There is no Christmas in North Korea. Only the birthday of Kim Jong-il’s mother, Kim Jong-suk, who was born on December 24, 1919, is celebrated. Events are held by factories and enterprises in the private sector and by major units in the military. Through this, the North Korean authorities praise Kim Jong-suk’s loyalty to the party and the leader, and this leads the soldiers and the people to be loyal to the Kim family. As a result, most North Koreans remember only the birthday of their leaders without knowing who Jesus is or what Christmas is. We pray that they will get to know, worship, and praise Jesus Christ, who has come as the King to save mankind.
When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (Luke 2:15,20)
Lord, you are the God who loved the sinners and sent your only son Jesus to this earth. Like the shepherds in Luke, may the people of North Korea receive the grace of hearing and seeing the birth of Jesus and may they give the glory and praise to you, Lord. May the days of sworn loyalty to human beings in North Korea be transformed into the days of praise to you, the creator, redeemer, and eternal king.
We pray in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
