Gifts...

Hello, friends!

The last night of AAMSC19, our speaker asked us to re-imagine our spiritual gifts. To say that session was interesting would not quite do it the proper justice.

I wouldn't say that the idea of spiritual gifts is foreign to me but it's definitely an area where I've grown a lot in my understanding and in my theology. Growing up in a Chinese Baptist church, we talked about spiritual gifts but didn't get into the more "ghosty" gifts like speaking in tongues and healing. I don't know if that was a theological decision or a a decision based on the fact that we were all high schoolers. Either way, I knew of spiritual gifts but didn't really think about them much.

When I got to college, I saw more spiritual gifts in action. I saw friends of mine speak in tongues. I've had other friends pray healing over folk and be healed as well. I saw staff speak words of prophecy. Like I said before, I didn't think much about spiritual gifts so there wasn't any "unlearning" that needed to happen. I just had more exposure to gifts and so I accepted that they were present.

Our speaker spoke a bit on how important gifts are to our ministry, then she had us do listening prayer with two prompts. The first prompt was to ask God if there were any spiritual gifts that had been lying dormant that He wanted us to rekindle. The second prompt was to ask God if there were any new spiritual gifts that he wanted to give us.

For the first prompt, what came up for me was that I needed to rekindle the gift of preaching. I've known for a while that I've had the gift of preaching but it's a gift that I haven't used as much in the past few years. When I was first starting out on staff, I was preaching every week at ACF Large Group. But, as my responsibilities grew and I took on more roles, eventually leaving ACF, those opportunities stopped. I also haven't preached at my home church in Orange County in a bit, although I was able to guest preach once or twice down in Jeff City. Still, it was interested to hear that from Jesus.

Even MORE interesting was what I heard when I listened for new gifts. The word that came up in big bold letters was the word FAITH. My first reaction was uncertainty as to whether or not the gift of faith is actually a gift. So, I had to look it up. It turns out it is. My second reaction was uncertainty as to what the gift of faith actually is. So, I tried looking that up to. That search was less than fruitful and a little bit confusing. =0).

After talking with our Regional Spiritual Formation guru, I think I have a working definition of the gift of faith that makes sense to me. To paraphrase, it's a supreme confidence that Jesus is going to do what Jesus is going to do so it's OK to take risks. I'm still not entirely sure of how that's different from regular faith or just following Jesus well, but maybe that's evidence that I have that gift. Looking back on my life, I think that makes a certain amount of sense to me.

Right now, the plan is for me to figure out how to incorporate those gifts more into my work. I'm not totally sure what the game plan will be but I'm excited to see how God uses me with how He's created me.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

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Comfort Food...

Hello, friends!

One of the huge blessings about AAMSC19 was that it was in Orange County, about 15 minutes from where my parents live and where I grew up. Besides the joys of a Southern California February and being able to see my family, the fact that I was so close to most of my old favorite spots to eat was spectacular.

It may seem stereotypical but we as an AAM staff team love to eat. It's just a part of who we are. When I first looked at the schedule for the conference, I was astounded to see that we had a THREE HOUR lunch break. But, as I thought about it more, it made total sense. Most everyone was using Uber or Lyft, so you needed to wait for your ride to show up, get to the restaurant, order, take photos of your food, eat it, sit and talk about how good it was, decide where you were going to go tomorrow, order another Lyft, have that Lyft take you to get dessert of some sort (often boba), then grab a third Lyft back to the hotel. That's about a 3 hour trip, down to the minute.

Southern California has so many great restaurants, especially when it comes to Asian cuisine. I saw great photos posted from staff enjoying Korean BBQ, pho, Chinese food, sushi, and the like. I know there are some really great spots with delicious food and authentic flavors.

But I didn't want to find the best out there... I wanted to go to my old spots.

You've heard me say before that I'm a creature of habit. I love rhythms and structures. That is true when it comes to food too. I have no problem trying a new place if the folk I'm with want to go do something different. But if I'm left to my own devices, I'm going to hit the spots I know and love. Especially since I don't get back to Orange County as much as I used to, as soon as that plane touches down, I am a man on a mission.

Does Tommy's have the best burger? We can debate that all day long but we'll be debating it while I'm eating it. Is Kaju better than BCD? Almost certainly but BCD is never crowded, is right next to the Boba Loca (they use real red bean in their red bean milk tea!) and give you a fried fish as part of the bonchan, so you'd better believe we're going there. Is Korea House the best Korean BBQ joint in all the land? Not a chance but my family has been going there for 20+ years and as long as my dad is paying, we'll keep going there.

Unfortunately, I didn't get to everything. The Mandarin Noodle house was a bit too far to get to justify the trip, as was the pho place I like. Still, when I boarded my flight to get back to Omaha, I was happy, full, and maybe a little bit fat. That's the right way to end a conference.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

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The AAMSC19 Super Blog!!!

Hello, friends!

Sorry it's been so long since I've posted! Last month, I spent a week in California attending InterVarsity's Asian American Ministries Staff Conference (AAMSC19). Every 3 years, Asian American staff and staff who are working with Asian American chapters, gather together to rebuild community, re-establish vision for the work we do, and remind one another to God sees us as Asian Americans and that he's well pleased with us.

