Two "Only in Korea" Situations Happened This Week That Will Make Me Miss This Country

 

Situation #1:

Last Thursday, while the Election was happening, I couldn't focus on teaching, I was glued to my phone between classes, and while I was grabbing a burger at McDonald's. Due to that, after I ate my burger at the McDonald's next to my work building, I left my jacket on the stool opposite the stool I was sitting on at 3:00. If it had been a colder day, I don't think I would've forgotten it, but because it wasn't that cool and I was so wrapped up in the elections, I easily forgot about it. 

By the time I left work at 9:00pm that night, I realized I immediately that I had left my jacket at McDonald's since it wasn't where I left. I quickly went back to McDonald's and it was exactly in the same position that I left it untouched. This is one thing I love about Korea. Stealing is rare and people never mess with things that isn't theirs.

Situation #2:

My friend Nate Richey and his fiancé were getting married on Saturday at 12:00pm. I decided to get there early, find a cafe and get some coffee. It took me about 15 minutes to find one, but I found a great one that was playing classical music, had comfortable seating, had great coffee, some fancy chandeliers, and a very kind cashier. The only thing that was weird about this place was the name as you can see in this picture....

I guess I was a deadbeat for getting coffee here! It still amazes me that the largest city in South Korea, 18th largest city in Asia, and the 28th largest city in the world, often has businesses with strange, funny, or weird English names like this. Regardless of that, this is also one of the reason why I love Korea!

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

A Hilarious Misunderstanding at a Park before Heading to Church

Today I was sitting at a park near church and eating a cereal bar while drinking orange juice. A Korean lady in a mask starts walking past me and she was curious what I was doing since she was staring at me. When she realized I noticed she was looking at me, she bowed to me and kept walking. Then I thought, "Wait a minute. She's one of the Korean ladies that attends my English service." So I yelled out, "Hi! How are you?" Then she walks toward me and gives me a snack. As she hands me the snack, she says in Korean, "Here you are. It's really delicious." Suddenly I realized that she wasn't the lady that went to my church. I said "thank you" (Korean this time) and she walked away. That was extremely embarrassing, but hilarious at the same time. 😊😲

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

A Unique K-Pop Experience in a Cafe in Seoul

On Sunday afternoon after finishing watching my online church service, I wanted to get outside and do something. I wasn't sure what to do exactly and I thought to myself, "Why not go to Seongsu Station and try to find another trendy cafe and just do some reading?" Little did I know that they call this area the Brooklyn of Seoul now.

I got on Line 2, headed from Seongsu Station, and started searching for some cafes. I passed a cafe that I had been to before called Zagmachi, which you will see after you turn right after you come out of Exit 3 on the south side of the street. If you walk father down, you will pass my favorite one in the area (Daerim Warehouse or 대림 창고), which is also on the south side of the street.

This time I thought I would try to check out a cafe on the other side of the street. I went to Wall Cafe and walked in. There was K-Pop music blasting. When I went to order my cafe, the owner of the cafe said it was a "happy birthday celebration" for APink Namju. Her real name is Kim, Namju but goes by the mononym, Namju. She sings for the girl group APink. I was told that I could write a note for her and put it on the wall. On one side of the cafe, her promoters were sitting together and talking to young ladies that came to drink coffee and celebrate her.

At first, I didn't care that much. I just wanted to read my book since I had never heard of her before. Even my wife didn't know who she was. The owner of the cafe gave me my coffee, a card with Namju's face on it, and a bookmark of Namju's face on it as well. Then I sat down to read my book. A half hour later her promoters sang "Happy Birthday" to Namju even though she wasn't there. Then they cheered loudly making it hard to read, but it was a really unique experience nonetheless. Then another 15 minutes passed by and one of her promoters gave me a piece of birthday cake from Paris Baguette. I couldn't turn that down and enjoyed eating my cake with my coffee.

I kept trying to read, but it was difficult, so I decided to go to another cafe. Before doing that though, I had to write a note for her. You can check it out. I wrote:

"Happy birthday, Kim Namju
From American Friend Scott Worden"

Sadly, I made a mistake when I said congratulations. I typed "생일 추하합니다" when I should have said "생일 축하합니다." Oh, well. I'm sure they were happy with my gesture despite my boo boo. And of course, I had to plug my blog while I was at it. Hopefully, someone will follow me. Haha!

This experience is one reason why I appreciate living in Korea. This is one adventure that I would never have expected to happen.

