SHINE Alliance, Global (April 2026)

 

After we launched SHINE Alliance in January 2026, we have been making progress under the new governance structure - the five networks under the alliance. We keep holding meetings online and providing necessary services. Whenever possible, however, we also hold offline meetings or hybrid meetings. The examples include the EDT (Entrepreneurship Discipleship Training) program's project presentation and graduation, which was held in a hybrid format. The participants who were in Korea attended in person, and those overseas attended online. 12 people out of 14 registrants graduated. Praise the Lord for the successful completion of this first EDT program under the new leadership of HDT Network!

The NUR Network also held a couple of in-person gatherings in Korea, usually in line with the visiting schedule of overseas members. This gathering had 15 participants. I am sure it was bliss.

May the good and faithful Lord continue to empower all new leadership under the new networks of the SHINE Alliance! - Jeffrey

Family Matters, USA (April 2026)

 

While I was staying home, a few family matters took place at different places. March 27 was Gabe's 4th birthday. He looks a lot more mature than when I saw him in December last year. Happy birthday, Gabe!

In April, Joyce's family took a vacation to Oahu, Hawaii. It was their first trip after she gave birth to Avery in November last year. His hair looks like a pineapple, Amadna said. Myles looks like a big brother already.

April 25 was our 43rd wedding anniversary. We had dinner at Ray's On the River in Sandy Springs. It was a time of joy with gratitude to God who has been faithfully keeping us together for the past 43 years. This dinner was part of our celebration, which included camping in May and a theater showing at the Gas South Theater about C.S. Lewis beyond The Wardrobe. These two events will be documented in a later blog post.  

I am grateful that our family remains in touch digitally online every two months and through the sharing of photos. - Jeffrey

Golf Outing with Former Colleagues, Atlanta, Georgia (April 2026)

 

I am still staying in touch with a few former banking colleagues. They include Koomin Chung and Yeonhee Han. They are still working in banking, and once in a while, we play golf for a few days. This year, we had a golf outing in Georgia. Yeonhee took a few days off and flew in from New Jersey. Since one of the regular members could not make it due to his trip to Korea, we had other colleagues attend.

The first day, we played at the Lanier Islands Legacy Golf Course. Inseon Song joined us. It was on an island in Lake Lanier, a man-made lake created by a dam. The scenery was panoramic, but the clubhouse was under renovation. But we enjoyed our time together. We dined at a barbecue place, called CowWow, celebrating the 60th birthday of two ladies.

The following day, we played at Chicopee Woods Golf Course in Gainesville, GA. This course was cheaper than Lanier Islands Legacy Golf Course, but I liked it better. It looked a lot more mature and stable. For this game, Karen Kim joined us. She used to be a branch manager when I was working at Shinhan Bank America, and she is now the Branch Manager of New Millennial Bank. 

We dined at an Italian restaurant afterwards. 

I am so blessed with these former colleagues who still stay in touch with me, although I am no longer in banking. - Jeffrey

BAM Global Leaders Forum - People, Manila, Philippines (March 2026)

 This forum had a lot of participants. As a result, we did not have the intimacy of knowing each other well. Nonetheless, I met many people one-on-one. Here are some that are noteworthy.

Dwight Nordstrom, Chairman of PRI

John Ng, Mario, from Singapore

He is the CEO of BAM Philippines

BAM in a Box Group

He is the only Rwandan

She is a Kyrgyz, a disciple of Almaz

He is a Norwegian who married to a Korean wife. 

All Koreans and Korean-related people

Julien from Indonesia, the leader of KBC

Brent, a businessman, pastor, and mission agency leader

On a separate note, I met up with Jae Jung Jang, who has been living in the Philippines for more than 40 years. He and I worked together in a BAM program in Korea. He is now deeply involved in the finance business, including a bank and a digital payment network. I was glad to hear that he received a complete healing verdict for cancer. Praise the Lord!

I am not sure what the Lord has in store in all the meetings I had. May Your will be done in Your way and in Your time, Lord! I will obey Your will! - Jeffrey

BAM Global Leaders Forum - Programs, Manila, Philippines (March 2026)

From March 18 to 23, BAM Global held its Leaders Forum 2026 (LF26) in Manila, Philippines. BAM Philippines hosted this event, and their services were sincere and authentic. We greatly appreciated their warm-hearted services. A total of 170 delegates participated in LF26 from 50 countries. When we arrived at the site, a group of young ladies welcomed us with singing and dancing. "Mabuhay!" meant "Welcome" in Tagalog. 

The facility was a compound, owned and managed by the CCT or Center for Community Transformation. I heard the name when I was serving in Rwanda because the CCT owns and operates a microfinance institution as well. The compound was quite large.

The worship time brought all brothers and sisters into unity, filled with awe and honor for God. It was a time of blessings.

I had the privilege of leading a devotion time on "Avodah, work, worship, and service." 

LF26 had a variety of programs, including devotion on Avodah, Shalom, and Kingdom, breakout sessions, and team-building exercises. But all programs were centered around four action pillars: Listen, Learn, Share, and Collaborate. Mats, Jo, and Jaol led the programs. All collected ideas, inputs, feedback, and evaluations would be analyzed and shared at the BAM Global Summit.

Team-building exercises involved impromptu actions and dynamics. 

In addition to a color-coordinated team, I also signed up to take part in the BAM in a Box group. I ended up volunteering for the first initiative to get the ball rolling practically. Out of 17 groups, we were the only group that came up with practical implementation plans. 

I was also part of a team that worked on a special collaborative project. 

Jo took time and introduced all members serving the BAM Global. It was quite a sizeable team. 

BAM Philippines organized an entertainment program as a way of introducing Philippine culture to us. These programs included dancing, singing, and even traditional pig cuisine.

I took a selfie with the Mabuhay sign.

I saw several old timers, including Mats Tunehag, Craig Schugart, and Bill Job. I was also included in the old timers. I was thinking quietly that this would be the last event for me to take part in for BAM Global. - Jeffrey