Kimchi, Coffee, and Calling | Our 12 Days in Korea

On May 22nd, James and I embarked on our first international trip together! We have each visited a few countries outside of the US, but never together. In fact, we had never even flown with each other. 

This trip was just the two of us. In order to….1) save money, 2) focus on the decisions at hand, and 3) not force our young children into about 40 hours of travel within a short period, we made the choice for this preview trip to be just James and I. This was a hard decision to make. As the trip approached, I (Stephanie) was feeling pretty anxious about being away from them that long. 

That being said, we had our closest friends step up to the plate to watch them for us. They are the type of friends that are truly family. The girls know them well, and we have vacationed together with their family for years. Needless to say, my worries were relieved when each and every time we video called the girls, they were enthralled in their visit with friends and had little interest in anything we had to share. 

Back to May 22nd, we embarked on our 6am flight from Myrtle Beach airport to Atlanta for a short layover and on to Incheon (a sweet and short 15 hours!) The desk agents were kind enough to give us bulkhead seating after we asked for anything with additional leg room for 6’8” James. 

Upon arrival, we were picked up by members of the church at Incheon airport and driven straight (after a nice airport Korean snack of course) to our accommodation we would be at for the first half of the trip. Some missionaries on furlough kindly opened up their apartment for us to use for the first few nights of the trip. 

After settling in, we went to wander the streets, likely looking like clueless foreigners, and try to figure out the Korean navigation app (Naver) enough to grab a dinner. We hear from behind us, “is that the Mauneys?” We were spotted by a church member and immediately invited back to their home for dinner. What a blessing. 

Looking back, this was just the beginning of what would be a week full of hospitality, kindness, and a strong sense of community. 

Throughout our time in Pyeongtaek, our days were mostly spent meeting up with new friends, coffee dates, and lots of wandering around. 

My (Steph) overall impressions while we were there were:

• incredibly clean and safe

• very advanced (technology wise)

• trash sorting is going to be a cultural hurdle for us

• we really need to learn the language to fully immerse into society

• the people of SCBC are going to quickly become our family

• we must learn how to navigate public transportation when we return

• i want to adjust my palate to enjoy the different types of food if I can

Lastly, I was SO humbled. During our visit to the Korean church Friday prayer service (where James preached with the help of our wonderful translator Sam!) I was sitting teary-eyed in complete and utter awe of God’s calling on our life. I felt completely and wholly unqualified and unworthy sitting listening to the songs sung and prayers cried out to God in Korean while we sang and prayed in English— a physical representation of the nations. I am so thankful this wonderful adventure would be part of my time on earth. The fact that God would allow me this experience to be a part of the global church is hard for me to understand. I can only point to His faithfulness. He is worthy of any plan he calls our family to.

Here is a brief summary of each day and a gallery of photos from our trip!

Wednesday / Thursday / Friday: Travel

Concord, NC 🛻 Myrtle Beach, SC ✈️ Atlanta, GA✈️ Incheon, South Korea 🛻 Songtan, South Korea

Day 1- Saturday: Songtan Central Baptist Women’s Brunch and the Songtan 4-9 Market

Day 2- Sunday: First English Church service and Korean BBQ Lunch!

Day 3- Monday: Korean Starfield Mall

Day 4- Tuesday: Hiking and Prefer Cafe with the ladies of SCBC

Day 5- Wednesday: Osan Air Base Tour

Day 6- Thursday: More coffee with friends and KT Wiz game!

Day 7- Friday: Lunch with Korean church staff and Pastor / Korean Friday evening prayer service

Day 8- Saturday: Day Trip to Daebudo Island and dinner with church members

Day 9- Sunday: Second English Church service, pizza lunch in the park, dinner cook out with church members

Monday / Tuesday: Travel

Songtan, South Korea 🚌Incheon, South Korea✈️Atlanta, GA✈️ Myrtle Beach, SC🛻 Concord, NC

A Thousand Year Wait

When I (James) accepted the call in June to pastor Songtan Central Baptist Church (SCBC), our hope was to be in Korea by August. Stephanie and I were eager to step into this new chapter, wrapping up our ministry here in the States and preparing to go where God was leading. We moved forward with urgency, excitement, and prayerful planning.

But despite our best efforts, that goal won’t be met.

In order to work for a Korean organization, we must obtain a Korean work visa—a process that has proven to be slower and more complex than we anticipated. Each day, we’re asked the same question: “When are you leaving for Korea?” And each time, we answer honestly—sharing about the visa delays and how we’ve been doing everything in our power to be ready once approval comes.

It’s frustrating. At times, disappointing. But even in the waiting, we are trusting the Lord’s timing.

God has provided in incredible ways through this journey. We sold our camper—something we expected to be a major hurdle—in just a few days. Our home is on the market, and we’re holding onto our vehicles for now as we continue waiting. These provisions have been reminders that while we may not control the timeline, God is still at work.

2 Peter 3:8 reminds us:
“But do not overlook this one fact, beloved, that with the Lord one day is as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”

It’s a simple but powerful truth. The same God who has orchestrated every step so far is the God of time itself. He will place us exactly where we’re meant to be—at exactly the right time.