Scott Worden (The L.A./SeoulGuy)
Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

ESL Teaching Stories: Cheetos are Finger Licking Good

Lew Robertson/Getty Images

I have a funny story to share...

Two days ago I was teaching a high level class of eight students. In one of the activities they   were supposed to write a couple sentences about each of the following:
1. Earliest memory
2. A favorite place to be by yourself
3. Something you lost
4. A unique travel experience

After they were done writing, I had them share with a partner. I sat next to one guy (let’s call him “Cheol soo”) and overheard him sharing his earliest memory.

Side note: His partner was a male student in his 40s, a fund manager, and notorious for complaining to the Korean staff when he doesn’t get his classes booked when he wants. Let’s call him “Seong min”.

Anyway, Cheol soo’s earliest memory was licking his fingers when he was a young child and remembering that his fingers were salty because he loved Cheetos. Seong Min’s response was “Um okay I guess you really loved Cheetos when you were young...Interesting.”

So after everyone shared all 4 stories with their partners, I had all 8 students pick their best story. And Cheol soo just happened to be the last person to share. And I was thinking to myself “I really hope he doesn’t share the Cheetos story or else it’s going to get awkward.” Sure enough, out of all four stories to share with the class, he picked the finger licking Cheetos story. After he shared, it got quiet. Then I said, “On that note, thank you all for coming and have a good night.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

The National Hanguel Museum in Seoul, South Korea

National Hanguel Museum

One place to visit in Seoul if you have some extra time is the National Hanguel Museum. If you can't read Korean, taking a look around this place won't take more than an hour. If you can read Korean, and you're a huge art enthusiast, you'll spend two to three hours here. Nevertheless, even if you don't know the language, you can browse it if you have some free time after looking around the National Museum of Korea. However, since the National Museum of Korea is a lot bigger, I would save half a day for that alone.  I recommend visiting this place and then going to the Yongsan Family Park right after. Here are some of my favorite artifacts at the museum:

A wall of Hanguel: The Korean alphabet

Korean instrument: Gayageum

Keyboard with floppy disks

Hanguel Typewriter

Hanguel Typewriter

Hanguel Eye Chart

Admission: Free

Hours of Operation: Monday through Friday, Sunday-10:00am-6:00pm
            Saturday- 10:00am- 9:00pm

Address: 139 Seobinggo-ro, Yongsandong 6(yuk)-ga, Yongsan-gu, Seoul

Phone: (02) 2124-6200

Directions: Exit 2 at Ichon Station (Line 4, Gyeongui-Jungang Line) and walk 430m in the direction of Yongsan Family Park 

Website in English: https://www.hangeul.go.kr/lang/en

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

"All in This Together" by Pastor Timothy Nam (January 19, 2020)

Psalm 133

God has called us to serve not for only ourselves, but for others, so we can love others. The world tells us to look out for what is best for our own interests. Yet various cultures tell us that sharing things with others and building a community is important. TV shows like Mash, Cheers, Seinfeld, and Friends are shows about people around them. All of the things around myself are meaningless unless I can share them with others.

Fellowship has its roots in Jesus and his disciples living daily and supporting each other. Real fellowship is sacrificial giving, loving, and being authentic. It's not just having a snack and enjoying small talk. Authenticity is being honest about the good and bad things. And you're supposed to ask for help when you need it.

We are awkward because we don't want people to see our pain. The masks actually hide who we truly are. We need to take risks to develop our maturity. It takes risks and it comes with honesty and being genuine. The New Testament repeats "one another" or "each other" over 50 times. We have a responsibility to love the people we are called to love. We are to give sympathy (not give advice) to others by affirming them, loving them, being patient, and doing it at times we don't want to. Yet we are self-centered, prideful, and we have egos.

Matthew 11:28-30 has Jesus giving us an invitation to come to Him because He knows we can be overwhelmed. We are encouraged to lean on and support each other in the most difficult of circumstances. In the place of grace, there is also mercy. There is no fellowship without mercy, forgiveness, or grace. We are called to do this every day with the love of Christ.

We also don't understand what people are going through. Only God and Christ completely understand, so we need to pray for mercy and grace.

Colossians 3:12-17- Jesus gave up his throne so that we could all have fellowship with one another. Let's try to remember that.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

"We Belong Together" by Pastor Timothy Nam (January 12, 2020)

Ephesians 2:19-22

The Bible says we have to believe in God but we also need to BELONG to God to become his children. You might not think they go together, but the Bible says differently. We can believe in family, but we might not actually have a family. Everyone believes in something. Some people believe in money, academics, etc. Mercenaries will be on your side as long as they get paid. On the other hand, the military gets paid whatever to support their country. Mercenaries cling to money.

