6 months in Korea

We have been a complete 6 months in Korea now. I think we may have learned more than we have taught in the last six months. I know that God has been using this time to mold me. There is one thing that I know for sure; being molded is a painful experience. It is through difficult circumstances that God is able to change us the most. I want to be more like Christ, but I don't like the work and suffering to get there. God has truly been working on my character. He has been teaching me about patience, deference, mercy, meekness, flexibility, faith, discernment, discretion, resourcefulness, decisiveness, wisdom, determination, tolerance, contentment, forgiveness, and endurance. (If you want definitions for each of these qualities, click here.) Let's just say that God is still working on me to make me what he wants me to be.

After having two encounters of confrontation with the pastor, we have finally been paid one person's monthly salary. He paid part of the payment on the 4th and the rest on the evening of the 17th. On the afternoon of the 17th, I called a hagwon (academy) owner in the Cheonan area to see about the possibility of teaching at her school. This is a Christian lady that is friends with Cathy and Terrill Williams from our church in Oklahoma. Her school has been established for quite some time and she came highly recommended from the Williams. She said that she would love to have me come teach, but that she doesn't need anyone till September. On Friday the 13th, I had called another man from my church in Oklahoma that is currently in Korea. His name is Tim Levendusky and he works for IBLP-Korea and CTI-Mongolia. He is the one who gave the character training class I attended in March. He is also the one that I went to see in the Seoul area a couple of weeks ago to attend a homeschool meeting and to purchase some character curriculum for my family and the school. At this meeting, I had informed him of our situation and he had been praying for us. I called him to give him an update and to have him pray. He gave me some good advice and prayed with me over the phone. During the conversation, he mentioned that one of the people who has translated for them before has a kindergarten and is looking to open an English hagwon (academy or institute). He said he would mention us to him then next time they spoke. I received an email from this man on Tuesday the 17th also. He is looking for some teachers that understand character and will be able to help teach character as well as English. His school is in the city of Anyang which is very close to Seoul. He is going to open his school in September. So, it looks as if God is preparing us to leave here and start somewhere else in September. The school semester here will end on July 25th. On that same day, my parents will come to visit for 10 days. We will probably take the rest of August to get my visa changed over to a new school. I may have to leave Korea to complete the visa process, but I don't have to come all the way back to America to do it. I can fly to Japan and go to the Korean consulate to do it. My parents when they leave are going to spend 4 days in Tokyo, so I may have to crash in their hotel for a couple of days to complete this process.

Praise God that we have received a payment from the school. Please continue to pray for us as we transition Pamela and the kids back to homeschooling. We don't have a lot of curriculum here for teaching, but they are going to concentrate for the next couple of months on Korean language learning. We have some video lessons, a computer language program, and they will go three times per week to the school to continue lessons with the pastor's wife. Please pray as we try to discern God's leading as to what he wants to do with us here in Korea.

Special Update

Many of you are wondering, and some have asked, what happened in my meeting with the pastor/principal. So, this update is just to let you know what I said to the pastor and what the outcome has been so far. I am copying the letter that I wrote to the pastor and used as an outline to talk to him so you can somewhat see my reasoning. I will continue the story after the letter.

Pastor Kim, June 5, 2008

The Bible tells us that we are supposed to live at peace with all men as far as it is possible with us. I want to ask your forgiveness for having bitterness and anger in my heart at times because of the situation we are presently in. I have asked for God’s forgiveness in this and would like for you to forgive me also.

I now need to talk with you about our current situation very frankly. This is very difficult for me to do, but I feel it is necessary. I know you are under a great burden with your school and with the situation. I have shared in your burden and have spent many hours praying about what my personal responsibility and my family’s responsibility has been. After months of prayer, I feel the Lord has revealed the problem and how we can fix it. Matthew 18:15 tells us if we have been sinned against, we should go to him alone and try to reconcile.

Reconciliation

"If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

(Mat 18:15)

Before I came to Korea, you said you wanted to do right for my family and you offered to pay us for each month of teaching, but this has not been done. I understand that this is a new school, but the Bible is clear that we should fulfill our vows.

