How Can I Help?
Crossing Borders has been operating for over 18 years. I helped to start it when I was in my mid 20s, when we were a different organization and when I was a different person. If there is one thing I’ve learned throughout the years it’s this: perhaps the most complicated question in the world is “how can I help?” Inevitably definitions of what it means to help and be helped can be completely different. Expectations of how this help will be delivered can be lost in translation.
To add to the complexities of helping, China, where we have helped hundreds of North Koreans over the years, continues to evolve. When Mike Kim first arrived there in 2001 on a missions trip, he witnessed an underground church that had to adapt to a very real threat of persecution from the Chinese government. We have seen this situation come full circle in our 18 years. At times it seemed like the communist party was looking to partner with the church in China. The constant ebb and flow has landed us to where we are today. In present day China, the threat against the church looks more like 2001 than any of the past 18 years.
This one key variable has made us switch our tactics of delivering help along with our expectations. We have tried many things and have learned from our mistakes. But one thing that has become clear to us is that the best way we can help any North Korean refugee is to share the gospel with them. There are other ways to provide help and meet their needs but in the order of importance, the gospel is paramount.
This is not a blind reading of the Bible that I’m regurgitating or a tribal desire to see my religion win out over others. I truly believe that faith in Jesus Christ is the most practical way that we can help someone. Whether they do or don’t accept it, we still try to provide short-term and long-term aid. But we’ll definitely try to at least explain the gospel clearly to each refugee we encounter. Here are reasons why we think the gospel is integral:
Lasting Hope
North Koreans flee their country in search of material help. In China, many hope for a better circumstance in South Korea. Tragically, some North Koreans, like the first Elim House resident Cathy, are so disillusioned by the lack of opportunities in South Korea, become suicidal.
According to survey data obtained by the South Korean government in 2019, 12.4 percent of North Koreans said they experienced “suicidal impulses” This rate is greater than double that of South Koreans who reported the same at 5.1 percent. Reported stress in daily living for North Korean refugees does not significantly change with their length of stay in South Korea. In fact, research from the Springer Report shows that stress and suicidal impulses increase with length of stay.
The gospel offers lasting hope because gospel-centered hope no longer rests on circumstances, which can shift like the wind. Rather, once confronted by the gospel people are able to place their hope on the love of God, which is unchanging. And we see the proof of God’s unwavering love as we look to Jesus’ death on the cross.
Peace
The gospel also offers peace. North Korean refugees deal with an immense amount of trauma. They have experienced traumatic events in North Korea through the famine. According to a 2017 meta study funded by the National Research Foundation of Korea, between 49 and 81 percent of North Korean Refugees witnessed at least one type of life-threatening event and about 26 percent of all North Korean refugees have been repatriated back to North Korea.
The study states that between 33 and 51 percent of North Korean refugees were classified as having depressive symptoms. Such information is aligned with the diagnosis of medical professionals Crossing Borders has brought to China who stated that numerous North Korean refugees within our network have ongoing symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (or PTSD).
How could anyone who has experienced such acute trauma have any peace?
Isaiah 53:4 says, “Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him, and afflicted.”
The gospel proves that God not only is concerned with our pain but that he actually took it upon himself. This does not mean that we aren’t concerned with psychological care. But it does mean that we believe the gospel has the power to heal.
Abundant Life
North Korean refugees in China live solitary lives. They suffer quietly as they hide from the authorities. But even as they hide in their homes, many suffer abuse there.
Most were tricked by traffickers and sold to the highest bidder as brides. They are trapped in forced marriages where they have no rights and can be abused with no recourse. They live as prisoners in a foreign land. Where can they run to?
We have witnessed time and time again the gospel give these women in seemingly hopeless situations hope and peace. When these women first believe in Christ as their savior, there is a joy that exudes from them that far outweighs their horrendous circumstances. We have also seen the gospel breathe new life into them. In Christ these women find acceptance, forgiveness and love.
John 10:10 says, “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
When Jesus tells us that he has already bought us with his precious blood. When he promises to never leave us or forsake us. When we look towards that day when he will wipe away every tear, what other response is there than pure joy?
We have witnessed the gospel change lives and give hope to the hopeless. We will continue to share it with whoever will hear it.