This year's theme was Re-imagine. We were asked to re-imagine how we see ourselves, our work, our partners, and our students. It was a really powerful time filled with good fellowship, great fun, and amazing food.

Putting all my thoughts on AAMSC19 in one blog felt like too big of a task, so here's a SuperBlog instead. Each link will take you to a different blog post on one aspect of my AAMSC19 experience. I'm still sorting through all the pieces so not all my thoughts will be fully formed. However, my hope is that I'll be able to get enough out into the blogosphere so as to not forget anything important.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Travel
Back in Cali
Pre-Conference
Being Old Staff
Bayanihan
Gifts
Food!

So... much... snow...

Hello, friends!

When we moved to Omaha, we knew that some things were going to be different than when we lived in CoMO. We knew that the city was going to be bigger so it was going to take a little longer to get around. We knew that it was going to be colder during the winter since we were further north. We knew that there would be some adjustments to make.

No one told me about the snow...

Y'all, it just stays! It comes, and it stays! I don't know how much it's snowed in the past few weeks but I do know that it won't go away! We had one day at the beginning of the month when there was rain and the temperatures were warm enough for all the January snow to melt. Then do you know what happened? It snowed! Then it snowed again! Then it snowed a third time! And we just finished another 6 inches of snow. All those inches are just piling on top of each other, making our back yard about a foot and a half taller. Our new snow shovel is already showing signs of wear. Y'all, it won't... stop... snowing.

Back in CoMO, winter weather was different. It'd snow and there would be ice, for sure but the temperatures would always make their way back up above freezing so nothing stayed on the ground for more than a few days. You'd have the inconvenience of snow but you could usually just drive over it without having to shovel your driveway because you knew it'd be gone soon. There was the occasional "snow-pocalypse" when we got a huge dump of it, but even those never lasted for very long, relatively speaking.

Look, I'm not saying I want to move back. I'm not saying that Omaha is terrible or that this whole thing is unacceptable. I'm not saying that the plows haven't been doing a great job or that we aren't going to make it work. I'm just saying there's a whole lot of it and I wouldn't mind seeing my driveway in its entirety sometime soon.

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

Black History Month

Hello, friends!

We are 2 weeks in but I wanted to wish everyone a Happy Black History month! In the midst of crazy weather, another potential government shutdown, the Super Bowl, Valentine's Day, and the start of a new semester for us folk who work on that schedule, Black History Month can get lost in the shuffle. It's a shame because as I've gotten older, I've seen how important remembering history is to our present. I've also developed a deeper understanding and appreciation for Black History and for my Black brothers and sisters.

I don't remember studying much about Black History Month when I was growing up. Maybe we did celebrate it and maybe we didn't. If we did, I don't remember anything from it. I don't know how much of that is because I don't remember much of anything from my early schooling and how much of it is because I didn't have any Black friends growing up so it was more of an abstract concept. My neighborhood didn't have many Black families in it and I can probably count on two hands the Black classmates I'd had up through high school. 

That definitely changed when I got to college. When I joined ACF at WashU (Go Bears!), ACF was one of 3 InterVarsity chapters, the other two being a Multi-ethnic chapter and another being Harambee, the Black Campus Ministry (BCM). It was through InterVarsity that I seriously made my first Black friends. I spent a lot of time hanging out with Ashley, T-MO, Rae Rae, and Jad and learned a lot about the experience of being Black in America, mostly through osmosis as opposed to intentional conversations. It was a formative time for in more ways than one. 

Once I joined staff with InterVarsity, the implicit became very much explicit. I was having a lot more conversations with staff friends like Ashley (the one and the same), Chioma, and Tony. I made a lot of mistakes and learned a lot. I tried planting a BCM chapter on two different occasions and learned made even more mistakes and learned even more. It has been a humbling and enlightening experience. It's given me a fuller understanding of my own ethnic identity and a greater appreciation for the beauty of God's design. 

Don't hear me wrong. I'm not sharing my story so that I can put myself on a pedestal as an "enlightened" person when it comes to issues race and justice. I'm also not saying that personal relationships are the fix to all of the US's problems when it comes to issues of race and justice. There are real, systemic changes that need to happen if we want to see true equity in the country. I share my story and my journey because it's what I know and it's my way of celebrating Black History Month. I am a better person, a better follower of Jesus, a better staff, and a better leader because of the influence and friendship of folk in the Black community. I would be a lesser person without these relationships and I would be missing out on so much of God's goodness. It hasn't always been easy but it absolutely has been worth it. 

For my non-Black friends, for Black History Month, ask yourself these questions: what do I THINK I know about the Black community? How can I find out if what I think I know is actually right? (NOTE: The answer to this question is NOT to find your one Black friend and make them explain everything to you. You can Google stuff...). Am I willing to explore, grieve, lament, and repent? Do I need to stretch my community to include a more diverse set of viewpoints? 

As for my Black friends, please, enjoy yourselves this month and know that you have been a huge blessing to me. Thanks for bearing with me. =0). 

