ecstatic by a simple balloon humble me. God truly floored me and I questioned myself, Who am I to be complaining about such little things back in Jersey while this girl finds so much joy in a rubber balloon. God gave me more of an amazing opportunity to share the Gospel with Y-Soura and her mother, and spend time with them by making bracelets and other arts n crafts activities. Of course we gave her a lot more balloons towards the end of the day. God also helped me realize how broken I was in my relationship with Him. During one of our morning QT devotions, Pastor Kyungsoon said how to be molded into Gods vessel, each one of us has to experience the brokenness of our faith to Christ. To be honest, I didnt understand what she meant until later that day, when Pastor Jaemyung was explaining the Four Spiritual Laws to the kids in Wiyosh Vicus. He was but if you think hard about it, (I describing how as sinners, we were always meant know I did), SOMEONE DIED FOR to die, but because God loved us and showed YOU. mercy on us, he sent his son to die on the cross for us. I know how everybody hears this basic sunday school lesson many times in the week, but if you think hard about it, (I know I did), SOMEONE DIED FOR YOU. Someone took their own life just to save you from Gods justified wrath. I was left speechless and I dont know why I realized it to this caliver during missions. I again asked myself, Who am I to be sinning against this great God that sent His own Son to die for me? Do I truly realize how much God loves me? I wasnt sure of how that experience tied in with being at missions, but I realized Gods love for us, and how we as missionaries ought to show this same kind of love to lost people. I realized that I was so broken by thinking I had a confident relationship with Christ by not truly realizing what God had done for all of us. One thing that I draw from all of this is that God gave us our own circumstances for a reason. He let us live in warm houses with a good education so that we can benefit from all of this, and in turn, serve God by sharing His love with everyone else. While I was in Peru for two more days because of losing my passport, I was given the opportunity to talk with Missionary Kevin while we stayed in a hotel room for those nights. He said that a mind of any Christian should be to read the Word of God and act. Read with faith, and act with good deeds. In time, after repeating this, we will find out what God has planned for each one of us. Many of us fail to recognize why we study or go to school. We aimlessly study to get good grades but if we took the time to develop our relationship with God through his word, we would know Gods will for us. Although I dont know entirely what God has planned for me, all I do know is that living in this kind of environment, I have to take full advantage of it and in the end, serve God and his people like in Peru in any way possible. In sum, Peru Missions was a very humbling and blessed experience for not only me, but to the rest of the team members as well. From the bonds weve formed, to the love we shared
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with the Peruvians, every second while being out in ministry was eye opening. I wish to come back next year if God lets me and calls me there.

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Eunice Kim
To be honest, Im not a very faithful Christian. In fact, Im sometimes ashamed to declare myself as a Christian because Im scared Ill leave a bad impression to non-Christians. Its funny how God used a person like me, who is useless in many ways and just filthy in Gods eyes. In Huaraz, I helped out in VBS, went to prayer walks, evangelized, and helped out in other fields. In America, I would normally be just going to church, hardly praying, and living the sinful life. Although the environment in Peru was not as abundant as America, I felt stress- free and joyful. I have never experienced this kind of joy and happiness, and Peru Missions 2011 is about the best part of my life. I wasnt always so excited to go to Peru. Being a weak Christian, I fell into many spiritual attacks. The week before missions, I felt sensitive, They had no internet, no A/C easily angered, and nervous. I felt like I was not or heat, clothes or food. The needed to go and felt like Pastor Caleb secretly children in Huaraz became didnt want me to go. The insecurity never left me happy over things that nobody alone. Sometimes, during missions, I felt spiritually would care about in shaken. The smallest things would bother me, and America things that I wouldnt have thought about twice at home began irritating me. I began to be scared of myself; why was I acting like this? Why cant I focus on spreading the love of God? Satan really tried to mess me up in many ways. I was being a bother to my teammates, being overly sensitive, and just being a burden. It wasnt until the second to last day when things got cleared up. Besides my spiritual attacks, a lot of events still happened. When our team went up to the mountains to get to each campsites, the people who lived there were so peaceful. Compared to us, they had nothing. They had no internet, no A/C or heat, clothes, or food. The children in Huaraz became happy over things that nobody would care about in America; coloring books, bead bracelets, crayons, and stickers were luxury to them. Then I thought to myself: If I were to live here instead of Ridgewood, how would I feel? Would I still be a faithful Christian? The people in Huaraz are incredible; theyre so humble and sweet. Helping out in VBS was a wonderful experience. At the first site, the kids were really shy and aware. They refused to sing and do the motions, and some even left VBS when the pastor started praying! I dont blame them, but I couldnt help feel but feel depressed. I felt a bit frustrated also. I wished these kids would experience Gods love and realize He loves them very much, like how Jesus loved kids. In other sites such as Acushpampa, kids were a lot more open to our team. They sang along, danced to the motions, and did all our activities. But the kids from the first time kept bothering me Did they understand at least some of Gods love?
