Meet Jayna Jung, a Korean-American TCK who lives in Osh, Kyrgyzstan. At twelve years old, she is the youngest of a family of five and a third year TPSer. Currently, she’s taking English 1, Asian History, Life Science, and Geography. A few of Jayna’s hobbies are reading, drawing, chatting with her online friends, and playing video games with them. Jayna says it’s been such a blessing to talk and interact with people all over the world, connected through a screen. Jayna also loves animals and will try befriending stray dogs and cats she meets.
Jayna has been a TCK for her entire life, with Kyrgyzstan and the USA being her two very different homes. Every two or three years, she and her family visit America for the summer as they meet churches and families who support their mission work. For six years, Jayna studied at a Russian school, which led to her picking up the Russian language. She is now fluent in both English and Russian! She’s also working on learning Korean, another language to add to her repertoire.
For Jayna, being a TCK means that she can experience so many incredible things. She’s so grateful that she can be in Kyrgyzstan, spreading the gospel to people who have never heard the story of Jesus before. It’s also nice that everything is cheaper where she lives, compared to America. However, there are plenty of difficulties as well—for one, the country is 90% Muslim people. With so many locals following Islam, the gap between them and the missionaries can be big.
Life in Kyrgyzstan leads to lots of exciting adventures for Jayna, as well. One activity she particularly enjoys is going camping in mountains that are 23,000 feet high! Jayna and her family camp at 11,500 feet. Although it’s a bit hard to breathe up there, Jayna loves driving through valleys and seeing all the breathtaking mountain landscapes. One memorable story is that they once spent the night in a yurt, a round portable tent covered in animal skins that nomads use.
Jayna understands that many other TCKs would relate to feeling out of place or “different” in any way. But on the other hand, it’s truly a gift! TCKs not only can share the Good News with people they meet, but they also can explore exciting new countries with beautiful sceneries. It’s an experience that not everyone gets, so Jayna tries to cherish it as much as she can.
Jayna closes the spotlight with her favorite Bible verse, 1 Peter 5:7, “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” (New International Version) She likes this verse because being a TCK is really difficult sometimes, but God is always there to help us and be with us all the way. She encourages everyone to keep going and sharing the Word with others. No matter how discouraged you may feel, God always has a plan for everything!
Thank you so much for your time, Jayna! It’s been a great pleasure to learn more about you through this spotlight!