Hooray for International Getaway!

Hello, friends! 

I have said many times before that one of the best things that we do as a Region in InterVarsity is International Getaway. Every May, dozens of international and American students gather together to learn together, play together, eat together, and grow closer to Jesus together. It is always an amazing time and this year was no different. 

This year, we had 100 students from 28 countries attend International Getaway, which is the highest number we'd ever had both in terms of attendees and countries. I'm certainly not an expert when it comes to world geography, but I consider myself decently knowledgeable when it comes to countries, so it was a great delight to me when Megan said that a student from Eswatini was attending and I had no idea where that was (it borders South Africa). I was also excited because we had 5 students from UNO, 2 students from Bellevue, and 2 volunteers from our church attending as well! 

As usual, I wasn't actually staffing Getaway. My job was kid duty. We had our 3 kids, 3 other staff kids, and 3 kids from Getaway attendees. The youngest was 4 and I believe Ezra was the oldest at almost 10. Thankfully, the two staff who brought kids also brought a childcare helper, so between the 3 of us, we had everything covered pretty well. 

We were in a new spot this year, which in some ways was good and in other ways was tough. Clearwater Cove is a Younglife Camp and is absolutely gorgeous. The scenery is great, the beds were somewhat comfortable (not always a given), and the food was decent! The kids especially enjoyed the big sports area where they could play basketball, pickleball, volleyball, ping pong, air hockey, soccer, foosball, and corn hole, amongst other things. Still, with a space being that big, it also meant that there was a LOT of walking. Also, unfortunately, we weren't allowed to camp on site, which meant we needed to go out to go fish. Also, it was a 7 hour drive from Omaha, so there's that. 

Since I was with the kids the entire time, I'm not exactly sure of what happened during the content of Getaway but according to the students, it was really good (as always). There was small group bible study. There were testimonies. There was musical worship (the group from UNO actually led worship). The MC apparently did a really good job. The theme was Belonging. From what the Nebraska students told me, the theme hit really well. 

One thing that I did get to see was the Cultural Showcase. This is when students get to show off something from their culture. Some do demonstrations. Others do songs and some do dances. It is always the highlight of Getaway and was a hit again this year. 

Getaway was awesome, and I have the photos to prove it. =0). 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam 

Hooray for the Chinese Heritage Church!

Hello, friends! 

Last week, I had the pleasure of going to Dallas to participate in the Chinese Heritage Church Collaborative conference as a representative of InterVarsity. I joined InterVarsity's director of Asian American ministries and two other staff so we could network with church leaders and continue to build relationships with the Chinese Heritage Church. 

The Chinese Heritage Church (CHC) is one that has been very near and dear to my heart. I grew up in a CHC (hello to everyone at CBCOC!) and it was formative to my development as a follower of Jesus. The last 2 places that I've lived haven't had CHC's with English services, so I've been out of the CHC community for quite some time. Still, I hold the CHC is high regard and was so blessed to be invited to participate. Here are a few highlights: 

- Connecting with people! I had asked CBCOC if anyone was going to be at the conference but they said no. Imagine my surprise then when I saw my old Senior Pastor there! Apparently, he was one of the original founders of the Collaborative back in the day. What a small world! On top of that, I was able to connect with a guy who CBCOC played in an old high school church basketball league and a guy who dated (and married!) one of my sister's friends from college (#GoBears!).

My favorite story was from the last night. A bunch of us were sharing about where home was for us. I mentioned that I'm in Omaha now but that I grew up in Southern California. There were some California folk there and so they asked me where in SoCal. I told them Garden Grove but that our church was in Anaheim and how I could see the Disneyland Fireworks from our church on Friday nights. Another guy said, that his brother is law could also see the fireworks from his CHC growing up. Knowing that CBCOC was the only CHC in the area, I asked for the church name and his brother in law's name. As I suspected, I totally knew his brother in law and we were friends in high school.=0).

- Learning and Teaching! It was great learning from people who have been in the CHC context for years and decades even, about how to reach people through the CHC. Many of the challenges that the CHC faces are still present from when I attended a CHC but there are also new innovations and ways that the CHC is reaching Chinese folk in America. 

I was also able to be a resource. One of the first people I met was the Senior Pastor at one of the Chinese Churches in Kansas City. He came with his intern, who is hoping to reach out to Chinese international students in Kansas City. I had a great lunch with him, sharing about what I'd learned from watching Megan reach international students for so many years. I even was able to get him connected to the local IV staff. 

- Renewing Hope! Like I said earlier, I haven't regularly attended a CHC for over 20 years. When I visit my CHC every year, it's hard to not notice that the numbers are getting smaller and that many aunties and uncles have died. I've never doubted the good of the CHC, but I have wondered what the future of the CHC is going to be if the numbers and trends continue to move in the direction I was seeing. 

Hearing from folk who have been involved in the CHC for decades and the hope they still have for the CHC was so good for my soul. It's good to hear that God is still doing good work in the CHC and that there is still reason to hope that God will continue to use the CHC to bring the Gospel the Chinese folk in America! 

The CHC isn't perfect. No church is. Still, I'm glad that it's a part of my history and I'm glad that I was able to reconnect to my CHC roots. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam

Happy Birthday, Mama!

Hello, friends! 

Today, May 2, is Mama Leong's Birthday! I'd considered writing a list with one thing I love about Mama for every year that she's been alive, but then I'd have to tell you how old she is, and I don't think that she'd like that very much. So, I think I'll just have to pick a few of my favorite favorite things and go from there. 

One of the things that I've learned from Mama Leong is generosity. I'll say that this is a lesson that I didn't really pick up until later but both my parents are super generous and apparently I must have been watching because I can see myself doing some of the things that Mama did when I was growing up, especially with my own kids. I think there are two kinds of giving and generosity. There's the giving that says, "yes" when a request is made. "Can I have some ice cream?" "Yes." That sort of thing. There's also that generosity that gives freely without being asked. "Do you want some ice cream?" I'm blessed that Mama Leong exemplifies both types of generosity. 

Mama Leong's generosity shows up in how she grandparents. My kids love it when Ama comes to town because they know that no matter what happens, there will be a trip to Dairy Queen and a trip to a Chinese Buffet. Why? Because Mama Leong knows that the kids love going to Dairy Queen and the Chinese Buffet! That's enough for her. She gets so much joy from seeing them enjoy themselves. I know that my siblings would say the same with her other grandkids as well. There's something really beautiful about seeing grandparents and their grandchildren love each other so much. 

Recently, as in the past few years, I've come to see more of where I get my passion from. Between my parents, my mom is the one with the bigger emotions. Growing up, I was certain that I was more like my dad in terms of emotional expressiveness. However, over the past few years, I've seen how much of my passion about certain topics can actually be traced back to Mama Leong's personality. Mama Leong has a very deep sense of what is right and what is wrong and when that sense is violated, you'd best watch out. 

So, happiest of birthdays to Mama Leong, a wonderful mom, grandma, and all around person. Here's to many more years of Dilly Bars and deep emotions. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam