The first thing I thought of when I saw this video of the stark contrast between South Korea and North Korea as seen from orbit, is how Pyongyang is not the only invisible city on the planet. It makes me think of the unreached people groups and people clusters, waiting in the darkness (literally) for the gospel to arrive.
It’s shocking how the whole country vanishes in the night but for a few glowing street lights and candles flickering inside poor homes.
Here’s what the source has to say about it:
According to NASA, “the light emission from Pyongyang is equivalent to the smaller towns in South Korea.” It’s not a surprise. Each South Korean citizen consumes 10,162 kilowatt hours. In Kim Jong-un’s country, that figure is only 739 kilowatt hours. Even baboons and meerkats consume more electricity in Africa.
You can watch the complete video here:
As I see this image, I think of unreached people groups, vanishing in the night from lack of light. But I am not just referring to spiritual light. That’s a given. There are no churches. There are no Christians. As you read this, they have still not heard the message of Jesus Christ. But I am also referring to physical light. The cities are eery and quiet. The rural homes are hidden in mountains and valleys, hushed and forgotten.
Poverty.
Darkness.
Depravity.
The world’s poorest of the poor are unreached for a reason. They live in the 10/40 Window in hard to reach regions. Many of them survive on less than a Dollar a day.
Let’s change that. We have enough resources. Money is not the issue. Obedience is. Are we willing to sacrifice ourselves that others might hear of Jesus for the very first time?
The image was acquired on January 30, 2014, by the Expedition 38 crew on board the International Space Station.