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Peru was a wonderful experience to me. Although many spiritual attacks came upon me, I feel like this made me realize how happy and lucky I am and grow spiritually. I would love to go again next year and help spread Gods love!

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Esther Choi
One week of Worshiping, Praising, and Evangelizing: What a wonderful place to be! It was a blessing and honor for me to be a part of Gods work. I am really thankful that God sent me and that I was able to be used by God. At first, going to Peru wasnt easy. I wasnt sure if I was ready. I struggled many times doubting myself. I felt I wasnt spiritually ready. There were many times where I thought about quitting, but somehow I was able to go on with it and I was able to realize that I wasnt the only one. Many people around me struggled with the same reason. Unfortunately, when I arrived in Peru, I made some mistakes. I wasnt able to control my emotions and somehow I felt anger and frustration I dont think I ever felt this scared to one of my friend and I felt like I poured out my about evangelizing. anger to her. It was the weirdest feeling ever. I didnt know if it was a spiritual attack, but we got into a misunderstanding. During that time I felt like it was a mistake to go to Peru. I felt so empty and I didnt know how God was going to use me when I felt so unholy. Thankfully, the older sisters in the team were able to help us out. We were able to solve the misunderstanding. Everything seemed to be better the next day. However there were some distractions in the way that prevented me from being used by God. These distractions were my thoughts. At some point I had thoughts that got out of control. These thoughts were ruling over me and it constantly annoyed me. I wasnt able to focus, but through prayer God was able to help me. The most fear I had about missions was evangelizing. I dont think I ever felt this scared about evangelizing. I didnt want to make any mistake. I was scared that I wouldnt be able to fulfill Gods will. I knew that mission was a serious thing and God sent me to do his work, but I felt like I wasnt ready to evangelize. I felt ashamed because everyone seemed ready and I wasnt. I didnt know what Gods plan for me was. However, God gave me courage and I was able to spread the word of God with his help. It gets better The most amazing thing that happened in missions was the last day. It was on an afternoon when suddenly schedules kept changing. Youth group was assigned to go evangelize with the NFC. I was so scared that I started to cry. I felt like I was going to make a lot of mistakes. Through my doubts and fear, I still went. I kept praying to God, but I felt like it was no use. Every time we found a person to evangelize my heart was not ready. Until, I met this man.
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This man was catholic. This was the second person our group was evangelizing to, and I didnt want to do anything with this man. I wanted one of the NFC members to talk to him. However, they told me to do it. They said it would be ok. So I trusted in God and I started to read the four spiritual laws. When I read to the man., he seemed to understand everything. As I kept reading I noticed that my fears were gone. My thoughts and my doubts disappeared. I felt the Holy Spirit working with me. As I finished reading and asked if he wanted to accept Jesus as his savior, the man said yes and I gave him the paper so that he can pray. It was amazing. My thoughts were all gone. I suddenly started to cry and feel so happy. As we finished praying I just wanted to hug that man. He just seemed so loving and he reminded me of my father. I was so thankful that God was able to use me at the last minute. He was able to show his power. Through that I was able to see that God is really watching over us and he has total power and control over all things. Although this may seem like nothing, it really meant something to me. I am so glad and really thankful that I went. I was able to confirm Gods love for me. I was filled with Gods mercy and grace. I learned that through grace I was sent to missions. If I could go again next year, I would really like to go again and glorify God.
I noticed that my fears were gone. My thoughts and my doubts disappeared.

