“To God be the Glory, great things He hath done!”

But for the Lord and His faithfulness to His covenanted promises, the Special Leadership Seminar (SLS) could never have drawn the numbers it did. To give you an insight, there were only two participants registered – and this number remained static for several months. It was only when we took the words of the Lord “pray ye that the Lord of the Harvest would send labourers” seriously in BOTH letter and spirit, that we began to experience an outpouring of response. We had to then plead with the YMCA for additional rooms as our numbers began to outpace their available accommodation.

As many as 27 participants, from all over India converged at the YMCA Centre for Delhi Alumni Association’s first venture in conducting a SLS between 28th September and 2nd October 2006. It is heartening to note that the hosts – HI Delhi Alumni Association were able to rope in as many as 14 participants locally – with the remaining 13 coming from cardinal points such as Chennai in the South, Shillong in the North, Bhuwaneswar in East and Mumbai in the West.

Every participant was ‘God-sent’! That was their testimonies at the ‘Convocation’. The group comprised a happy mix of ‘successful marketplace professionals’ from fields as divers as Senior Bureaucrats from Government, Principals from Education, Professionals from IT industry, Doctors representing Medicine, Professionals from Management Consulting and Advertising and Pastors from Church Ministries.

The theme for the ‘5-days’ was evocatively captured in “Branded for Christ”.
What it means to be Distinctive! Different! Definite!

The faculty passionately shared the astonishing significance and joy of having a Personal relationship with our Lord Jesus Christ (be owned by Him). Witnessing about Him (displaying His splendour and communicating what it means to spend eternity with Him),
And how to touch and impact lives in the ‘marketplace’ where each one of us works. In essence, “God on Monday – making our profession our pulpit”

To emphatically underscore these powerful insights, the Lord even sent a participant who heads a large ‘salt’ manufacturing unit in South India, to convey ‘branding’ – the significance of being positioned as ‘salt & light’ - two intrusive media – one to preserve from decay and the other to shed the light that chases not only darkness in a sense but the paradigms that masquerade as light.

Jesus said, “Ye are the salt of the earth”. He also established for all eternity “I am the light of the world”.

What seemed ‘5 long days’ away from one’s intense involvement in the marketplace, concluded with the desire of “wish we were together for even a longer time”. Everyone left with one resolve – ‘One Life’ – an acronym for ‘Live It Intensely for Evangelism’

Yes, “To God alone be the Glory, great things He hath done!”