So, we keep saying yes.
Yes to waiting.
Yes to trusting.
Yes to His perfect timing.

Ways You Can Pray For Us

1. Pray for expedited documents from the NC Secretary of State and a expedited visa process once the final application is submitted.

2. Pray for a buyer of our home here in Concord.

3. Pray for June as she begins to start some kindgarten classes. (a process we really hoped would begin in Korea)

4. Pray for Stephanie as she learns the new skill of teaching June.

5. Pray for James to finish his ministry at Parkwood well.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and to pray for us.

To God be the Glory.

Our Official Yes

To many of you, this may not come as a surprise—but over the past week, as Stephanie and I have started posting things for sale on Facebook (our home, beloved camper, my truck, and more), the questions have started rolling in:
“What in the world is going on?” and
“Why are you selling all your stuff?”

Some of you who’ve been closer to the details have already connected the dots, but now it’s time to make it official:
We’re headed to Korea!

On Sunday, June 8th, Songtan Central Baptist Church in Pyeongtaek, South Korea voted to call me (James) as their next Lead English Pastor. Stephanie and I are incredibly honored by this call, and we deeply covet your prayers as we step into this exciting new season of ministry and life.

We’ve begun the process of paring down our belongings to 40 medium-sized boxes, selling the treasures we’ve collected over the years, and savoring these last few weeks with our precious family and friends.

Many of you have asked about our timeline. We’re finishing the summer strong, spending meaningful time with our PB Youth students and experiencing a few final milestones—like one last trip to Snowbird for summer camp. Please pray for us as we strive to finish well and continue to love these students faithfully, even beyond our time here in Concord.

One of the most difficult parts of this transition is leaving behind the family we love so dearly. Our parents, siblings, and extended family have been a constant source of support, encouragement, and joy throughout our lives. We treasure every moment with them, and saying goodbye—even for a season—is not easy. And yet, as much as we love our family, we are confident that the Lord is calling us to step out in obedience. Our desire is to follow Him wherever He leads, trusting that He will care for our loved ones as He sends us to care for others. Obedience to Christ is not always comfortable, but it is always worth it.

Our trip to Korea in early June only deepened our sense of calling to SCBC. We met a church that loves the Word, cares deeply for one another, and has a genuine heart for the nations. We saw so many exciting opportunities for English ministry in Pyeongtaek and were encouraged by the unity and shared vision between the English and Korean congregations.

We truly can’t wait to see how God will use us at SCBC.

If you’d like to follow along as we step into this calling God has placed on our lives, we’ve launched a website and social media page called Just Our Yes. Our hope is to share updates, stories, and reflections from our time in Korea so our friends and family can walk this journey with us.

The name Just Our Yes comes from a simple but foundational desire we’ve always had: to give God our “yes” and trust Him to place us wherever He calls.

We’re excited for what’s ahead—and grateful to have you alongside us in prayer, encouragement, and support.

We’d love for you to follow along, pray with us, and stay connected through Just Our Yes.

Why Korea? The Story Behind Our Big Move

If you would have told us a couple years ago we’d be selling the majority of our belongings, packing up, and taking our family of four to Pyeongtaek, South Korea— we probably would have called you crazy. BUT it’s funny how life goes and ever so unique how God orchestrates our paths. There have been many moments along the way in James and I’s (Stephanie writing here) stories so far both independently before even meeting and collectively over the past almost 14 years together.

In early 2024, James attended a conference where he first learned a statistic that broke his heart for the nations and struck in him a desire to do more for the Gospel.

174,202 people die across the globe daily apart from Christ

James left that conference and said a prayer that he didn’t share with me. He asked that God would give me the same brokenness and the same feeling that we should go to the nations without ever telling me he was having those inclinations himself.

Fast forward several months, and wouldn’t you know, I started having those same whispers from the Holy Spirit. Through the teaching of our Pastor and a personal testimony from a missionary, I felt impressed that we needed to seriously consider what our faith was worth. Indeed, it is worth literally everything we can give.

With that, I turned to James after church one day and said with tears in my eyes, “I think God is telling us to go.”

At this point we had absolutely no idea where, when, or how we would go. But, we did feel we needed to relinquish our idea of what the future for our family looked like, and just give God our Yes. This was about July 2024 at this point.

Through a series of conversations missionaries, international pastors, our own mentors, research, and prayer- we begin the journey of seeking international missional opportunities over the next 6 months.

I received a lighthearted text from James one day, “how about South Korea"?”

….”sure” I replied hastily and mindlessly as I was in midst of a hectic work day.

Little did I know, we would soon be invited for an initial interview in early December with Songtan Central Baptist Church in Pyeongtaek, South Korea. That initial interview excited us in a way no other opportunity had yet. SCBC has strong ties with the Southern Baptist convention, they identify themselves as a sending church due to the rotational nature of their congregation, and their search committee was adamantly heartfelt and prayerful about ensuring they choose the Pastor who would be the right fit for their next leader.

Through a series of conversations, 6am Zoom calls, prayers, and much patience, James was chosen from a large candidate pool as the desired next Senior Pastor of SCBC.

Thus begins our journey….