People that have fluttering beliefs are like children and they waver back and forth. Yet when they find a place, they get taken care of. Generally our beliefs put is in a group where we belong (church, high school club, etc.). We need to belong to God, not just believe in Him because no one can fulfill what He can do for us. Man needed a helper because he was never meant to be isolated and solitary.

Our relationship with Jesus is personal, not private. It's easy to believe in God, but not belong to God because we always fall short. Belonging to God is like being a part of a team. A team is made up of different people, but needs to think the same way and unite together. It's difficult in a group dynamic because it's easy to argue and not get anything done. Golf and tennis players don't have much or any conflict. However baseball and basketball teams can get into fights if there's conflict. You have to compromise to get to the same goal, but it's difficult. See Romans 14:4-5:

4 For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.

C.S. Lewis mentioned that the word "member" was first used in church, but now the word has been changed. Now it's mundane and normal. For Christians, being a member is vital because we belong to Christ, so all who believe in Him won't be scattered or be alone. It's a body, not a building. Is it easy to live without any body part?

If everyone on the 2002 Korean World Cup team wanted to score goals, the team wouldn't have been successful. That team did so well because they came together as a team and each player played their position well. Gus Hiddink also got rid of the hierarchy system. They were all equal and they all used their skills uniquely. He made the older players and younger players mix together and he had the inexperienced players work together with the experienced ones. They had to work together and communicate.

Many people believe in Jesus or God, but don't go to church. These people are usually isolated from other believers and can't build each other up and have compassion or fellowship.  We all have a part to play or have a role. People might say "I'm not good enough" or "I'm too good to serve". Both show selfishness, greed, or a self-centered attitude.

Romans 12:6-8 tells us that not using your gifts is a rejection to God. When things don't benefit us directly, we're reluctant to do it. On the other hand, accepting our roles even if we didn't imagine doing them will help us get the most satisfaction in the world.

God calls us to do things that won't give us immediate success or glory. Why? God wants us to love real people. The Christian commitment isn't just to love Christ, but to love other (1 John 1:5-7).

If we say we have faith in God but are not walking in truth, we are lying to God. Yet if we believe in God, we should have fellowship with one another. Your faith in God will cause you to have fellowship with others.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)
Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

"All You Need is Love" by Pastor Timothy Nam (January 5, 2020)

Matthew 5:43-48

Since it's 2020,  and since it's a round number, people try to make plans for this year or the next decade. But the Bible says it will end in disappointment. We were created in God's image because He is love. But we need to do it in unselfish ways. Many people can love selfishly, but God wants our testimony to the world and we can't do it in a selfish way.

The 1967 song "All You Need is Love" was written during the Hippie movement, which was anti-government and anti-Vietnam War. The Beatles definition of love was that only their version of love was acceptable, the way they did it. That's not true love. It's limited to certain groups of people. Also, love is not just being nice. You sometimes have to be harsh. You have to respect other people's points-of-view. You have to love people who are irritating and love those that are unlovable.

See Matthew 5:43-48. We need to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. The best use of this life is love. It should be our greatest ambition. We need to build relationships but we put off loving others and take our close relationships for granted. We do it because we know they'll be there. We cut down on giving. You can't build relationships without time and effort. We make excuses by saying we're caught up with work and life. Love lasts forever but everything else fades away: money car, clothes, etc.

When people are in their final days, people just want to be loved. The world deep down knows love is the most important thing. They just realize it too late. We will be evaluated on our love. Whenever we love others, we love Jesus. And yes, we can do things with selfish ambition, which is easy today with social media. However, the more time we spend on people, we realize how genuine love is. A mother gives up everything for her child. There's a lack of love in this world because there's a lack of time and focus on others.

Ephesians 5:2 tells us that the best time to love is now. Tell someone you love them and show it. Anything done without love is a waste of time. Recognize the necessity of love in your life.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

Happy New Year and Decade from Seoul, South Korea!

Well my friends, 2020 is going to be a huge year. If you're reading this, you'll get rewarded with some huge news. Otherwise, you'll have to wait a couple weeks before I officially announce it to my closest friends. My family already knows the news and some friends that I met on New Year's Eve already know. So....have I kept the suspense going long enough? Well, here it is....The Lord has called my wife and I to move to California by the end of July. Crazy isn't it? I will be just two months short of 17 years in South Korea by the time we leave.