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Hannah Lee
When I first entered the missions field, I was very skeptical of our relationships with God. I had grown up in a Christian family and had been a well-behaved Christian girl, but I hadnt really personally experienced God and so I would always have spiritual doubts. I can shamefully admit that sometimes, I would even question the very existence of God. But out of nowhere, one day, Esther came skipping over to me, exclaiming that she was going to go to Peru missions, and that I should come with her. Just like that, I was in for something so unexpected, yet so life-changing. However, even when I went to mission trainings, I would sometimes question why I had even gotten my life and myself entangled in this commitment. At the time, I had thought that I didnt really have a calling to do this kind of work, and truthfully, I felt a worthless. Even through this, God helped me persevere, and do work for His glory. In order to explain my experience in Peru, I have to give a background of the kind of life that I led before I experienced missions I was before missions. To begin, my self-conscientious attitude towards my surroundings ran my life. I was so people conscientious to a point where all my actions reflected on what people thought of me and what they might think of me. However, after missions, I realized that every single one of us experiences Gods love in our lives, which is one greatest gifts on the planet. Do not be afraid of them, for I Im trying to change now, because I know that am with you and will rescue God has a calling for all of us, and that we all you carry his love inside of us. During QT one morning, Jeremiah Chapter 1 came up into my mind. After reading, suddenly, everything I had worried about was answered. This is how the chapter went: Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations. Ah, Sovereign Lord, I said, I do not know how to speak; I am only a child. But the Lord said to me, do not say I am only a child. You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you, declares the Lord. After reading this, my fears literally dissolved. I again experienced the ever present God and the work that he does in our hearts when we prayer walking on the second day of evangelizing. In the midst of the shouts of praise from fellow team members, I turned around to look if anyone was following us. Instead, I found Kevin and Chris holding what looked like a bucket of potatoes, and an old Quechuan woman slowly pacing herself towards us. Just that alone made my heart skip. It was then that I also realized that we were here to spread not only the gospel, but also the love and the joy of
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having God in our hearts. As they slowly made their way to us, I couldnt help but smile. They helped carried the old womans potatoes up a steep cliff, and then joined the group. I thought that would be the end of it, that we had shown the woman Gods love and there was nothing else that we could do, but I was wrong. At that time, God convicted her heart and as we sang Dios Nos Envio at the bottom of the hill, she slowly made her way down to the mountain to join us. Although I sadly cannot remember her name, we were all overjoyed when she grabbed Pastor Kyungsoons hand and started to join us in singing and motions. Pastor Kyungsoon then decided to share the four spiritual laws with her. Before meeting this woman, I was very skeptical of the four spiritual laws, thinking that a few pages of words couldnt really transform anyone. It didnt seem possible that just four points could explain what took me over 10 years to even try and grasp the idea of. But as Pastor Kyungsoon kept talking I saw the old womans face conform. It was as if I was seeing God work in someone right in front of me. The woman started to cry, and it was just an utterly beautiful moment. After seeing this, I realized that God prepared the hearts of some so that when we missionaries come to spread the gospel, we see the immediate acceptance and embrace of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Everybody was so emotional, and I think everyone at the moment was touched by the Holy Spirit. However, I experienced low point in our experiences evangelizing others. I went up to a Quechuan woman with a translator on the third day, and I tried speaking my heart out. Although I was nervous, I felt as if I had done my job well. I asked the question, Would you like to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? Like others, I expected a yes, for I was counting on God and I thought he would be present with me as I spread His word. However, she backed away from the translator and I, and firmly stated a resounding, No. For some I was feeling the hurt that God reason, I felt crushed. I started having feelings faced every single time one of His that the woman didnt know any better, that sons/daughters said no to His she didnt really know what it felt like to have Jesus Christ in heart. When I approached Pastor love Kyungsoon with my dilemma, at first, she started to laugh. She didnt think that a no would hurt someones feeling as it did mine. However, as she realized that I was honestly depressed, she said to me that I was feeling the hurt that God faced every single time one of His sons/daughters said no to His love. At that moment, it really hit me. That day, I experienced a fraction of Gods breaking heart when His children reject His love. Peru was honestly a life changing experience for me. Although I keep repeating that one phrase, it was just unbelievably crazy. I really feel as if it helped me grow closer with God in heart and in spirit. And even through all the spiritual attacks that this team faced, I know that God was with us as he gave us the strength and courage to carry on, and that he will always be supplying us with the strength that we need to live in His name. The experiences that I was so fortunately able to experience in Peru will always remain in my heart and my mind, but

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I also hope that our teams experience will stay in others hearts too, as this is not an independent experience that we endured alone, but something that we must all share.