Yes be Yes/Promises

But above all, my brothers, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or by any other oath, but let your "yes" be yes and your "no" be no, so that you may not fall under condemnation.

(Jas 5:12)

Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil.

(Mat 5:37)

It is also very clear that we should pay those whom we owe money.

Pay what is owed

Pay to all what is owed to them: taxes to whom taxes are owed, revenue to whom revenue is owed, respect to whom respect is owed, honor to whom honor is owed.

(Rom 13:7)

The following verse also tells us to owe no man anything except to love.

Owe no one

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.

(Rom 13:8)

The school is running right now on your credit. This does not honor God. I personally owe people in the states for medical services. I told many of these people I would pay them as I started getting paid here.

Above Reproach

Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,

(1Ti 3:2)

As a pastor, you should be above reproach. You are bringing reproach upon the name of Christ by not fulfilling your promises to my family and by living contrary to God’s word about credit and debt.

Like Jesus

Rom 8:29

(29) For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers.

Character exhibited

Meekness- yielding my rights to be paid

Deference- putting other people’s needs above my own. (Pamela going home, we felt two months ago she should)

Patience-

humility

Father’s Responsibility

Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

(Eph 6:4)

Deu 6:6-9

(6) And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart.

(7) You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.

(8) You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.

(9) You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.

God has called me to live out his words to my children and to teach them to them at all times. I am responsible for what they learn, who they have as friends, what they listen to, and to ensure that they know God’s word.

Mother’s Responsibility

Tit 2:3-5

(3) Older women likewise are to be reverent in behavior, not slanderers or slaves to much wine. They are to teach what is good,

(4) and so train the young women to love their husbands and children,

(5) to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.

Pamela also has a responsibility that we have yielded for her to be teaching in this school. I believe God has done this for a reason. He has confirmed to us through this experience that we are supposed to homeschool. This will allow Pamela to fulfill the above by working at home.

God has taught me many things through this time and has grown my character. I thank Him for molding me through this time.

Considering we have not been paid our salaries, there are several things that need to happen now.

1. First, Pamela and the children need to stay home and let her teach them there. She will maintain teaching for a short time for you to have enough time to re-arrange things.

2. Second, you need to pay us for our labor here as you promised to do.

3. Third, if you can’t pay us, you need to give us a letter of release so we can find another place to work that can pay us. The Bible says that a father who doesn’t provide for his family is worse than an infidel. The contract was voided on February 3^rd when you didn’t pay us, but we have been gracious for four months trying to work this out. I will maintain teaching here until I am able to find another position somewhere else. You can consider this my notice and we can discuss the final date as circumstances arise.

Beginning this week, we will not be attending church at JDC also. We have many things we need to be training into our children. We are not able to do this through the church, so we are going to have our church at home. I pray you will understand our reasoning.

In conclusion, I am not angry or bitter at you. I don’t come to you just to demand my rights, but feel that God cannot be honored without us resolving this issue. I pray that you have heard my heart and know that I care for you and your family, the students at the school, and the members of the church. I don’t want any evil to come upon you.

In His service,

Derek L. Woods

So, Pamela and the children will begin homeschooling again after June 20th. This gave him some time to adjust schedules so that all classes can be taught. This was the first point of reconciliation in my letter. I didn't give him options on this, I just told him it had to happen. He was fine with this, although he did ask if Samuel and Adriel could stay in the school since they were already here and had textbooks. I firmly told him that this was not negotiable.