So why in July? Well, our housing contract ends at the end of that month. We considered staying one more year, but my wife would like to get a green card, so the sooner the leave, the better.

What will we do? While living there, my wife will not be able to work until she has lived in America for six months. Then the application process will officially begin once she has lived in the United States for that amount of time. Then she can begin working after six months. I plan to start work in September after traveling a bit in August. I will also keep studying at Gateway Seminary while working. I have to finish 90 credits before I graduate with my Master's in Divinity. By the time we get to California, I will have finished 18 credits so I still have a ways to go, but we're slowing getting there. As far as what kind of job I will do, I'm really concerned about that. I would like to stay in the education field. I used to be a teacher's assistant with autistic kids and I have 16 years of experience in the EFL world. But in California, you generally need a Master's Degree to teach EFL. Maybe I can teach at a Christian private school as a high school teacher, maybe get involved in real estate, or maybe teach online. At this moment, I'm not sure. I am praying and I will also do a lot of applying for anything that can help pay the bills and keep our family surviving. Thankfully, my dad will let us live with him for awhile and we have some savings, so we're not in desperate mode yet. On the other hand, we would love to buy a house, even if it's a small condo.

Will I miss Korea? Absolutely. South Korea is my second home. Here's a list of things that I will miss:

• convenient public transportation
• my church that has Korean people as well as non-Koreans who worship together
• Korean barbecue, Korean fried chicken, and other kinds of Korean food that are reasonably priced
• traveling to areas outside of Seoul that have a lot of nature
• the friendliness of the people that own shops near our home
• my coworkers
• my friends in Korea (Korean and non-Korean alike)
• the mystique of Asia itself
• the ability to travel around Asia easily

Am I excited or scared? Both. South Korea has been comfortable. I haven't had many worries especially financially. That will be my biggest concern. I will also have to balance between working in America and studying while living with my dad for a short period. This means less privacy and trying hard not to wear out our welcome at my dad's home. However, my dad is looking forward to us coming home and so am I. Things that I miss include the laid back lifestyle of Southern California, the food, and my family. This is obviously at the top of my list since I haven't seen my nephews and nieces grow up. 

How about my wife? She is excited. She can't wait to leave. She feels very burned out with church life in South Korea. Busy, busy busy...And she's been to America three times. She keeps researching about the price of homes every day and she keeps talking about leaving. She's ready. 

Please pray for us. We need it! We want to obey the Lord's direction, but we also want to be wise in how we follow His lead. We want to be wise with our finances, while at the same time be independent while we are living in California. Please pray for my wife's visa process to go through and for it to go smoothly. Please also pray that I will get a job that coincides with me studying. On top of that, I want a job that's rewarding, not just a dead-end one. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

Fall Semester at Seminary is Over

Well as you see, it's been awhile since I've updated my blog. Fall semester was from August 26 until December 13 and it was very interesting but also very stressful.  Thankfully I had a very good first semester. I passed my one-credit ministry formation class. All I needed was a 60% to pass and I got a 95% in the class. Since it was only one credit, it was graded with either a pass or a fail. In my two-credit spiritual formation I got an A in the class (96%) and in my three-credit Old Testament Introduction 1 class I got a B+.

I am proud of myself and I am thankful to the Lord that I was able to stay healthy during the process. However, as I mentioned earlier, it was one of the most challenging moments of my life. Here's the workload that I had in a nutshell:

• In my Old Testament class, I had two short papers and a timeline assignment, three to five lectures to listen to every week, a quiz every week, reading, and a final exam. 
• In my spiritual formation, I had reading, had to submit two daily journal assignments, take a quiz, had one lecture to listen to, and one writing assignment each week.
• In my ministry formation, I had reading, a lecture to listen to, and multiple writing assignments.

I did all of this while working split shift at work. My wife can tell you how stressed out I was. On the other hand, it was nice to be busy, I learned a lot, and it was very fulfilling. Yet, I realized that I just can't take three classes while working full time. It's just way too much. And I have no idea how people that are married with kids do it. It would be mind boggling to see how they juggle all of these tasks. By the grace of God, I was able to finish strong and my hope is that I can catch up on some reading, hang out with some friends, and rest until spring semester starts in February!

Scott Worden

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

There are Some Things about Korea I Will Never Get Used to

Sometimes I love living in South Korea and appreciating God bringing me to live here for the past 16 years. It's easy to say that it's my home away from home since I've spent over one third of my life here. However, at other times, things happen in Korea that are just mind boggling and strange.

