Communication in Korea: Lydia Black Steps Toward Missions

Lydia discovered the perfect union of her teaching degree and desire to serve in missions with her summer internship at TWR. 

Lydia Black never expected to serve Christ in South Korea. But God paved the way for her to spend her 2025 summer there.

A rising senior at Harding University studying elementary education and teaching English to speakers of other languages, Lydia works alongside the dedicated staff of TWR Korea. In addition to providing English communication practice for the staff, she spends time researching Korea’s history and current news to write English articles for foreigners like us who want to learn more about the challenges TWR faces in Korea.

What led you to joining TWR?

I found an English as a second language (ESL) posting for TWR South Korea and applied because I thought it would be a great way to get my feet wet in the realm of teaching English as a foreign language (TEFL). I did not expect to be accepted until Jennifer Bozeman from TWR reached out in late January. After a lot of prayer and several conversations with my parents, I decided to follow through with the internship. In hindsight, it feels like an answer to my prayers about mission work in South Korea, and God has been with me at each step of the process as I prepared to come.

What are you looking forward to while working at TWR?

I am looking forward to learning all that I can about the mission, the missionaries, the culture and the language. I am here to learn and listen.

What is one of your biggest challenges this summer?

My biggest challenge is learning the language. While communication is not a problem since most of the staff can speak English, I want to learn Korean.

When and how did you get interested in missions?

I have always been interested in mission work, but I never intended to live far away from home. At the end of my freshmen year of college, however, I took an intersession course on developmental missions. I took it both for credit and because my older sister told me I had to take it. The lessons I learned there opened my eyes to spiritual needs both in the world at large and to the ones surrounding me in my daily life.

The next year, my older sister pointed out that my fascination with Korea might be God calling me to something mission related. I began to earnestly pray for guidance in that area; I was unsure whether I was being called. And if so, was the call for me to go or stay and work with Koreans?

Another factor in these questions was my uncertainty about the usefulness of a teaching degree in missions work. At some point someone mentioned how I could teach English abroad, and that became a focal point of my prayers. Then this internship with TWR popped up and I applied.

How is this internship preparing you for your future?

I believe God will guide me to my next step with Korea through what I’m learning. I am not sure what yet, but he has proven that he is in control, and I choose to trust his judgment over my own.

What have you enjoyed about South Korea?

I think my favorite thing so far is how the entire office staff goes out for lunch together each day. We always start with the hard decision of what to eat and eventually choose a place to walk to. Korean eating style is much more relaxed than a lot of America and Europe in that there are side dishes that everyone dips their chopsticks into. I love the informal feel of it and how everyone talks and interacts.

Fun fact: Lydia has 12 siblings!

Images: (top, banner) Lydia discovered the perfect union of her teaching degree and desire to serve in missions with her summer internship at TWR; (middle, right) her internship has allowed Lydia to experience Korean culture firsthand.