Have an excellent day!

~Adam 

Happy New Year!!!

Hello, friends!

Did you know that Tuesday was the Lunar New Year? If you didn't, well, now you know! You can find some more information here.

My relationship with the Lunar New Year is an interesting one. It's one of those holidays that I acknowledged growing up but it didn't have a whole lot of significance for me until much later in life.

There is one exception though. I'm born in January 1985, which makes me technically a Rat but until I had that realization, I identified as an Ox. In 1997, which was also the year of the Ox, I decided that I didn't need to go to school because it was "my year." I made my own holiday. Was it right? Probably not. Did it mean anything to me? Certainly not. Would I do it again? Absolutely. =0).

Other than that one year though, the only thing that really mattered to me was that Papa John (my dad, not the pizza guy) made a soup out of brown sugar, ginger, and balls made of glutenous rice flour. I have no idea of its cultural significance but I know that it is delicious.

When I got to college (Go Bears!) LNYF was a big thing at WashU (Go Bears!) but because I didn't care much about the Lunar New Year growing up, I didn't partake in the festivities with the same fervor as many of my friends.

But then I moved to CoMO. And when I moved to CoMO, I was suddenly lacking in Asian American peer community. I was also trying to create a home for Asian American students at Mizzou so I needed to steep myself more in some of those traditions. Suddenly, my appreciation for the Lunar New Year festivities grew, and it's grown ever since. Marrying Megan and being involved in international student ministry has also helped.

Celebrating this year was a lot of fun. We had some friends over and we had a dumpling making party while watching a great documentary about Chinese history (read: Disney's Mulan). Of course, I made my dad's dessert soup and everyone left full.

It's funny how culture and cultural pride develops and evolves over time. As I've moved further and further away from critical masses of Asian American community (Southern California to St. Louis to CoMO, to now Omaha), I've found myself gravitating more towards the Chinese side of my identity. I've started learning Mandarin. I'm trying to affirm Ezra and Thaliea's Chinese identity more. It's an interesting journey. I doubt that I'll ever forsake my "American culture" side but I can see myself becoming more and more discontented with some of the ways that American Culture functions.

God doesn't make mistakes. He made me Chinese American for a purpose. I'm fully Chinese and fully American. Figuring out what that means exactly has been fun, if not also delicious. =0).

Have an excellent day!

~Adam

An Odd Set of Meetings...

Hello, friends!

Sorry for not posting last week. I was a bit under the weather, which actually is part of this week's story! Let's dive in, shall we?

I think I've said this before, that one of Megan and my new responsibilities as Regional Coordinators is that we're part of the Regional Leadership Team, or RLT. The RLT includes our Regional Director, the 4 Area Directors, our Operations and Spiritual Formation Gurus (my term), and us. Our job is to determine the direction of the Region in terms of strategy and planning, as well as put together any Region-wide conferences, like Prospective Staff Weekend or our Regional Staff Conference. Most of our communication happens virtually since we live in different states but every few months we try to get together in person to meet, rotating states. This time, the RLT meetings were in Omaha, meaning we were going to play host. 

The plan was simple. RLT meetings went from Tuesday through Thursday, so the out of town staff would come in on Tuesday afternoon, we'd meet at our place, Megan (and to a lesser extent, I) would cook dinner, then the female out of town staff would stay at our place and the male out of town staff would stay with another staff. Wednesday would be meetings all day at our house (the kids would be in daycare) as would Thursday, before everyone leaves after lunch. It's a pretty straightforward plan. Too bad it didn't end up that way. 

On Monday, ice and snow storms started to hit Iowa and Nebraska. This meant that it wasn't safe for our Iowa RLT members (including our Regional Director) to drive in until Wednesday. Thankfully, because of the wonders of technology, we were able to do our afternoon meetings via video call; most of the team was in our living room while the Iowa staff called in from their houses. 

Nebraska really got hit with the storm on Tuesday afternoon, meaning our daycare got closed early and I had to run to pick up the kids. Thankfully, some other local staff were free so they could watch the kids while we met. We compensated them with the dinner that (mostly Megan) and I cooked, since we were missing the Iowa staff anyway. Tuesday was accomplished well enough. 

Wednesday was another story. I was up most of Tuesday night with a stomach bug of some sort so instead of going to the meetings, I was holed up in bed trying to rest up. Oops. Then, on Thursday, with me still possibly contagious, I video called into the meetings while they were happening (at another staff's house). So much for hosting...

All in all, I'd say it was actually a pretty successful RLT meeting. I met with our Regional Director for our regular supervisory meeting yesterday and I said that, given how much went wrong logistically the fact that we got ANYTHING done speaks to the power and grit of the team. Sure, we didn't get EVERYTHING done, but something is definitely better than nothing, given the circumstances. 

Ultimately, meetings like this are one of the reasons I love the work that I do so much. Getting to work with these folk through snow storms and stomach bugs is a joy and an honor. It's so much fun seeing all of us in action, rolling with the punches, and ultimately, working together to bring the kingdom to the campus. 

Have an excellent day! 

~Adam