This article appears in the Spring 2024 issue of the FCA Donor Publication. The FCA publication is a gift from our FCA staff to all donors giving $50 or more annually. For more information about giving, visit here.
Wonmin Choi has an eye for people and moments. Maybe it’s because he sees the world through the end of his camera lens as a professional photographer. Maybe it’s because a few friends dared to see beyond his exterior and into his heart when he felt alone and unseen. Maybe it’s because God called out to an angry, confused and hurt young man with His steadfast love.
However it happened, the Incheon, South Korea native is glad it did, joyfully giving his time, talent and treasure to the ministry of FCA, which has become part of his acceptance story.
Born with a facial abnormality, Choi underwent numerous surgeries
starting at infancy. He was used to the stares and murmurs people would give him, but they took their toll year after year as he fought to maintain a rhythm of normalcy between doctor’s appointments and piecing a life together. Doubts and questions of self-worth swirled in his mind, and he questioned why God made him this way. Why is this my lot in life? Do I have anything to offer? What’s the purpose of all this?
Outwardly, Choi maintained a calm disposition, but inside, emotions built and he had no outlet for release. Short-fused and bottled up, he desperately wanted something to give but had no idea how to truly see the meaning in all his pain. As he played his way through soccer leagues as a youth, little did he know something greater was coming.
Choi, a soccer fanatic, found solace in his sport. In soccer, he could run, kick, jostle and be himself. He didn’t have to worry about whether people were staring at him or what they were thinking. And he found a welcoming community among his middle school club teammates.
“My teammates saw me without prejudice,” he said. “We were just playing soccer and they accepted me as a normal teammate and friend.”
One teammate was Chris Kim, FCA’s current Director for Talent Advancement in the East Global Division, and the two connected right away. Their coach also happened to be Kim’s father, who operated like a 360 Coach, leading young men in life lessons and holistic development. Through team camaraderie, positive reinforcement from a man he looked up to, and real discussions about the God who made him intentionally and had intentional purpose for him, the young midfielder flourished in his new environment.
In sport, Choi was accepted for his athletic skills, not pointed out for his appearance. And he came alive on the pitch. “When he plays soccer, his real self comes out,” Chris Kim said.
The team was good, competing at the national championship level. Choi’s willingness to improve and his drive to be challenged are strong. He found outlets for that in soccer, but more than skills, what set his team apart was the camaraderie and the values instilled from Coach Kim. Coach Kim prioritized sharing the care of Christ more than allowing his team to be consumed by the cutthroat nature of competition. And as Choi attended church with the Kims and began to understand God’s heart, his anger softened and his heart opened to accept the relationship God was inviting Him into.
Kim and Choi’s friendship blossomed, and under Coach Kim’s leadership, Choi worked hard to become an even better athlete. He came in with arrogance on the pitch, but with time, coaching and head-to-head practice against high-caliber athletes, Choi’s temperament cooled and he began to learn what it meant to live like Christ and also compete for Him. As he matured, he grew more settled in his identity. It didn’t matter as much what people thought when they looked at him. Choi had a good God who loved him, good friends and close-knit soccer and church communities.
He finally felt like he belonged.
When Choi and Kim graduated from university, Kim took a role on staff with FCA and Choi ventured into the photography world. Fully invested in their friendship and the sports world, with a growing interest to know 
more about FCA, Choi volunteered at FCA Camp in 2016. As he saw the effort and intention put into the camp and other FCA programs, Choi’s respect for the ministry grew.
“What I like the most about FCA is their value of Excellence,” Choi said. “FCA tries to do ministry in a professional way and tries to excel in everything because we believe this is what God has called us to do.”
His own self-growth was challenged, as well. “As he saw FCA exercise its Core Value of Excellence lived out and doing everything unto the Lord, he saw how he could take it into his own life and career,” Kim explained. “He tied it to his job as a photographer, learning more about how to do things best, get the right equipment, keep taking photos and adjusting to hone his skills.”
But above all, Choi appreciates the acceptance he has experienced within the FCA team, like the feeling he remembers from his club team. “We are maturing in Christ,” he said. “I feel respected, loved, cared for and accepted for who I am as a person.”
Choi also credits Kim and the FCA team with cultivating his artistic craft. “I am encouraged for my profession and what I can produce with my talents,” he added.
Choi uses his photography skills to capture the joys and life-changing experiences at camps, which FCA Korea has utilized for marketing materials, banquets and other promotional means. Choi also attended the East Asia Capacity Conference in Singapore to photograph the event and has become a go-to photographer to capture Huddles, camps and other events in East Asia.
Choi’s photography has been featured on FCA’s organizational website, as well as the cover and inside pages of the donor publication.
Now established in his photography career, Choi continues to serve FCA Korea, propelled by the unity and mission of caring for young athletes like he once was. He is a monthly supporter for Kim and another staff person and spoke at a recent FCA Korea Vision Night banquet in front of 500 people, sharing his testimony and declaring the goodness of God.
Looking back on his childhood and adolescent years, Choi sees the faithfulness of God’s timing in bringing the right people into his life when he needed them.
“I’ve always had difficult times,” he said. “It’s hard to say that I’ve"What I like the most about FCA is their Value of Excellence. FCA tries to do ministry in a professional way and tries to excel in everything because we believe this is what God has called us to do."
--Wonmin Choi completely overcome all these difficulties and everything suddenly changed. I think it’s a lifelong process. I felt those difficulties and asked a lot of questions: ‘What is the reason I’m on this earth? Why did I get the talents I have?’ It was really hard for me to see or do anything with these by myself.
“When things were the hardest, God sent the right people to help and encourage me. He began to show me why He gave me the talents He did and put me in the places He did.”
Choi has paid attention to every detail, noticing even the small and seemingly insignificant steps that led him deeper into God’s love and to a family who cares.
“Through FCA, I’ve learned that God has guided me and given me a privileged life, not simply a normal one. There will be challenging times, but it will make me rely even more on God and depend on Him.”
If Kim had any say in Choi’s future, it would be alongside him and the FCA family.
“He’s got a coach’s perspective, he volunteers, he donates—we need to get him to wear the FCA staff cap too!” Kim said. “We pray and hope one day he can be a team member.”
Whatever the future holds, Choi knows he can keep trusting God’s goodness as he remembers how God provided a loving and accepting community for him, first through his club team and Coach Kim and now with FCA. Choi now keeps his sharp eyes on the lookout for the supernatural, as he recognizes God’s picture-perfect movement in his life. He knows God’s plans will certainly be for his benefit and God’s glory.
“I am looking forward to what God is going to do with and through my life,” Choi said.
-FCA-
Photos courtesy of Wonmin Choi
Donor publication page 46.