Are you reading?

I am gonna be honest here, it is really difficult to stay motivated to regularly updated this blog. So, if you are reading this, please let me know. Right now it feels as if I am talking to an empty void.
I don't know if I mentioned before, but our school hired a new teacher, Angela, who arrived last night. Pray for her as she gets adjusted to her new life in Korea and the chaos that is teaching in all English with all Korean students in Korea.
I think I have found a church here in Seoul that I am going to begin regularly attending (i.e. join their version of Gospel Communities). Today will only be my 2nd time visiting, but I found myself referencing it as "my church" and the few hesitations  I have are based on open-handed theological issues. God has over and over brought this church into my line of vision when looking for a congregation here in Seoul to be apart of. I will make a separate post about the Church later.

Back to work talk, this week was good, but also illuminating. One of my student'  exhibits bad behavior. While chatting with my boss,I realized we have VERY different ideas about discipline and behavior. She seems to pair behavior and personality together. She actually said "we can't expect her behavior to change". Y'all, I almost fell out of my chair. A large part of my life has been working with kids to change their behavior. I expect EVERY single child to change their behavior, it is called maturity. I do not expect her personalitiy to change. This child is sweet but also emotionally scarred from a past trauma. She is defensive about her space and single-minded (what ever she perceives as most important in that moment will retain ALL of her attention)... as I learn her personality more and more, I get to adjust how we interact and what her discipline looks like. The last two days of school were sooooo good you guys. No major fits or displays of willful disobedience. Legitimate answered prayers.

While I was reading Scripture this morning, I was in 2 Corinthians and I came across this verse:
"For we do not want you to be unaware, brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia. For we were so utterly burdened beyond our strength that we despaired of life itself. Indeed, we felt that we had received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead. He delivered us from such a deadly peril, and he will deliver us. On him we have set our hope that he will deliver us again. You also must help us by prayer, so that many will give thanks on our behalf for the blessing granted us through the prayers of many." -2 Corinthians 1:8-11

First, this is not a cry for help, I promise. But throughout history, Asia has been a difficult, dangerous, and even deadly place to bring the Gospel too. Paul felt those emotions. I want to say so much on this,but do not have time before church service starts. I love being here. I am where God has called me to be. But I think if we are honest, God is calling a lot more of his people to go out, but because it is so much more comfortable not to, we ignore his call. The whole first part of 2 Corinthians is about both sufferings and comfort, it is amazing, read it.

Love you all. Here are pics of tasty food!

Bingsu

Tteok

Kimchi pancake

Prayer requests and updates

I feel like there is so much happening lately, but when I actually stop to reflect, it is more that living is a new sort of different and honestly almost nothing of concequence is happening. The biggest news of the week is that my INTERNET is FINALLY is working in my apartment. So I will hopefully be less detached from both the US and Korean happenings. Still waiting for my ARC, so no phone (Korean) or bank account (Korean), hopefully by sometime next week those will be taken care of as well.
On a typical Korean Tuesday, I would be getting home from work and planning dinner, but today is special; It is LIBERATION DAY here in Korea. As it is a national holiday, I have they day off of work, and have used today as a day of recuperation. (I am tired all the time. While, I would like to blame it on the stress of work and moving, I honestly believe it is because I have the most uncomfortable mattress I have ever slept on for a bed. While I am thankful for a place to sleep, I struggle to get good sleep lately.)

Friends who have graciously asked about life and prayer requests, thank you. I am sorry if I seem distant or shallow in my response. I am generally overwhelmed by the amount of prayer I, and my fellow teachers are in need of. I am generally spared from to much interaction with the parents of my students, which means my co-teacher is generally thrust into the path of all parent complaints or frustrations. This past week a mother when confronted with her own child's misbehavior, turned the situation around, blaming the Korean teacher and myself, going so far to say that the other teacher was not married because of her abilities and would not be a good teacher until she had children of her own. (For the record, her daughter intentionally kicked another student who climbed under the desktop retrieve something) When someone makes grand illogical assumptions and conclusions, I can generally ignore them, but my co-teacher was deeply hurt, so much so, I thought she might turn in her resignation. Losing her in our class would be devastating. While our personalities and teaching styles are very different, we both work and operate out of love for our students and a desire to see them succeed, and my teaching would suffer greatly without her.
I have been blessed with a class of 7 yr old girls. They have strong emotions and opinions, deep frustrations about being misunderstood. They are expected, some for the first time, to have real responsibilities away from home (like classwork). They can usually forgive quickly, which is good because they get hurt quickly.  Their parents long to protect them from everything still, but generally have to entrust a large portion of their child's day into out hands. So while my class struggles to get used to being full time students and not preschoolers, I have noticed their parents are also learning and struggling to learn how to handle this time in their child's life.
Most of my students and their parents are not Christians,they chose our school because it teaches in English only. My prayer is that my students, would hear and learn the truth of the Gospel, and not just English.