One of my Korean coworkers just recently got married and she's awesome. I couldn't attend her wedding, but I wanted to get her a gift. I considered cash, but I had already missed her wedding, so my wife suggested me to go to Zara Home. Yesterday, I went to Zara Home in COEX Mall at 10:15am and once I got there, one of the shop clerks said that they didn't open until 10:30am, which was fine. I waited outside the store and went inside at 10:30.

After that, I looked around and found some nice dishes. I decided to get her two small dishes and two large ones. I was pretty quick with my decision and took them right to the cashier. As I get to the counter, the lady said something in Korean quickly and she seemed to be slightly irritated. Because she said it so fast, I had no idea what she said. If she had spoken a little slower, maybe I could have caught what she said. I just shrugged my shoulders as to let her know that I didn't understand her and she got the point. It's amazing that she just assumed that I could understand her fluent Korean without any hesitation and that she didn't attempt to slow down or speak English. Anyway, she scanned my items and I told her in Korean to please wrap them up. She asked me if I needed a duty-free coupon (in Korean) and I said that I didn't. She told me the price and I inserted my credit card into the machine. After that she said "Sign..." somewhat rudely and I was a little surprised so it took me a second to process it. Then she said "Sign!!" two seconds later. Then I was pissed off because of her rudeness so I said okay in Korean loudly  ("네!!"). She packed my stuff and handed it to me. I said "Thank you" in Korean and she didn't say anything. It's amazing. I spent over $50 on her merchandise and got treated like garbage. Customer service in Korea can be really good or it can be very poor depending on who caters to you. I miss customer service in California when 90% of the time they are polite, friendly, and even chat with you.

Then after I got on the subway, I found a seat and sat down. To the right of me, a man in his 40s sat to the right of me in the seat reserved for pregnant women. It doesn't bother me if a woman sits there even if she isn't pregnant, but a man should not sit there in my humble opinion. However, that's not what bothered me about the situation. As soon as I get off the subway, the man moves over away from the seat reserved for pregnant women and into the seat where I sat. Why was the seat that was reserved for pregnant women not good enough any more? If he didn't think it was wrong to sit there at the beginning, why did he move? That clearly showed that he felt like he was doing something wrong in the first place, but at the beginning, since it was the only seat available, he was selfish and took it not caring what other people thought. Here's my advice to the man: Man up. You can stand and wait for a regular seat. If you really need to sit, then you can sit in the seats reserved for older people since you're in your 40s. Don't be a stereotypical ajoshi and use your age to feel entitled to do whatever you feel like doing. 

Finally, I went home and went to a restaurant that specializes in meatballs. I walk into the restaurant and see two people eating. It's 11am, so the restaurant is quiet since everyone eats lunch at the same time in Korea (12pm). But I notice that none of the staff are in the front of the restaurant. Both servers are in the kitchen talking to the cook. Finally after four minutes, I had to say something because I was hungry and tired of waiting and said "excuse me" in Korean (요기요!). Finally, a woman comes out and takes my order. You don't realize how often this happens in Korea when you walk into a restaurant and no one is at the front. When I worked at Office Depot from 2000 to 2003, one of our main rules was that at least ONE person had to be at the front of the store. It was for security purposes and for basic customer service to greet people and be there if anyone needed help.

It was one of those days. I have a love-hate relationship with Korea sometimes. I'm sure today will be one of those days that I love Korea especially since today is Friday!

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram (l.a.seoulguy)

A Strange Modern Art Experience: Arario Museum in Seoul, South Korea

I've never been a fan of modern art and I think one visit to the Arario Museum has cemented my opinion for good. Don't get me wrong. I've seen some displays of modern art that I have found quite talented, but I would say that I have disliked 90% of anything that is considered "modern art". My experiences have included visits to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, the Tate Modern in London, the Leeum Samseong Museum of Art in Seoul, and now the Arario Museum in Seoul. As you see, I've tried to give modern art a chance on multiple occasions, but after checking out the Arario Museum, I'm convinced that I will never like most modern art. I'm quite satisfied with that and I don't think I'm that closed-minded. I'll show you some displays from the Arario Museum of just one exhibit that I came across and let you be the judge. I will display some things that I enjoyed as well as scratched my head at. Let's begin:

The entrance to the museum

Sometimes there's a fascination with TV screens in modern art

Simple, not bad

Creepy

Creepy and depressing

I like this one especially her outfit

She looks sad but the painting is well done

Her expressions are very well defined

I'll just put my bed frame in a museum next to a random bathtub and call it art.

