GLDI-Lessons Learned

by Rev. Paul Jeon
GLDI Class of 2007
Ph.D. student, The Catholic University of America

What can I say about GLDI—what should I say? At some point during the program I thought of writing a short book recounting all that had taken place during the 40 days of training. Time, however, doesn’t allow for such a luxury. So here I’ll just make a few notes on lessons learned (in no particular order).

The first—and most important point—is that faith replaced fear. At the outset of the program the Lord seemed to be impressing upon me Ephesians 3:20-21 (“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine …”); and, indeed, through the staff and speakers, through the peers and programs, God enlarged my vision of who He is and what He’s accomplishing in the world for His glory, such that my mind and heart were captured by the burning passion not to waste this life but to live it entirely for the spread of the gospel and advancement of the Kingdom. As an aside, perhaps it’s worth mentioning that the replacement of fear with faith has resulted in better sleep and more joy!

The second lesson learned was the importance of strategy. To be sure, there was a blazing passion which appeared to spread from one individual to another as the days progressed. But the pioneers of GLDI carefully worked to ensure that this passion was coupled with wisdom and discipline—and this, I believe, is a distinguishing characteristic of GLDI. The program itself was obviously well thought through to the finest detail. The first week began by focusing on the heart and accenting the need for brokenness, which is the basic disposition for training in Bible. The second week, then, centered on hermeneutics, theology and
apologetics (“how to study the Bible,” “the things of God,” “defending the faith”). These two weeks were followed by topics like basic life skills (time, money, relationships), globalization, leadership, mercy ministry, etc. In addition, the presence and significance of strategy was also evidenced in Dr. John Kim’s presentation of the ultimate purpose of GLDI. In a word, the vision seeks to maximally utilize each individual’s talents, education, and experiences by bringing them together in order to send them out as a network all over the world in order to accomplish “Jesus Globalization” (a term coined by Dr. Kim himself). Sounds crazy? But the vision has been meticulously thought through and outlined by Dr. Kim (there’s an underlying strategy!). More importantly, God is on our side!

Finally, there’s power in living theology. What struck me about all the staff and speakers was the way in which they earnestly sought to couple each aspect of their faith with good works. As a pastor and a doctoral candidate in biblical studies, I was truly humbled by their service which was marked by constancy, joy, meekness, courage, honesty, and vigor. If an individual wants to know what they believe, he need go no further than to simply observe the way they conduct themselves. To have “living textbooks” complement all the wonderful instruction we were receiving in the classroom was an extraordinary blessing.

We often remark, after witnessing something fantastic, “I’ll never forget that.” But the reality is that we do. However, I know that this will not be the case with GLDI simply because I cannot because GLDI has left a permanent impression on me. Everything it taught and everything it was have become a part of me: I have become a fortunate victim of “good infection.” I pray that my ensuing life will bear witness to this.