Impacting and Being Impacted

Impacting and Being Impacted

by Divanir & Tilanie

It has been almost 3 months since we have arrived here in South Korea. The days here goes by very fast …so fast that it is sometimes scary. In South Korea almost everybody is in a hurry, people eat fast, walk fast, the internet is fast, everything is fast.

Daily Life in Korea Every Friday we go for a walk in the night just to relax and spend time with one another, but we often find ourselves also walking as fast as the people here…hahaha…this is just to give you an idea how life here is like a race. Our Weekends We have a weekly routine with the School in Gapyeong and the Church in Seoul. Every Friday afternoon at 2:30pm we leave Gapyeong. Two or Three hours later we arrive in Seoul and then we have Friday evening & Saturdays for ourselves, to relax. Sundays we are serving at the Church from 10:00am until 5:30pm….and then 6:00 pm we travel back to Gapyeong again. Usually we arrive there around 9:00pm.

Our weekly Trip: We have been learning a lot during these 3 months, specifically through the daily challenges with the language and communication, but also through the people that we are serving with. We have seen God’s faithfulness towards us; He is always sending someone to help us when we need it.

Opportunities to Influence God has given us the opportunity to influence 21 students directly and we are very excited about what is going to happen. We have been praying a lot for each one of them. We do not want to be just another teacher in their lives, but we want to impact their lives forever. Their ages ranges from 13-17 years old, it is a very important phase in their lives. One of them will go to University in September and two others will go to University in January. These three students are going to study abroad, in London and Wales and it is a very exciting time for them. We believe they will make a difference in their generation. Our desire is to see them with a passionate heart for bringing God’s kingdom into every sphere of society.

We have seen many doors opening through the Soccer and English classes. When we arrived here I thought my main function would be to preach and share messages to a youth group at church, but now I see that things are not happening the way I thought… but our roles are to teach soccer and English.

Impacting and Being Impacted I see now the fulfilment of God's word in my life from 10 years ago, when God spoke to me about using soccer in missions. And that soccer would be a tool to preach the gospel and make disciples. I still remember in 2005 when I had the opportunity to go to Rio de Janeiro to attend the CBF Soccer Coaching School; this was already a great miracle in my life. Then when I went to Africa dreaming of using soccer in missions…Then I injured my knee, tore my cross ligament on a Sunday afternoon in South Africa. I have never felt as frustrated and angry as that day! I saw all my dreams dying that afternoon, my question was "Why have God forsaken me?"… I couldn’t understand why that was happening to me, after all the difficulties that I faced to go to Africa. I was there on the floor experiencing so much pain. After six months I had my knee operation and nearly three years later I returned to the soccer field….enjoying playing soccer. But during my five years in Africa I have had only few opportunities to use soccer in my ministry, until I thought I would never work with soccer again.

During this time of pain, frustration and surrendering my biggest dream…I have found my identity in God and not in my gifts or abilities. I have discovered that God is so much more interested in ME, than in WHAT I CAN DO FOR HIM. And today, being able to work with soccer – is just a BONUS!! Impacting Lives through Education Tilanie has also seen many doors opening through teaching English. Here at the school she teaches English four days a week, 3-4 classes per day, twice a week she teaches English Literature and on Sundays at church she teaches a 1-hour English Conversation class. This class aims to reach people in the neighbourhood, who aren’t interested to participate in church activities but would like to learn English. Until now we’ve only had church members. On the first day of English Conversation at the Church, before class started, one of the girls just opened her heart towards Tilanie and started sharing her struggles and challenges that she is facing at this moment. English Classes with Tilanie are more than teaching English; she is always trying to be very sensitive to the needs of the students inside and outside the class. I have seen my wife always seeking God's direction in order to impact the lives of students.

The Best Investment Our hearts is to invest in friendships and at the same time we are looking for opportunities to bless, sharing a word of encouragement or even a testimony. Most of the time...our roles are not really teaching Soccer or English…but just to love, accept and encourage. It’s really amazing to see what opportunities God will give us. When we are willing to be obedient!!!

Prayer Points: Please pray for our School, Teachers and Students. Pray for the Church here in South Korea. Pray for our time here in South Korea, for our relationships, communication and adapting to the culture. Pray for our Health.(Tilanie’s eyes, she needs to visit a Doctor). Thank you for your prayer and support. May God bless you. by Divanir & Tilanie