Archives for category: faith

Childcare Second Assistant Volunteer

April 8, 2008 //

While I wish I could have heard the messages from David Gibbons, Peter Cha and Ken Fong from this past weekend’s San Diego Asian American Leadership Conference (by all accounts, they delivered fantastic messages), my responsibilities there precluded my ability to sit in on the main sessions there. While I didn’t have an official title, I think Childcare Second Assistant Volunteer would pretty much summarize my role.

Much love to James, Dora and Steve for putting in so much hard work & prayerful effort into this amazing conference. When my wife and I came on board to help out in whatever ways we could, we realized that one of the most important things we could offer would be childcare — thus freeing the post-college family set to attend. It was really great to hear during a dinner chat with Joon Han that, for some people there, SDAALC was the first conference they had attended in years — specifically because childcare was available. My wife did a wonderful job preparing a great kids’ program with limited resources, and we had some really wonderful volunteers help out. I was there to provide box-moving and audio/visual tech support (and to hold multiple crying infants simultaneously).

I recorded my seminar, Asian American Identity + Postmodern Culture, on my little MP3 player. If I figure out how to upload it (and if it seems worthwhile), then maybe I will get around to posting it here. I was humbled that anyone showed up at all, and I sincerely hope that it was beneficial in some way for those who were there.

Another SDAALC note: it was great to see that True Story: A Christianity Worth Believing In, by James Choung, was not only available but was sold out by the end of the conference. Check out The Big Story and The Big Story, Part 2 videos James made based on ideas from this book — they are great resources for postmoderns who struggle with sharing their faith in Jesus in a concise, compelling way with others. These short clips (each one is only about three minutes) are also powerful for those of us who were raised in the church believing in the Western, individualistic, consumer-mindset, fire-insurance Jesus who died just for me (and that’s about it) instead of the Christ whose life, death and resurrection make the story of redemption, restoration, healing and rescue possible — in our individual lives, our relationships, families, communities and for the nations and the world.

Categories asian american, books, church, college, evangelism, faith, family, postmodern

Youth Ministry Happens At Home

April 3, 2008 //

Becoming a dad is one of the greatest things that has ever happened to me. It has forced me to come to terms with my (massive) shortcomings, humbles me every single day and has brought me greater joy than I could have imagined. It seems like an eternity ago, but we used to catch our daughter singing the Blue’s Clues theme song to herself in her mirror, dancing and smiling, using whatever toy she happened to find as her mic. In fact, tonight, as we sat together to worship, we caught her watching herself in that same mirror, dancing and smiling, as we sang a praise song together.

Jason Evans wrote a great post awhile back, Making Lunch, in which he talks about how the everyday act of making lunch for his children has become an integral, fulfilling spiritual discipline in his life. J’s words remind me not only of the kind of community I’d like to be a part of, but the kind of father I hope to become:

I am now the father, the teacher of these two little ones. I often tell new parents, “Your children are your greatest disciples… Don’t forget that this is your calling, to disciple these children in the way of Jesus.”

It’s tempting to farm out this responsibility to the professionals at the church. Who hasn’t had a really long week at work and wouldn’t want to drop off the kids for a couple of hours for some me-time? Is it too much to ask youth pastors to perform a quick two-hour extreme makeover on our prodigal kids — after all, what do we pay them for anyways? However, the formation of the resurrected life of Christ in us is a much longer and slower journey, and requires the patient, loving, everyday guidance of those who were first entrusted with these children.

Maybe it starts with helping parents to see that following Jesus around is a worthwhile, fulfilling, honorable endeavor. For those who feel “unqualified” I am reminded of Eugene Peterson’s words, “Everyone is a beginner in this business. There are no experts… Spiritual formation is not something we master.”

When I see how our daughter is growing everyday in brightness and love for God, I am amazed — and deeply grateful — that my failures do not prevent Christ being formed in her. Her life reminds me of this high and holy calling to lead her, in the ordinary and in-between, on the path of following Jesus. When I struggle with the heavy weight of discouragement, I know that I need to reconnect with God, to pursue the life that makes me feel fully alive in Christ so that instead of having a tired, irritable grouch stomping around the place, our daughter can see me following Jesus through the mess, and His life (slowly) being formed in me and — hopefully — she will want to follow Him as well.

Categories faith, family, health, hope, ministry, prayer, youth ministry

We Met On The Internet (Wait, That Sounds Wrong!)

March 27, 2008 //

At our last college ministry small group gathering, we talked about how isolation and loneliness are increasing despite the widespread popularity of various social networks. I shared with them how, during my first year in college, we received brochures on what this “electronic mail” thing was all about and how to use it.

After learning to navigate the worlds of elm and irc in college, I felt like some medieval clod during seminary as my students tried to explain instant messaging and the like to me. Right around that time (to me, it seems about seven or eight years ago), it seemed like shortcut acronyms were really popular: you know, LOL, BRB, etc.

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Categories asian american, communication, community, faith, family, health, hooray!, just grinning

Jesus Pwns The Newbs (Happy Easter!)

March 25, 2008 //

Bruce Reyes-Chow and the good folks at Mission Bay Community Church have been producing winsome Easter cards for the last couple of years — clever designs that play off some of the cultural misdirections surrounding Easter.

But this year, they declared that all your base are belong to us with their “Wii Jesus” Easter card and, in the process, set off a bit of a firestorm in the gamer world. Posts, podcasts, discussions, rants, threads, flames and comments ranging from bemused curiosity to righteous indignation have made it to sites such as kotaku.com and G4TV. One of my favorite comment threads says:

Well, of course they wouldn’t allow us to play the Wii.

Jesus would win at everything, making it not fun.

Jesus pwns teh newbs.

Other irreverent, but strangely amusing quotes include, Hey, wait a second, Jesus is on my baseball team too! I guess he really is everywhere! and I actually have a Jesus Mii on my Wii. That way, whenever I go into the Everybody Votes channel, I can ask myself “What would Jesus do?”

Next year, maybe it’ll be time for the big helicopter egg drop!

Categories church, communication, controversy, design, faith, games, missional, postmodern

Resurrection Community

March 23, 2008 //

I confess, many days I feel stuck on that Saturday in between Good Friday and Easter Sunday — a kind of waiting and longing, wondering about how my journey brought me to this point, secretly hoping for new life. So, while I might not experience the unparalleled joy of Jesus’ resurrection constantly, today I remember — and stake my life upon — our risen King, the Resurrected One, the true life giver and dream awakener, the One who restores my heart, stirs my hope and says through His risen life that His kingdom has come, is here and is coming.

As a new chapter of life and ministry begins to unfold in the next couple of weeks, I am thankful for the wisdom of people like Eugene Peterson. In Christ Plays in Ten Thousand Places, Peterson writes about the kind of community I dream of and would love to be a part of and serve:

The gospel, while honoring our experience, doesn’t begin with our experience. We don’t begin a holy life by wanting a holy life, desiring to be good, fulfilled, complete, or wanting to be included in the grand scheme of things. We have been anticipated, and the way we have been anticipated is by resurrection, Jesus’ resurrection. Living a holy life, the Christian equivalent of revolution, begins with Jesus’ resurrection.

The resurrection of Jesus establishes the entire Christian life in the action of God by the Holy Spirit. The Christian life begins as a community that is gathered at the place of impossibility, the tomb.

Just as Jesus’ birth launches us into the creation and Jesus’ death launches us into history, Jesus’ resurrection launches us into living in community, the holy community — the community of the resurrection.

Categories church, community, faith, hooray!