Anchorage Korean SDA Church by Timothy Yun
Location: 340 West 34th Ave. Anchorage, Alaska 99517
Contact: Timothy Yun
Email: tgyun@me.com
Tel: (907)-306-6491
The Anchorage Korean Seventh Day Adventist Church isn’t a big church, so there wasn't any organized program for the youth. As a little child growing up in the church, I never had the experience of a youth group until I went to Junior KAYAMM (Korean American Youth Adventist Missionary Movement) in 2004. I was awed and inspired by everyone's love for God and it was such an amazing experience to see everyone so closely knitted together, like a family. This experience motivated me to start a group of our own.
My name is Timothy Yun, and I’m currently the youth leader for the Anchorage Korean SDA Church.
All my life, I’ve attended SDA Academies and my freshman year of high school, was my first taste of what public school was like. To be honest, it was very bittersweet. Attending SDA Academies shaped who I was and reinforced a God-driven lifestyle, but going to a public school definitely was outside of my comfort zone.
Having no Spiritual reinforcement in my school life, it made me think constantly about the time I went to Junior KAYAMM. I remembered the close friendships, the spiritual struggles everyone shared, and the same focus of living for God. As I sat in my 2nd period Algebra 1 class, I thought to myself, "Why doesn't our church do anything?" I thought about it a lot because I always felt like our church was simply filled with old grandmas and grandpas, and no one cared about us youth. There weren’t any organized English meetings; instead, one of the parents would come teach us a little bible story, and send us away. As a youth who’ve experienced Junior KAYAMM, I began to question why the church wasn't doing anything for the youth. Until I finally had an epiphany¬--I thought, "Why don't I just start something?"
So, I began to teach myself the guitar through YouTube, just so we could sing praise songs. I asked my older sister (who also went to Junior KAYAMM with me) to help me find guitar chords for the songs we sang at Junior KAYAMM. I worked on making song books and creating a list of after-church activities. I was determined to get things started. Even though we didn't have a youth pastor or someone to teach us, I was confident that God would provide.
The winter of 2006 was when we held our first meeting. It consisted of about 3 people, not including me; those 3 people were my sisters. As we attempted to sing along to my poor guitar playing skills and unstable vocal ability, I realized that starting a youth group wasn't going to be easy. We continued to come together every Saturday and I struggled with preparing Sabbath lessons, due to my academic studies. Our youth group's attendance was a roller coaster, fluctuating all the time. Eventually, our youth group's roller coaster came to a stop, and we were back at 3, not including myself.
I was devastated by the fact that our youth group wasn't what I wanted it to be. I once again started to question the church. I wanted to know why God hadn't provided; I was in need of answers. But I still had hope burning inside of me and I prayed to God, asking for encouragement. I wanted to make this work, regardless of the amount of people or if we had a leader or not.
In the early months of 2008, after teaching my 3 sisters and singing songs with them every Sabbath morning, I came to a sudden realization. Maybe this is what God wanted. Maybe God wanted to me step up and be the leader instead of just pretending half-heartedly. Maybe this is what I needed to do. Once again, I was on fire for God. I started to invite friends and started working on lessons. I can't forget that feeling of God working in me. Without God, I probably wouldn't have been able to overcome the struggles of the past 2 years.
Currently, the AKSDA Youth Group has grown to a total of 9 active members ranging from the ages of 11 to 19. And despite the fact that we are small in numbers, we all share the same dream of growing closer to God until the day He comes. We meet every Friday and Saturday, having Bible studies and group activities. We are also currently in the works of starting volunteer/ministry work in the community.
We still don't have a youth pastor, but I believe God will provide when the time is right. I know God has a plan for the AKSDA Youth Group. Through all the up's and down's I've experienced, I know that God won't give up. I know God will help this youth group grow into what I dreamed it to be.
"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10 NIV
