May_week3 2026 North Korea Prayer
1. Lee Administration Continuously Requests Transfer of North Korean POWs in Ukraine to South Korea)
Brigadier General Dmytro Usov (center) of the Ukrainian Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War conducts a closed-door meeting with the "Emergency Committee for the Freedom and Repatriation of North Korean Soldiers" on the 7th (local time). Photo = Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War
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It has been confirmed that Russia requested the exchange of two North Korean POWs held in Ukraine on several occasions, but they were excluded from the prisoner exchange due to the persistent requests of the Lee Jae-myung administration to transfer their custody. Brigadier General Usov of the Ukrainian Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War emphasized, "Ukraine guarantees that they will not be handed over to Russia or North Korea," and added, "We are currently discussing ways to transfer them to South Korea through various mechanisms, and we expect practical progress in the near future." Following the conclusion of the meeting that day, the Emergency Committee for the Freedom and Repatriation of North Korean Soldiers delivered $2,000 in support funds ($1,000 each in prison money for the North Korean POWs) prepared by the Esther Prayer Movement (headed by Lee Yong-hee) along with approximately 150 comfort letters, books, school supplies, clothing, laptops, DVDs, and health food to the Headquarters. Jang Se-yul, head of the G겨레얼 (Gyeore-eoul) Unification Coalition, stated, "With this achievement as a momentum, we will more actively raise awareness of North Korean human rights issues within the international community and continue activities for the North Korean people suffering under the Kim Jong-un regime on a broader stage." [ 2026.5.11. Monthly Chosun / View Article https://zrr.kr/nTOUxO ]
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"Deliver those who are drawn toward death, and hold back those stumbling to the slaughter." (Proverbs 24:11)
We have confirmed the position from the Ukrainian side that "there will be no forced repatriation of North Korean POWs against their free will, and the Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law will be observed." Lord, may the Ukrainian government consistently uphold the principle of non-refoulement under international law, and may the path be opened swiftly for North Korean POWs who wish to defect to be safely transferred into the embrace of the Republic of Korea.
Grant wisdom and capability to the government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and relevant officials so that they may secure custody of these individuals and guide them safely to South Korea through close cooperation with the international community.
May the items prepared by the Esther Prayer Movement—including the prison money, two Samsung laptops, mini fans, Bibles, stationery, four-season clothing, and Korean snacks—along with the 150 comfort letters delivered by defector members of the Emergency Committee and members of the Esther Prayer Movement, bring great comfort and hope to the prisoners, and lead them to accept Jesus Christ, who is the Truth. May the movement to rescue these two North Korean POWs be sublimated into a nationwide movement to rescue the 26 million North Korean compatriots, so that gospel unification under liberal democracy may be achieved swiftly.
2. After "Completely Erasing" Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il... Portraits Also Replaced with Solo Shots of Kim Jong-un)
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While portraits of all three generations from Kim Il-sung to Kim Jong-un have hung together in the past, this is the first time it has been confirmed that North Korea has taken down the previous portraits of the predecessors and replaced them with Kim Jong-un's solo portrait. This is evaluated as a clearer manifestation of Kim Jong-un distancing himself from his predecessors while promoting an independent path, such as the hostile two-state policy. As North Korea elevates the status of Kim Jong-un, it appears to be partially adjusting the level of idolization for Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, a trend that is also reflected in the North Korean Constitution. It has been confirmed that a large portion of the descriptions detailing the so-called achievements of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il in the preamble of the Constitution has been wiped out. In the revised Constitution, phrases such as "Kim Il-sung is the founder and progenitor of North Korea" and "Kim Jong-il transformed [the country] into a nuclear weapons state" were completely removed. Among the sentences directly mentioning the names of Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il, 19 sentences were either deleted or replaced. [ 2026.5.13. SBS News / View Article https://zrr.kr/5aL2T7 ]
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"You shall have no other gods before Me. You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;" (Exodus 20:3-4)
Recently, movements have surfaced in North Korea to consolidate an independent path by deleting the achievements of the predecessors from the preamble of the Constitution and strengthening the solo idolization of Kim Jong-un. Lord, let it be revealed how futile before God this evil idol worship is, which deifies a human being and has continued for three generations. May the images of idols erected throughout the land of North Korea be abolished, and may only the sovereignty of God, the King of kings, be proclaimed.
Protect the North Korean residents and underground church believers who groan under the idolized dictatorial system. May they guard their faith by Your grace even amidst persecution, and may they do their utmost to preach the gospel in secret.
May gospel unification under liberal democracy be achieved across the entire Korean Peninsula, both North and South, so that the day when we can freely worship God, evangelize, and do missions may come swiftly.
3. Pouring Out Dissatisfaction Against the Party Led to a Whole Family Vanishing Without a Trace?)
A rural village in the South Pyongan Province region. / Photo = Daily NK
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It has been reported that a resident working at the Bukchang Thermal Power Generation Complex in South Pyongan Province recently expressed dissatisfaction with the actions of the Party and subsequently vanished without a trace along with his family. The incident began when resident A's older brother, who served as a city official in the province, was flagged during an inspection, summarily dismissed and removed from his post overnight, and exiled to a rural area. Resident A, who deeply respected his brother, poured out his dissatisfaction with the Party's actions during a drinking session with a coworker friend, saying, "My brother never sought personal gain and only showed loyalty to the Party, yet he was abandoned. How can the Party discard someone to this extent?" The friend who drank with him that day immediately drafted a report on this statement and reported it to the Provincial Ministry of State Security. A few days later, Resident A's family disappeared without a trace, and the house they lived in currently remains completely empty. Among the residents, rumors that Resident A and his family were taken to a kwanliso (political prison camp) have spread as an established fact. This incident is pointed out as an example that vividly demonstrates the chilling reality of control by the North Korean authorities, who are intensifying mutual surveillance systems among residents to the point of weaponizing even private conversations and treating them with extreme political severity. [ 2026.4.30. Daily NK / View Article https://zrr.kr/ih2vMa ]
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"Let the groaning of the prisoner come before You; according to the greatness of Your power preserve those who are appointed to die;" (Psalms 79:11)
Lord, we lift up into Your hands the tragic situation in North Korea, where an entire family disappears without a trace because of a single word spoken, and where people spy on and report one another. Lord, have mercy on the North Korean residents who live in anxiety and fear under a surveillance system that does not tolerate even remarks made in private settings.
Protect the lives of the residents across North Korea who have been dragged into forced labor camps due to the atrocities of the dictatorial regime. For the remaining residents, may this incident not end merely in fear, but serve as an opportunity for their eyes to be opened to realize the contradictions of the regime.
May North Korea's Juche ideology and the mutual surveillance and reporting system, which make it impossible to trust even the closest friends and neighbors, be broken down. May the fear and anxiety leave the hearts of the North Korean residents living in distrust and terror, may they have compassion for one another, and may they unite their minds and purposes in longing for unification under liberal democracy.
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