Open Doors founder, Brother Andrew (who passed away in September 2022), was known for meeting with enemies of the Church. From criminal guerrillas in Latin America to cruel soldiers in Africa and terrorist leaders in the Middle East and Gulf, Andrew insisted on meeting with them. He would tell them about Jesus, give them a Bible, and pray for them.
The one person he really wished he could have met was Al Qaeda’s leader, Osama Bin Laden. However, Andrew prayed for him daily, and challenged others to do the same with a simple question: ‘Have you prayed today for Osama Bin Laden?’. Even after Bin Laden’s life ended in 2011, Brother Andrew’s question should still challenge us to pray for those whom we call our enemies.
For instance, have you prayed for Kim Jong-Un today?
Why is Kim Jong-Un So Powerful?
Kim Jong-Un was selected as leader of North Korea and successor of his father, Kim Jong-Il, because his character and politics reflects most that of his father.
- A system of strict control of the people
- Missile tests to antagonise the international community
- Military first
- Worship of the Kim family
- Persecution of Christians and other political opponents
- A fascist ideology in which the Korean race should remain the most pure
In fact, Kim Jong-Un does everything his father did but is more extreme in his approach. For example, he carries out many more missile tests, he has published new laws with more severe punishments for those who ‘undermine the country’, and hunger is still a powerful weapon to suppress the people.
Priority: Survival of the Elite
Kim Jong-Un and the team around him are very concerned about his public image.
He is often seen taking selfies, he modernised North Korean music by allowing other types of bands to perform, his wife Ri Sol-Ju looks like a modern first lady, he invited former NBA star Dennis Rodman to North Korea on several occasions, and sometimes he apologises in public speeches. His father never broadcasted any speeches, and he never apologised.
However, make no mistake. North Korea’s leader has just one priority: his survival and that of the elite around him. He’s ruthless when he feels he needs to be. When his uncle and mentor Jang Song-Thaek suggested to learn from the Chinese economic model (Communism but with a much freer market), he was arrested and executed.
Kim Jong-Un’s own brother, Kim Jong-Nam, posed no threat to him but was killed in a sophisticated murder plot at Kuala Lumpur airport in 2017. Secret agents mislead two innocent women to commit the murder. They thought they were part of a television prank and touched Jong-Nam’s face with a poisonous substance.
Kim Jong-Un is also aware that the North Korean people don’t believe the lies of the government anymore. In part, this has to do with the influx of foreign (especially South Korean) music, films, and other materials. For this reason, Kim Jong-Un recently made some laws stricter. He also increased the punishments.
All this has only one purpose: to help the elite survive.
How to pray for Kim Jong-Un?
- Pray for the heart, mind, and soul of Kim Jong-Un. It is rare for the most severe persecutors to become believers, but it happens. Like Saul on the road to Damascus, pray that Jong-Un will finally see the truth.
- Pray for Kim Jong-Un’s family, his wife, his three children, his brother, and sisters. Pray that God they will turn from their ways and that they rely on God for their salvation.
- Finally, pray for the prayer movement inside and outside of North Korea. Pray that God’s Spirit will motivate and give strength to North Korean Christians so they can actually pray for their government and their country. Pray for healing.
