We serve Christians around the world whose brave faith in Jesus means they are, beaten, threatened, imprisoned, tortured, falsely accused, disowned and hated.

NORTH KOREA: SIX SECRET CHRISTIANS YOU CAN PRAY FOR NOW…

pattern

50-70,000 believers Are currently detained in one of the NORTH KOREA’S notorious prison and labour camps. It’s rare for us to know their names, but below are six of them – and what made them a target for North Korea’s brutal regime. Please pray for them by name, and use this as an inspiration to pray for the thousands more whose names we don’t know.

 

Where is Kim Jung-wook?

South Korean missionary Kim Jung-wook boarded a plane to North Korea on 7 October 2013. It was his last day as a free man. North Korean authorities arrested him the next day. He’s still being held in North Korea.

Kim Jung-wook would be 61 this year, if he’s still alive. As a missionary, he was involved in helping North Korean refugees in China. He provided shelter, food and other aid to defectors who hid in the Chinese port city Dandong. He also taught them from the Bible.

In 2012, Kim Jung-wook’s work was compromised when China police officers arrested a group of women who had received help from him. North Korean secret agents infiltrated his network, earned his trust and, in 2013, convinced him to come to North Korea. At their instigation, he even brought religious materials. He was arrested a day after his arrival.

North Korea interrogated the pastor and charged him with an attempt to overthrow the regime and spying for South Korea. On 14 February the following year, Kim Jung-wook appeared on North Korea state media and read out a statement. He claimed he had spied for the South Korean government, was paid by the South Korean intelligence agency and had set up an underground church in Dandong.

He also ‘confessed’ that he had paid locals to set up 500 churches in North Korea to overthrow the regime. In 2014, a North Korean court sentenced Kim Jung-wook to life imprisonment and forced labour. Around the same time, North Korea arrested dozens of Kim Jung-wook’s contacts in the country. Most were sent to labour camps, although it’s likely a number of them have been executed.

More church leaders missing

Kim Jong-un’s regime has never given any updates about Kim’s fate since that court judgment – and he’s not the only foreign missionary who’s disappeared in North Korea.

Kim Kug-gi (70, if he’s still alive) and Choi Chun-kil (64, if still alive) were arrested in December 2014, accused of espionage. Both have been locked up in a labour camp since 2015.

Ko Hyon-chol – a North Korean defector who had gained South Korean citizenship and become a missionary – was accused of plotting to kidnap North Korean children who would be sold for adoption in other countries. He was sentenced to a lifetime of hard labour in 2016.

Kim Won-ho – another North Korean defector who had become a South Korean citizen and a missionary – was abducted in China in March 2016.

But South Korean Christians working from China aren’t the only people at risk. Anyone who dares to give aid to North Korean defectors is at risk, especially if you are a Christian.

Pastor Jang Moon-seok was involved in helping North Koreans, compelled by Jesus’ teaching in Matthew 25:35-40. He was kidnapped in November 2014 and never heard of again, though some former prisoners claim to have met him.

‘Remember those who are in prison’

The Bible says, “Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering” (Hebrews 13:3). These faithful believers have been captives for a decade now. Please mention their names in your prayers, and please also pray for all those prisoners in North Korea whose names we don’t know.

PRAY NOW...
1

For each six believers by name, asking God to protect them, hold them near to His heart and empower them in all situations

3

That the Holy Spirit will come in power upon Kim Jong-un and his government, softening their hearts and leading them to Jesus.

2

That all Christians imprisoned in North Korea will be engulfed by God’s peace and presence

DO SOMETHING…
  • 1
    INVITE YOUR MP

    Invite your MP to the launch of the World Watch List in Westminster!

    MORE HERE...
  • 2
    CHOOSE TO LOSE!

    Could you give up your bed for 48 hours to raise money and prayer?

    Give Now
  • 3
    GET THE NEW SECRET CHURCH PACK...

    All new resource pack with fresh ideas, activities and stories...

    Take the quiz
  • 4
    ORDER OUR 2024 WORLD WATCH LIST PRAYER MAP...

    With free temporary tattoo...

    Order now...
NEWS
June 30, 2025

Pray for 18-year old Tham from Vietnam who was kicked out of her home because of her faith in Jesus.

Find out more
June 30, 2025

Meet Daniel, a courageous Bible smuggler who takes Scripture into the Muslim world, continuing the legacy of Open Doors founder, Brother Andrew!

Find out more
June 23, 2025

Pray for two teachers who were detained after they organised a secret Christian camp for young people…

Find out more
June 23, 2025

Please pray for Christians in Syria after a brutal attack during a church service which killed nine innocent people…

Find out more
June 16, 2025

Meet Ethan, a church leader in Asia who came to faith as a teenager after stealing a Bible from his local church!

Find out more
June 9, 2025

Over 100 Christians are killed in a series of attacks after the local bishop spoke publicly to the US Congress about violence against the church in his region.

Find out more
June 9, 2025

Pastor Myint and his family have lived through death threats and displacement, but they are determined to keep serving God.

Find out more
June 2, 2025

See how your prayers and support are changing lives of people like Romi, who grew up as a ‘Christian’, but only truly started following Jesus in his 30s…

Find out more
June 2, 2025

Get inspired by Mira’s brave choice to choose to follow Jesus and get baptised, despite meaning rejection from her family.

Find out more
May 27, 2025

Read this incredible story of God’s miraculous protection over the life of a Central Asian house church leader and his congregation!

Find out more
btn-scroll