Nine months have quickly passed in Korea and Mongolia, and in our final week in Korea we had the great joy of seeing the culmination of thousands of hours of work by our Korean staff over more than two years as they worked to complete a full Korean translation of the Basic Seminar.
Attending a Basic Seminar in Orange County, CA as a young man in his late twenties, Mr. Hwang saw the great spiritual value that this seminar could bring to the people of Korea. It was there that he first had the vision of translating this seminar into the Korean language. Now, exactly twenty years later, Mr. Hwang had the joy of seeing this dream become reality.
Of course no “seminar” can truly change a life, but the Word of God is powerful, and when Biblical principles are understood and applied to daily life, the blessing of the Lord brings a joy and peace that carries us through the storms and uncertainties of life. Jesus tells us in Matthew 7 that when we build our life around the truths of Scripture, we are like a wise man that built his house upon a rock. (See Matthew 7:24-27)
Over 100 Koreans attended this first seminar, and many encouraging testimonies were shared by the attendees. Mrs. Ha was in tears as she shared with my parents how happy she was to hear the seminar in the Korean language. I talked with one girl who had previously heard the seminar in English, and asked for her impression. “It is really different.” she told me, “When I listened to the seminar in English, I had to translate everything in my mind, but now the message goes in deeply.”
Among the attendees I was thrilled to see the senior pastor and two others from the church in Jeju Island that Mr. Moon and I had gotten to know during our memorable visit last January. They enjoyed the seminar very much, and hope to host one at their church in December.
May the Lord bless the seeds of truth that have been sown in the hearts of the attendees, and may the application of God’s Word bring great blessing to their lives and families.