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Daniel Chung
This years mission trip to Peru was a powerful experience for me, and I hope that it was the same for everyone else. I was moved by the dedication of everyone who went, and had a good time as well. Its always been my belief that evangelism should be enjoyed, not labored, and Im glad to say that this years trip was the most enjoyable and fulfilling mission Ive been on yet. Its been almost two weeks since we arrived at the Peruvian airport. Yet I still remember the day clearly. I remember the grueling 8 hour bus ride with a bus driver that either didnt know how to slow down on sharp turns or simply chose not to. I remember being somewhat sick of the chicken we ate for dinner after having delicious chicken at least one meal a day for the past week. I also remember we had to leave Michael behind because hed lost his passport. That part was funny. Most importantly, I remembered our emotions and our attitudes. We were all happy, but there was regret mixed in with the emotional and spiritual high; we were sad to say goodbye to Peru after only a few short days. Its always been hard for me to deal with change, and it just so happens that Im always beginning to get used to the routine at Peru on the very last day of service. So when the time came for us to board our flight and depart, I wasnt a happy camper. Then I thought about the rest of the team and how they mightve felt about everything. I wondered how this trip would affect them, how they would interpret this experience. After some unnecessarily careful meditation, I found myself getting angry. In hindsight, this doesnt surprise me, as I Its always been hard for me to experienced some form of irritation at the end deal with change, and it just so of every mission trip Ive gone on. I was displeased with this and I had to talk with happens that Im always Pastor Jaemyung to finally calm down. For beginning to get used to the those of you who dont know me, anger is my routine at Peru on the very last greatest problem. I dont get angry often, but day of service when I do, its very hard for me to cool off. In my eyes, its something of a vice. I remember my first mission trip didnt start off very well. My father and I had had an argument the night before, and I was still a bit irritated in the morning. After the mission actually began, I somehow managed to erase from my mind all traces of anger, and I found that I was happy. Then, as the trip came to an end, I found myself becoming irritable again, just like the day before Id left for the missions trip. At the time, I dismissed it, thinking that it was
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something that everyone went through. When my second missions trip two years later followed a similar pattern, I decided that I was under spiritual attack by Satan, that he was trying to unnerve me and throw me off of the right path the moment I stepped out of the mission field. That was last year. Now I feel enlightened, and much more open-minded to the truth. During the trip, PJ told us that even if our time in Peru came to an end, our mission was not over. That just because we were packing up and going home after a few days, didnt mean we were no longer missionaries. He said that our attitudes in Peru and at home should be the same. That our mentality should remain the same no matter where we are or what were doing. While at the Missions was like a short-term time I didnt really consider it a huge deal at the therapy session, and I, once it time, when missions was over, I found those words came to an end, fell into nagging at me. After I cooled off, I thought about my irritation and I realized then and there that I relapse was not going to missions for the right reason. As I mentioned before, anger is my greatest problem, and is what I am used to experiencing while I am at home. I used missions for the past few years to get away from my own habits, to feel good about myself and my Christian life. Im doing something worthwhile with my time, and I am doing something good and I feel good about myself. I was using missions when missions should have been using me. It became my drug, my source of temporary satisfaction. And as I think of it like that, everything clicks into place. Missions was like a short-term therapy session, and I, once it came to an end, fell into relapse. My old habits and mentality returned to me as we left Peru. And I came to understand the reality of missions; once you leave the site of your missions trip, old habits begin to creep back into your life, and despite our best efforts, we are knocked back to square one. Not because were inherently evil, nor because no one takes missions seriously, its just because were human. Its in our nature to return to what is most comfortable for us, to take the path of least resistance. As Pastor Han said to our group before the missions trip began, missions is not like a retreat. It is not meant to be a spiritual high for a few days, but to leave a lasting impression in us for the rest of our lives. To go expecting nothing but personal gain is worthless. We should be ready to give all that we can give to people who we otherwise may have never met, so that when the day of reckoning comes, we can meet them again in heaven and worship the Lord together. I learned that my way of looking at missions was completely off-target. I wanted to use missions for my own gain and satisfaction, rather than for the privilege of spreading Gods word. I wanted to find an escape from my own mistakes instead of trying to fix them by lifting up others through prayer and worship. I was being selfish instead of being selfless, as God would want all of us to be. For those of you who have gone to mission before and plan on going again, or those of you who may be thinking of going for your first time, I encourage you to go through with it, but
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I also caution you to reevaluate your reasons for going. If your intentions are to take something from missions and not to give every last ounce of yourself to the Peruvians, it may be more detrimental for you than helpful. Missions is a calling and a privilege, not something to be taken on a whim nor a job or chore.

