It’s Time

Week three: Worship

Suggested time and date: 6.30am–7am, Monday 29th September

Alrightey! Hope these early mornings aren’t taking too much of a toll on you. Thank you for making a sacrifice and getting out of bed that little bit earlier to pray for the persecuted church in North Korea. This morning it’s time to… Worship.

While you’re waking yourself up and getting ready to pray, why not let the world know? Tweet using #itstime2014 and get your followers praying along with you.

Alright, out of bed…

Grab your Wake Up and Pray Guide and spend the next half hour reading through the material, thinking about the Bible passages and praying for change.

If you haven’t managed to get hold of the ‘Wake Up and Pray’ guide, you can download the full pdf session below to help you spend 30 minutes reflecting on the Bible, praying for change and learning more about life as a secret North Korean Christian.
Download full PDF session…

Extra thoughts

Use the following stuff to help expand on the things that are in the Wake Up guide session.

1. Watch

‘Amazing Grace. That’s the song that Christians sing the most in North Korea.’ – North Korean Christian. Here’s a version of Amazing Grace with lyrics for you to listen and sing along to this morning.

2. Learn

How do you feel about silence? Lots of people find silence difficult to deal with, and the idea of worshipping in silence is one which seems completely impossible. And yet this is a reality for thousands of Christians in North Korea, forced to meet in pairs in remote places and worship in silence for fear the authorities will overhear and arrest them.

Today, try something different. Get up, take your bible (hidden somewhere on your person), and go and find a secluded area. Sit, in silence, alone, and do the rest of your Bible study and prayer time there. Try not to make a sound.

Pairs of North Korean Christians will meet each other in remote places on a Sunday morning, exchange a whispered bible verse or the first line of a hymn, and then depart. They know nothing about each other – not even the other person’s real name. The community and accountability that we take for granted in our churches here at home is not possible when you are living under a leader who proclaims himself to be god, and demands that he alone is worshipped.

In the rare occasions that a whole family are believers, they can put on a house church service. But such an event must still be done in the utmost secrecy, and often in silence. A leader may whisper the first line of a song, and then, in silence, all will sing along. What a contrast to our drums, guitars, and amplified voices here at home! Even to meet together in a house church, however, is an incredible risk, and one that not many people are willing to take – it is marginally safer to meet a non-related believer in a remote area for a few minutes, to share encouragement, bible verses, and lines of hymns.

3. Pray

• It is so dangerous for Christians to meet each other in North Korea at any time, but community and encouragement is such an important part of faith. Pray for opportunities for Christians to gather together in secret in North Korea, and for God’s protection over them as they do so.
• There are a number of churches across the border in China that welcome in North Korean refugees. Many of these also come under a great deal of scrutiny and pressure from the secret police and their spies. Pray for these churches, that they would know God’s protection and comfort, but pray also for secret police spies who are in the churches – pray that they would learn of God’s love and come to know Him as their Lord and Saviour.
• Many Christians in North Korea feel terribly isolated and alone in their faith and their lives. Pray that God would draw close to them, would speak directly to them, and would strengthen and encourage them as they live out their faith in dangerous circumstances every single day.

4. Act

Tell a Christian friend all that you’ve learnt about North Korea these past few weeks and, as part of the experience, meet in secret with them before Church on Sunday. Stand quietly with them, whisper a bible verse or the first line of a favourite hymn, pray silently, and then leave without being seen.

Keep going

Keep praying and worshipping silently throughout the day and rest of the week for Christians in North Korea, and for its leaders and government. Instead of putting in your headphones whenever you find yourself alone and in silence, why not use the time to remember the silent worshippers of the North Korean Church and pray for them? And, every time you remember, tweet #itstime2014 and remind others to pray as well.

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