The Israelites’ forty years in the wilderness were a time of endurance and a process of generational transition. The older generation, steeped in slavery in Egypt, passed away in the wilderness. Only Caleb, Joshua, and the new generation born in the wilderness set foot in the land of Canaan. Even Moses, the great leader who guided the Exodus, was denied entry into that land. This shows that God’s plan far surpasses human standards. Only a pure, new generation—one that had completely shed the slave mentality of the past and the habit of serving foreign gods—could become the protagonists of the promise.

As we passed through 2023, the 70th anniversary of the Armistice Agreement, I see the future of the Republic of Korea within this history of Israel. About 40 years ago, in the 1980s, South Korea laid the foundation for economic growth amid political turmoil and made its name known on the world stage through the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Living abroad with my parents at the time, I personally witnessed South Korea’s status rise from a ‘small Asian country’ to the proud name ‘South Korea’. Subsequently, our nation experienced rapid growth amid the tide of ‘globalization,’ but then endured the harsh ordeal of the 1997 foreign exchange crisis (IMF). I vividly remember hearing the news of ‘national bankruptcy’ at the training camp while serving in the military, and the milk rations being cut off the very next day. By the mid-90s, the student movement had waned, and after the dot-com bubble burst in the 2000s, a completely different world emerged.

Amidst that wave of change, I built my career—first as the branch manager of a British mobile company, then at a global IT firm. After spending my 30s in the US, I returned to Korea in my 40s, where I remain today. Observing the rapidly shifting international landscape and the realignment of major powers’ diplomatic relations, I find myself reflecting anew on the possibility of a unified Korea. At this juncture where China and Russia’s influence is evolving, the insight that Korea’s unification scenario aligns with American national interests strikes me as particularly sharp. The crucial question is: ‘Who will enter the promised land of a unified Korea?’

Just as the generation that entered Canaan were those who had shed the slave mentality of Egypt, I believe the protagonists of a unified Korea must also be a ‘new generation’ unburdened by the wounds of Japanese colonial rule or the dictatorship era, or the ideological conflicts of the democratization process. I envision a generation not bound by past ideological conflicts and habits, but armed with entirely new values, rising to worship God on the unified land. I too dream of joining that moving place of worship. To prepare for that hopeful future, I rise at 4:30 a.m. today, leaving my record and starting the day with vigor.