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Jonathan Yi
Hello, Im Jonathan Yi, and this is my testimony about the Peru Mission Trip 2011. This year was my second time going to Peru for Missions and this years experience was completely different from last years. To be honest, the first day we visited the village of Collon, I felt that I did a horrible job. For example, when we went out to evangelize, the natives would just discourage me by saying that they could not understand Spanish or by not paying too much attention while I shared the Four Spiritual Laws. More importantly, I let myself get too distracted by my other teammates. I constantly felt that we needed to be doing something, so I became disappointed when I saw some of the other members being a slight distraction while a pastor was preaching to the little kids. But later that night, Pastor Jaemyung made us meet up and share our experience during the first day, and to my surprise, it seemed that everyone was spiritually touched. When people were talking about how an experience while talking or teaching a native, I realized that they may seem to fool around, yet God was still working through them. And there I was, worrying that we would get too distracted to do anything. The second day, we went to a place called Yiwash Vicos. I still remember making an assembly line to transfer the medical equipment to the top of the hill and then seeing everyone, myself included, struggle to climb back down. That morning during the prayer walk, Kevin and Chris helped out a native, Rosa, carry her bucket of potatoes back to her house. We continued to sing while we prayer-walked. Surprisingly, after we brought the potatoes to her home, Rosa came back down and wanted us to pray for her ears. I dont know what compelled her to come down, but it was a blessing being able to pray for her. Shortly after lunch, there was time to go around evangelizing the people waiting on line for To my astonishment, the boy medical attention. All the translators were with other seemed fully interested in what I teammates, talking with other people. But, I felt that was saying-he even seemed my Spanish was sufficient enough, so I approached a teary eyed little boy and his younger brother. I did not start evangelizing him right away, but I made a conversation with him and his younger brother. Although, to be honest, his younger brother seemed preoccupied and disinterested. So the boy was twelve and his younger brother was four; they came to get toothpaste and medicine. While I was talking, I slowly transitioned into the Four Spiritual Laws. To my astonishment, the boy seemed fully interested in what I was saying- he even seemed teary eyed or sad about something. He accepted Christ, though I feel that his brother was too young to understand and

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pay attention to what I was saying. I prayed for him and told him where the nearest church was, but I still regret not asking for his name. The third day, we went to Ucushpampa. That day while we were prayer walking, we intrigued Elsa. We all sang a song for her and later when we came down the mountain, she gave us popcorn-like food and some potatoes. Pastor Kyungsoon remarked that sometimes, the sound of the songs and praise alone touches people. I always knew that the seemingly foreign songs were forms of praise, but I never knew that they could be so powerful and influential. After lunch, again, we were given time to go around evangelizing people waiting for the services. Once again, the translators were with other people, but I still approached this woman. While I began to share the Four Spiritual Laws with her, her husband came out of the optical services. He was willing to listen too, so I shared the Four Spiritual Laws with both of them. Surprisingly, they seemed older of age so I thought they would speak mainly Quechua with little knowledge of Spanish, but this couple knew everything I was saying. They seemed to know some things about Christianity, like how Jesus came down to save us, but I dont think they were fully devoted at the time. So when I asked them if they wanted to accept Christ, they willingly complied and prayed with me. On the last day of going to a town for mission work, the youth group was given a chance to go around door to door I dont know how to truly evangelizing. I talked to many people like describe it in words, but it felt Jorge and San Mariel and even to a family of satisfying in an unselfish way. seven/eight people. Those experiences of introducing to them God were very touching. I dont know how to truly describe it in words, but it felt satisfying in an unselfish way. But I remember that there was one man, who would refuse to listen to us because he was a Catholic leader; he did not want to accept that Jesus was all that he needed. Additionally, there was one man that did not even want to take a Four Spiritual Law packet. It was discouraging, but my group was able to go to other people. The last night, we spent around an hour or so praying together. To be honest, it was the first time in a very long time that I genuinely felt humbled while praying. I certainly hope that this trip is not just a spiritual high in my life and that I just continue to grow. Thats my testimony.

