God Led Us into Refugee Ministry
2018
By Kelly Mehee Shin
A friendship that helped open our hearts to refugee ministry in Greece, 2018.
OUR FIRST VISIT TO GREECE
While serving in Türkiye, we began hearing more and more about
the refugee crisis unfolding in Greece. Men, women, and children
from Syria, Afghanistan, Iran, and other countries were arriving there
after dangerous and uncertain journeys, hoping to find safety and
a future in Europe.
Then someone asked us a simple question: “Would you like to come
to Greece and meet the refugees yourself?”
After prayer, we decided to make our first trip to Greece in 2018.
We did not know exactly what we would encounter or how this visit
might affect the direction of our ministry. We only knew that God was
inviting us to come, see, listen, and meet the people behind the stories
we had heard.
When we arrived, the refugee crisis was no longer a distant news story.
Every person we met had a name, a family, a journey, and a story of loss,
courage, and hope.
FACING THE REALITY OF DISPLACEMENT
Many of the refugees we met had crossed the Aegean Sea from Türkiye
in small inflatable boats. They had risked their lives to escape war,
persecution, instability, and an uncertain future.
Reaching Greece did not mean that their hardship was over.
Some had nowhere to live and slept on the streets or stayed in
temporary shelters and crowded camps. Many were separated
from family members and faced an asylum process that could
continue for years.
As we listened, we began to understand that displacement involves
far more than leaving one country and entering another. It means
losing familiar places, relationships, work, community, and a sense
of security—while trying to begin life again in an unfamiliar land.
Yet we also encountered remarkable courage, perseverance, generosity,
and faith. The people before us were not statistics or a distant
humanitarian crisis. They were individuals and families with names, gifts,
memories, questions, and hopes for the future.
A TESTIMONY WE COULD NOT FORGET
Among the people we met was a young Iranian Christian whose story
deeply affected us.
He told us about the circumstances that had forced him to leave
his country and about part of his journey hidden inside a freight container.
In darkness and uncertainty, he did not know where he would arrive or
what might happen to him.
As he spoke about his faith in Jesus Christ and the cost of following
Him, the reality of persecution became deeply personal. We were
no longer hearing about suffering believers through a book, a report,
or a distant news story.
The persecuted Church was no longer just a story—it was sitting right in front of us.
His testimony remained in our hearts. It helped us understand that
the refugees arriving in Greece were not only people seeking safety.
Among them were believers carrying stories of faith, sacrifice, courage,
and perseverance.
GOD WAS AT WORK AMONG REFUGEES
During our visit, we discovered that God was already working in
remarkable ways among refugees.
Many people from Muslim backgrounds were visiting churches,
hearing the Gospel, learning about Jesus Christ, reading the Bible,
and placing their faith in Him. In the midst of displacement
and uncertainty, they were asking new questions and searching
for truth, hope, and belonging.
Churches and Christian ministries were welcoming people with
meals, friendship, prayer, Scripture, and practical care.
These communities became places where refugees could experience
love, form relationships, and begin growing in faith.
We also began to recognize the urgent need for discipleship and
Christian leadership. New believers needed opportunities to study
God’s Word, mature in their faith, serve others, and be equipped
to lead churches and Home Churches within their own language and culture.
What began as a short visit was becoming something much more.
Through every conversation and encounter, God was opening our eyes
and redirecting our hearts toward the ministry He was preparing for us.
REFLECTION
Before our first visit to Greece, the refugee crisis had seemed
distant—something we encountered through news reports, statistics,
and the stories of others.
After meeting refugees face to face, everything changed. The crisis
now had names, faces, families, testimonies, and prayers.
We had listened to stories of dangerous journeys and uncertain futures,
but we had also witnessed courage, hospitality, faith, and the quiet
work of God.
Looking back, we can see that God had been preparing us step by step.
Our years in Türkiye had taught us to enter a new culture, learn
another language, build relationships patiently, and recognize
the importance of faithful presence.
At the time, we did not know that God would soon call us to move
to Athens in January 2019. We could not yet see the education,
discipleship, churches, Home Churches, and leadership development
that would grow in the years ahead.
We only knew that God was inviting us to walk alongside these brothers
and sisters, share their burdens, and proclaim the hope of Jesus Christ.
That first visit to Greece did not simply introduce us to refugee ministry.
It redirected our hearts and opened the next chapter of our calling.