Archives for the month of: November, 2008

Listening is an Act of Love

November 29, 2008 //

I must confess that I haven’t yet read the book by the same title from StoryCorps (hmm… this is turning into a running theme here), but I love what that title says: Listening is an act of love.

Our family spent the last week back in Michigan so that our daughter could have some quality time with her grandparents (and get onto the Jumbotron during the Pistons game, thanks to some fervent dancing/prancing on my part!). I was also able to catch up with friends (thanks again for the polar bear!) and catch up on some reading.

During the flight from California to Michigan, I read through Rob Bell’s provocatively titled new release, Jesus Wants to Save Christians. Hopefully, I can post a full review soon, but Jesus Wants is thoughtful and challenging — in particular, I appreciated Bell’s re-framing of the Decalogue through the lens of the Exodus. On the return flight to California, I was able to make substantial headway into Scot McKnight’s new book, The Blue Parakeet. Again, a review is on its way (maybe!).

In Parakeet, McKnight offers those of us who are weary of the polarization between reactionary fundamentalism and extreme liberalism a much-needed alternative to reading the Bible. Far from being a half-hearted compromise, McKnight’s Third Way urges us to engage Scripture — and, more importantly, the God of Scripture — with love, creativity and passion. Above all, perhaps, McKnight calls us to listen:

Reading the Bible is an act of listening. Listening, to quote the title of a popular book, is an act of love.

(In the footnote to this quote, Scot reveals that he has not read this book yet either. At least I’m in good company!)

As we head into this Advent season of watching and waiting, let’s take time to listen — both for the still small voice of God and for the voices of friends, family and those in need.

Below you can find the Advent graphic I designed for our church community:

Categories church, communication, community, design, faith

Music to Ease the Pain

November 24, 2008 //

… of missing out on free Dr. Pepper, that is.

If you weren’t able to register for your Guns N’ Roses-inspired free Dr. Pepper yesterday — or weren’t able to wait out their overloaded, laggy website — here are some free tracks (of actual good music that didn’t take, like, decades to release!) to ease your 23 flavors-less pain.

The good people of Dischord Records are offering the classic melodic hardcore Egg Hunt 7″ tracks as free digital downloads to everyone who registers for an account there. Yet another reason to support great independent music!

In other 80s news, Stereogum has a couple of clever covers for your downloading happiness, including The Welcome Wagon‘s version of Half a Person by the Smiths and Takka Takka’s take on the Phil Collins epic In the Air Tonight. Did I mention that I went to seminary with Vito Aiuto of The Welcome Wagon?

Also, you can download an Obama-inspired track by none other than the Boss himself (and you don’t even have to make up a fake email address to give to Sony).

You might want to wait before picking up your New Order reissues, though.

Categories freebies, indie, music

Over the Hills and Far Away

November 23, 2008 //

Hillsong United — with their high energy octave-jumping choruses and emo-tinged ballads — dominates much of the modern praise & worship scene. I often find that I like their songs more after the experience of singing them live in the context of a worship gathering — although this is not strictly limited to Hillsong United songs (a prime example: Charlie Hall’s “Sweep Me Away” is literally one chord — with some minor shifts and tons of gagdetry — but is a personal favorite because of a particular worship experience).

This past weekend, I was guest-speaking at a series of gatherings where we sang the Hillsong-penned Saviour King (complete with the Aussie spelling of Saviour!). A key theme for us was the idea that the church is not a building or destination but, as Rob Bell writes in the provactively-titled Jesus Wants to Save Christians, “The church is a people who live a certain way in the world.” The church is not a monument but, rather, a movement. So, this particular lyric from Saviour King was particularly meaningful for me:

Let now your church shine as the bride
That you saw in your heart as you offered up your life
Let now the lost be welcomed home
By the saved and redeemed those adopted as your own

Perhaps it’s a bit of poetic license or holy imagination, but I really like the idea of Jesus picturing us and who we could become in Him as He gave His life away. I’m really drawn to the notion that Jesus not only saves, but He dreams as well.

Categories church, music, worship

Correcting Course

November 19, 2008 //

Let’s just get this out of the way up front. I might be the only pastor I know who hasn’t yet read The Tipping Point or Blink by Malcom Gladwell (although, given the proclivity of those in ministry circles to quote Gladwell, I kind of feel like I already have). Now…

I heard Gladwell on NPR yesterday talking about his new book Outliers: The Story of Success. I started listening because he was trying to answer the question, Why do Asian kids outperform American kids in math? Of course, they were talking about Asian kids from Asian countries, and how cultural influences shape different skill sets and values — as an Asian American who scored higher on the verbal portion of the SAT than the math section, I am living proof that there is no inherent Asian predisposition to being good at math.

In any case, what really caught my attention was a brief aside where Gladwell spoke about why Korean airlines sometimes have trouble in the cockpit of their planes. Basically, it boils down to Korean culture’s excessive deference to authority and the inability to speak plainly to the boss.

Which got me thinking…

Sounds a lot like Korean churches.

I believe in the recovery and redemption of our God-given identities and cultures. However, there are certain things that need to get tossed. Despite the obligatory church-speak about humility and servanthood, many of us have firsthand experience with the “I’m the boss and you are my minions” ethos of many Korean churches. I know of a senior pastor who had the nerve to stand before a congregation of several hundred and offer this disturbing syllogism: God wants us to serve Him; we serve God by serving the church; and we serve the church by serving the pastor. Um, right.

Picture that church as the airplane Gladwell describes: The plane is heading the wrong way or, worse, about to crash. The pilot, important and in charge, steadfastly maintains the course while happily ordering people around. All the while everyone knows, but is too afraid to say, that something isn’t right.

Of course, in the end, this will to dominate and assert authority affects churches of all cultures and ethnic backgrounds.

Although I’m not a type-A, aggressive sort, I can see how this mentality of the pastor having the final say has influenced my thinking as well. I want to do my part in ending this cycle of excessive deference to authority and, instead, guide our church into becoming a community of mutual submission, of humble love and service.

Tags first generation

Categories asian american, books, church, communication, faith, ministry