CCSI Blog #5 - Youth Group

Hello,

I hope everyone is doing well in the Lord! I am happy to be able to write another update on my time at CCSI from yesterday. Yesterday was a very rainy day, but such a blessed and fun Friday. As usual, I started off the morning with a devotional on Matthew 10: 26-39 with the CCSI interns and principal. Here is the verse that was the most encouraging to me: Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it (v. 39). It is truly reassuring to me that if I give up chasing after my earthly pursuits to completely follow Christ, there will be true life with Christ which is so rewarding. This gives me the desire to look less often to my earthly desires and passions and to look to and live more for Christ. I hope that this desire will fully take root in my heart. After this time, we each prayed for a CCSI teacher again and then went into a time of worship with all of the students. This time, instead of having a student sharing a devotional, we worshiped by singing praise songs for the whole time before classes began, and I felt so joyful to be able to sing to the Lord with everyone else and reflect on how faithful He has always been to me.

Following this time, I went into teaching my classes. During the literature class, I finished reading a book called, “The Golden Goblet” to the students, as they have been enjoying listening to it, and everyone was excited to reach as well as hear the end of the story. Once my classes were finished, I got to spend time with some of the interns, teachers, and other students, which was relaxing and fun. Specifically, my time with some of the high school students was one of the highlights. As I spent time with some of the high school students during their free art period by drawing and painting with them, I got to know one of the students who comes from a missionary family. I met her last year, but this was the first time that I got to sit down and talk with her for a longer period of time. Even after the art class was over, I helped her make a poster and some cards, and during that time we got to know each other through some deep questions and conversations. I think this is one of the first times where I enjoyed talking with a student in high school and felt confident talking with them. In the past, whenever I talked to anyone who was younger than me, I always felt this pressure to act like a mentor figure and be someone I was not, but the Lord has been reminding me that He can use me the way He designed me and allowing me to enjoy having conversations with youth students.

Then, as the evening approached, we had youth group which started out with fun games and a meal. At the beginning of youth group, I saw Rachel Koh (KCPC missionary) and Pastor David Kim (another KCPC missionary). While I had met up with Rachel during my time here, it was my first time seeing Pastor David after our Japan vision trip last year, and we both talked about how we couldn’t believe that I was back in Japan after last year. Going later into the evening, we had a time of praise, where many of the students were singing with loud voices and dancing to the songs. It was truly a joyful sight to see these students jumping up and down as they excitedly praised the Lord. After worship, Pastor David went through Matthew 28:18-20, and asked the students what kind of personal connection they have with the passage. As he talked through the passage, it was encouraging to see some students reflecting on it. I remember one student said that they want to share the Gospel with someone, and another student mentioned that they want to take care of the younger students at CCSI to be like a disciple figure to them. I am continuing to see God truly working in the hearts of young students.

Our time in youth group then closed with some more praise and worship which was very meaningful. At the end of youth group, as people were talking, it was very cool to see Rachel Koh, Pastor David, David Lam (KCPC Vision trip team member from last year), and I all reunited and standing together in one spot, so we took a picture together. This past week has been a blessing to see the Lord’s faithfulness and to spend time with the students as well as many other people!

Jooeun