I think this collage is a statement about racism in London in 1968 but I'm really not sure.

Modern art randomness

The museum has 6 floors that are open.

Is this supposed to mesmerize you?

Is this a statement about ISIS in the Philippines?

Rudolph the glass balled reindeer?

A room made to look like an artist's sanctuary?

It's time to take a nap from this overload of  randomness

This picture came out pretty well I must say

Chucky as an adult??

Just plain weird

A nice cafe outside the museum, but it got crowded quick

Here's some information about the museum in case you actually enjoyed the artwork that I displayed on this blog post:

Hours: Open from 10:00am-7:00pm daily (Closed on Mondays)
Address: Euijiro 83, Jong-no-gu, Seoul
Transportation: Bus: 109, 151, 162, 171, 272, 7025, Get off at Changdeokgung stop
Subway: Line 3 to Anguk Station (Exit 3), and then walk 3 minutes on foot
Cost (Exhibition and Museum Only): W10,000 (General), W6,000 (Youth), W4,000 (11-13 year olds)
Website: Arario Museum
Phone: (02) 736-5700

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

Sermon: "Crown of Thorns, Crown of Victory" by Pastor Andrew Gu

Mark 15:16-20


Before Jesus is to be crucified, he's led into the Governor's quarter. About 500 soldiers are called in after Jesus has already been beaten. These people mocking Jesus for being "The King of the Jews" were doing it in the king's palace. He was dressed in purple which symbolized royalty. It's doubtful that it was real purple since real purple was expensive. It was probably a faded scarlet robe. Then they put a crown of thorns on him and mocked him by kneeling and saying "Hail! King of the Jews!". Next, they "honor" him by hitting him with a reed and spit on him again and again (NIV). After that, they put on his regular clothes so that he can be crucified. Finally they "worshipped" him. It's highly insulting since Jesus deserves ALL of our worship and they gave him a fake and insulting kind of worship.

What about us? We call him "king" but we insult him with the way that we worship Him. We are no better than these soldiers. When things don't go the way that we want, we rid ourselves of Him. Just because we bow, wear nice clothes, and show it outwardly, that doesn't mean that we are really worshipping Him. Are we showing halfhearted worship and obedience?

Jesus did nothing wrong and even Pilate knew this (vs. 14) or in John's account "not guilty". He said "What wrong has he done?" He had done nothing but heal people and do good for them. Yet Jesus doesn't fight back. Why not? Jesus was on a mission (Isaiah 50). There was a huge problem: our sin and our rebellion towards God. God's way is always better. Something was wrong in the world. The soldiers were saying Jesus was weak, not worthy, and a fake king. Yet what they were doing was that he was actually worthy ironically.

He came to rescue us because we needed rescuing (Galatians 3:13). Jesus willingly subjected himself to abuse and mockery for our behalf. It's a triumphant endurance (Spurgeon). Thankfully it isn't the low point of the story. It's the climax. This is the story of redemption and sacrifice. His death is not a defeat. It's the victory. The crown is not just used to symbolize royalty. It symbolized victory.

Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy

Changgyeonggung Palace at Night in Pictures (Seoul, South Korea)

In 2018, evening visits to Changgyeonggung Palace were only offered at special times. However, beginning this year you can visit there from 9:00am until 9:00pm from Tuesday until Sunday and the latest time that you can be admitted in is at 8:00pm. Please note that the palace is closed on Mondays.

Here are some pictures that I took with my wife last year. The place is underrated since everyone talks about Gyeongbokgung Palace and not many tourists know about this one. It's not that huge, but you can expect to spend about an hour here.

The entrance

Outer courtyard

The center of the temple

A full moon

A woman is taking pictures in a traditional Korean outfit called a "hanbok"

Exiting out of the temple

Cost: Adults= W1,000; Aged 7-18= W500; For children under 6, senior citizens over 65 years old, and those wearing a hanbok= FREE.
Hours: See above
Address: 185 Changgyeonggung-ro, Jongro-gu, Seoul
Directions: Hyehwa Station (Seoul, Subway Line 4), Exit 4. Walk for approximately 15 minutes.
Website: cgg.cha.go.kr (Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese)
Inquiries: +82-2-762-4868 (Korean only)
1330 Korea Travel Hotline: +82-2-1330 (Korean, English, Japanese, Chinese, Russian, Malay, Vietnamese, and Thai language available)


Scott Worden (The L.A./Seoul Guy)

Instagram: l.a.seoulguy