Four Sundays In

It has been nearly 6 weeks since my last update (though I just published the last update today)... I am in Korea. In fact I have been here for 3 weeks (but 4 Sundays). It is amazing. It is exhausting. When people asked who and what I was teaching a few weeks ago, I did not have an answer... now I know. I am teaching 7 yr olds (for now, all girls) all of the subjects, except Art and Music, and I am teaching in English. Before anyone asks; Yes, I have students who do not speak English,and yes it is horribly frustrating. I have already finished my first week of solo teaching, as I am finishing the semester for the teacher I am replacing.
I am sorry for not being able to keep everyone updated with life. My first 2 weeks in Seoul, I was blessed to be at an Air BnB with the sweetest family, and was able to use their Internet a bit... but for the last week I have been reletively Internet less. While I have it at work, there is no downtime right now as I am getting my bearings, so I am relegated to my ultra week data signal (my neighborhood is a new development, so infrastructure is there, but not like in Seoul) or to sitting in cafes and using their wifi...which is mighty expensive all the time.
The good news is.... I have free texting here in South Korea (it is a benefit of our current family plan in the states, so it will eventually be going away) So feel free to text anytime!
The church hunt is still onging, but stalled due to lack of Internet. I found a church that actually preaches the Word, which is more rare than you might think. I really like it, but it takes about 90mins, 3 subway transfers, and a mile uphill walk to get to... So I am looking for somewhere closer that may allow for easier community and fellowship since 3 hrs of travel for a community group during the week is probably not happening... please pray for me. That I would hear and listen to God's will and not my own in this.
Love you all,
Brei

Support

Last year, our family was blessed with the opportunity to spend two weeks in South Korea, at the end of the trip I was certain that God was calling me to move and teach there. One of the first things I did was to come home and make a plan. It was going to be a lot of work and take longer than I wanted, but I figured I would be able to move by late 2018 maybe early 2019. Obviously that was not what God had in mind. God took every resource I believed I had and cast it aside, and called me to rely upon the support of those he had put in my life. This move to Korea is not about what I am capable of, but it is yet another instance when God can show his faithfulness and power in a situation that seems impossible. When I was uncomfortable asking for support, in pursuit of this move, God was faithful to move in the hearts of friends, to not only support me but to push me in the directions I was afraid to take alone. The most recent instance of God faithfully providing for the things he has called me to took place a few weeks ago. In a matter of days, I went from not being sure if I could apply for job for this semester to accepting a position in Gyeonggi-do. All of a sudden, I had to not only get tons of paperwork approved by the government, but I had to get it all expedited as quickly as possible. This meant needing and spending lots of money which I did not have, nor did my family, though they sacrificially gave so much with not guarantee of repayment from my end.

In brain-storming possible fundraisers, I thought about setting up some sort of photo shoot/mini-session but struggled with what the logistics of planning such a large event last minute, while still working on the paperwork side of the move. My dear friend Emily, hearing my thoughts took charge and organized in a matter of days "Snap & Send", a photography fundraiser at our church. Without the support of August Gate, I would not have been able to make this move. The financial, emotional and spiritual support from my church family has been irreplaceable in this move. While this post became more emotional than I had originally intended; I wanted to share some of the pics from the event with everyone.

             

*friends, if your picture was used and you would rather it not be, please message or text me. I will take it down ASAP. I tried to get everyone'should permission, but I know there are people I missed asking.