The next point was he needed to pay me or release me. He paid me $800 of the $2000 he owes. He hasn't paid Pamela anything since we have come. He paid $200 in April, $600 in May, and had already deposited $800 in June the day before our meeting. He was planning on only paying me $800 even though last month I told him I needed at least one person's salary every month. I told him that I knew he was probably not prepared to answer me right then and that I wanted him to pray and talk to his wife about it first. Friday was a holiday, so he had three days to think about it, pray, and discuss it. I told him we would need to talk by Monday after school. This meeting was very difficult for me, but he was gracious in receiving my words. I don't like confrontation. Most people don't. On Monday, after school, he stopped me in the hallway and asked if he could have one more day to pray. At first, I said okay, but I went into my office and my spirit would not let me leave it. So, I went back to the pastor and asked to go ahead and talk. I told him that he had three days to pray about it and that one more day wouldn't change the situation at all. I told him that we needed to be honest. I told him that I didn't see any way he could pay me and maintain paying all of the other bills he has. I said that he needs to be honest with me and tell me if he can pay me the rest of the money for this month and on the 3rd every month thereafter. He said he didn't have the rest of the money for this month right now, but that he would by the 18th, next Wednesday. I asked him if he could pay that and still come up with the $2000 he would owe me on the 3rd. He assured me he could. I asked to step out of the room for a minute and went to talk to Pamela. I wasn't sure what to do. I felt like I should just tell him to write me a letter or release, but I didn't tell Pamela my thoughts. I asked her and she said that if he could pay, then we should stay. I went back and told him that we would agree to being paid the rest by the 18th and then a full payment on July 3rd. My gut feeling is that he is stalling and won't be able to pay me. He has a field trip scheduled for next Thursday to a city one hour away. This means he is going to be renting another bus to take the children. If he tells me on Wednesday that he can't pay, I am going to hand him a letter of release to sign that I will already have drafted and printed. This second meeting was harder than the first. As I said before, I don't like confrontation and I have had to do it twice in less than a week. Now, I think I will have to do it again next week, because the pastor's pattern is to put off everything as long as he can. Please pray for us during the next weeks as there is likely to be more confrontations. I have tried in my dealings to speak the truth in love. I covet your prayers for my family during this time. We are being tried and we are not always passing the tests. Please pray that we will depend on the Spirit to guide us and to continue to seek Godly counsel.

In His service,

Derek

5 (and a half) months in Korea

This update is late and I apologize. We have traveled some in the last few weeks and I have started an online course also. This has caused me to not have as much free time to write.

We have been in Korea for over 5 months now and have only received around $1200 of compensation. Several hundred of that has been from the pastor buying our groceries. In April, he gave us $200 and in May $600. When he talked to me in May, his first question was, "How much money do you have? Are you doing OK or do you need money?" I didn't answer the first question about how much money we have, because he didn't really need to know. I explained that it was time for us to start being paid. We were promised $2000 each/month for teaching. We haven't even had one month's salary for one person yet. I told him that we needed to see at least one person's salary this month because we can't live forever on no income. I know that God is the one who provides, but I also know that man should honor his word. I know that God uses difficult circumstances to develop His character in us. I have learned patience(which I didn't pray for), meekness (yielding my rights to be paid), humility, truthfulness(keeping my word), and deference(putting the needs of others before my own). After three months of prayer and study, I feel that it is time to confront the pastor. In Matthew 18, it tells believers to confront someone who has sinned against them and try to reconcile. I am planning on doing that this Thursday. PLEASE PRAY!!! I do not like this type of confrontation, but I feel it is necessary. As I have been studying character qualities, I have learned that we should be people of our word. As the Bible says, "let your yea be yea and your nay, nay." This pastor promised and contracted with us for a payment for services rendered and has not fulfilled it. He has purchased things that were not necessities for the school, has paid for a tour bus trip to Seoul for the school, but hasn't been able to pay us. As a pastor of a church the Scriptures say he should be above reproach. He is bringing reproach on the name of Christ by not fulfilling his promises. He also has started and grown this school on credit, not on the reliance of the Lord's provision. He goes deeper and deeper in debt each month. However, he talks about how he is going to have 5 or 6 classes in September, yet can't pay the teachers he has now. There are also philosophical differences on education between us. Lastly, there are Biblical differences between us. He is very liberal in his interpretation of Scripture in my opinion and he doesn't look at the historical background and context of the passages. He prefers teaching about having a vision for your life and positive thinking than giving a Biblical message. Once again, PLEASE PRAY as I will be talking to him on Thursday afternoon Korean time.

In His service,

Derek