JOY Mission

Overview

JOY Mission is an interdenominational mission organization devoted to evangelism and discipleship, primarily on university campuses. "Interdenominational" means that it does not belong to any particular denomination and that members of various denominations take part together. Its official Korean name is written "죠이선교회," and the organization describes itself as an "evangelical university student mission organization." The name JOY is an acronym for the phrase "Jesus first, Others second, You third." The organization calls this ethos the "JOY Spirit" and holds it as its core value. It presents as one of its distinctive features the fact that it did not enter Korea as the branch of a foreign mission organization but arose indigenously among Korean university students.

Founding and History

• May 18, 1958: Sim Sang-kwon, Kim Heung-soo, Lee Mi-ja, and others led the founding of the JOY Youth Club. Sim Sang-kwon served as its first president. It is said to have begun as a Christian fellowship of seven university students.
• Around 1965: The group changed its name to "JOY Club" and reportedly grew as the age range of its participants widened.
• 1970s: The organization sent staff member Moon Jeong-seon to serve on the mission ship LOGOS, a step it regards as the beginning of its involvement in world mission.
• February 20, 1976: The name was changed to "JOY Mission." At this time the organization was divided into a university division for students and a general division for working adults.
• Present: The organization operates as an incorporated nonprofit association. Marking its 68th anniversary in 2026, it is holding founding anniversary events, each organized around a theme tied to a particular decade.

Principal Activities

• Campus ministry: Chapters at individual universities conduct Bible study, evangelism, and discipleship training. Full-time campus ministers are called gansa ("staff"), and new domestic campus staff are recruited every year.
• Overseas mission: The organization states that it ministers not only on campuses in Korea but also on campuses abroad.
• Retreats and commemorative events: The organization holds retreats for its members. On one occasion it chose as the theme of its founding anniversary event the songbook The Sound of Many Waters (Maneun Mulsori), familiar to students who entered university in the 1990s and 2000s.
• Video ministry: The organization runs a YouTube channel called "JOY World," which posts videos in which its director answers questions of faith raised by members, such as the relationship between local churches and mission organizations.

Organization

JOY Mission is not a federation of member churches like a denomination. Rather, university students and graduates from various denominations participate as individuals. Its current director is the Rev. Kim Su-eok. Along with Korea Campus Crusade for Christ (CCC) and Inter-Varsity Fellowship Korea (IVF), it is reported to belong to the Korea Campus Evangelization Network, a consultative body of university mission organizations.

Distinctive Features

Korea Campus Crusade for Christ was also founded in 1958, the year JOY Mission began. Korea Campus Crusade for Christ was established with the cooperation of the American mission organization Campus Crusade for Christ. By contrast, JOY Mission was formed by Korean students themselves, and for this reason it is described, along with Inter-Varsity Fellowship Korea and others, as representing one stream of Korean campus mission.