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Myohan Oh
This missions trip to Peru was beyond unbelievable both spiritually and somewhat physically. Peru was my first missions trip and like most people, I didnt know what to expect at all. My first impression of Huaraz was that it was impoverished and we are far more privileged; on the bus ride from the airport in Lima to Peru, I could see countless houses surrounded by garbage and stray dogs and rather poor people all crammed into a busy country/rural setting. It was only through Gods eyes that I saw that we werent there to give sympathy or mere communal help, but more than that: we were there to give our hearts, our time, and our energy to give the people there LIFE and to serve Him in doing so. The first day, we arrived in Huaraz and we met the blessed people of the Peruvian church {people like Pastor Mario, Jesus (the clown for our VBS), Saul (awesome guitarist and helpful translator), and Daniela and Pierro and Samuel (extremely helpful translators as well)}. I felt that these people we worked alongside with were anointed brothers and sisters and they did nothing but help us reach out to the community. On the first full day in Peru, we went to a I saw that we werent there to region called Collon and started off with a prayer walk give sympathy or mere where the youth group would go around the region communal help telling locals about our dental, medical, and childrens service (VBS) that we were hosting. Our first encounter that day during the prayer walk was with a fairly old woman and two girls who all spoke only Quechua. Jonathan, Saul, and I went over to talk to them and although there was a huge language barrier, we managed to convince the girls to come to VBS. In our broken communication, I still felt blessed when I witnessed the acceptance of Christ. Chris Doh and I approached a boy named Mario, about 12 or 13 years old, who was waiting on line to get a haircut by our haircut ministry. Like most of the boys at Peru, he was somewhat shy but surprisingly attentive when we were explaining the four spiritual laws to him; later when I asked him if he wanted to accept Jesus as his personal Savior, he said yes and to make sure that his answer was sincere, I asked Mario again. When I heard his affirmation, I couldnt help but hug and congratulate him. Something in my heart clicked and tears came out when he accepted the gospel. Sunday after Sunday, I would hear from pastors and teachers that Jesus said, go and make disciples of all and every nation. The moment when Mario sincerely wanted to live a better life than the life of sin that he was living, I knew that God had used me to save a life. As days went on, I continued to see others being blessed through the grace of God and the gospel. I became touched when the Peruvian boys would become happy over the smallest things like
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balloons and stickers. Two boys like Raul and Santos were excited to be in my group that they wanted to learn Korean from me and all these boys started lining up so that I could write their names in Korean; since Spanish names are really long, it took quite a while. During missions, of course there were times of discouragement; spiritual attacks were heavy and Satan did not rest. This one boy that I tried to evangelize to was an attentive boy like Mario, around four or five years old. He listened to all I had to say about the gospel but when I asked him if he wanted to accept God I learned the power and the into his heart, he said no. In shock, I reiterated necessity of prayer, not only in that his sins would be forgiven but he told me the missions field but also back that he wasnt a sinner. From there, I had no here at home. idea what to say. I was extremely discouraged but all I could do was pray for him and trust that the Holy Spirit had a plan for his life and that if it was according to His plan, then the boy would eventually meet God. I guess its more than safe to say that I learned the power and the necessity of prayer, not only in the missions field but also back here at home. Despite the high altitude or the conditions there, I highly enjoyed singing songs and praising with the little Peruvian children and the enthusiasm that they show once theyre used to dancing in front of us. During VBS, I loved making bracelets for them and putting stickers on them and doing the simplest things for them. When every one of us comes out of our comfort zones and dances and sings aloud for Christ, its the most beautiful thing. One of the most touching moments was when we met a fairly old woman named Elsa. She was hanging up clothes and we told her about our medical and dental services back at the camp. We sang a song for her and prayed for her and when she started crying, we couldnt help but cry too. Pastor Kyungsoon prayed for her in Spanish and we were all in awe at how touched Elsa was. I was more than grateful when she gave us toasted corn and cooked potatoes. Peru missions was a one in a million experience; the funny thing is, it shouldnt be that way. Spreading the gospel should happen everyday yet we cant even do that in our own church community. I desperately pray that we may become those missionaries that make disciples of all and every nation so that our church will become a church that God wants us to be.

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Hansol Choi
Hansols wrote a beautiful testimony. However, some of her contents being very personal to her, we decided to omit it from this booklet and keep it just between her and God. God was truly pleased with her through all her obediences and sacrifices, and her words thanksgiving, Im sure, brought glory to God above. We love you, Hansol. =D -PJ

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